Aero: Katherine Kostuk – Costa Rica 2013 – Biodiversity
Aero: Katherine Kostuk – Costa Rica 2013 – Biodiversity
Aero: Katherine Kostuk – Costa Rica 2013 – Biodiversity
I love spending a good amount of time outside and enjoying nature so Costa Rica was a great opportunity to experience someplace different. The range of biodiversity in Costa Rica was amazingly unlike that in the states. It was incredible to see how people used everything to its full potential instead of being wasteful. While at Fabrica Sr. and Sra. Ese, the main wood workshop, we learned they use old tires to assemble wood curtains. While at the Doka Coffee plantation we learned that for the drying processes they use the coffee shells for the fire. Not only that but everywhere we went we would continually see trash cans for specific materials. There were cans for trash, but also one for plastic, and another for glass each clearly labeled. They took every opportunity to take care of their recyclables much more than we do in the states.
See The Flickr Gallery!
During my time in Costa Rica, the weather was perfect. Unlike in upstate New York they only have two seasons; a dry and rainy season. I was very lucky to not have had any rain while there. The weather in Costa Rica is my dream weather. The sun was shining bright, and it was hot while not getting humid. Prior to hiking the volcanoes and the rain forests my host mother repeatedly reminded Tricia and I to take a sweater because it would be cold on the top. I can remember talking with Tricia about how cold could it possibly be, I mean we were in Costa Rica after all. However, once we reached the top of those volcanoes we were very happy to have our sweaters. The elevation made the temperature decrease dramatically from the 85 degrees we were use to plus wind. As we would start to come off the top we would all realize we no longer needed the extra clothes as the heat returned. On top of the volcano it was amazing to be able to see where the plants where growing, and where they were gone from when it erupted. I had the chance to walk on the ashes of where one of the volcanoes had erupted and it was incredible to see how in certain areas re-growth was happening. Being an avid hiker in the Adirondacks it was very exciting for me to have the chance to hike through the rain forests in a different country. The wildlife that grew within the forests was completely different from anything I would see in the Adirondacks. Seeing bamboo growing in its natural habitat was not what I would have expected it to be. It grows very tall, and thick enough to make a natural wall. Hearing the bamboo as they all swayed and hit each other made us all stop in our tracks as it sounded like they would fall soon. The leaves where bigger than I thought possible. We found one while hiking that we decided to hide under because it would fit us underneath. While walking through the Lankaster Gardens I got the chance to see flowers of all different colors. My favorite flower was unlike anything I have ever seen here in the states. Unlike other flowers the main stem into the flower was a light pink with speckles of white. The flower buds went from the light pink to yellow and finally a purplish blue. It was the most incredible flower I’ve ever seen because I didn’t think it was real at first. While on our night walk in Monteverde we saw a variety of birds and a tarantula. We learned about Bullet Aunts and vines that strangle other trees while hiking through the hanging bridges.
On our way to the beach we stopped at a bridge that over looked a river. Within the water there were very large crocodiles. I have seen many alligators, but there crocodiles were much bigger and a lot scarier than any alligator. It was interesting to see the crocodiles living within their natural ecosystem. The beach was one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. It looked like a picture of paradise that we had just stepped into. The palm trees line ended right before an open stretch of sand that hit water that was as clear as glass. I was expecting the water to be cold, but surprisingly it was warm, a perfect temperature. While swimming at the beach we all noticed a stingray riding in the waves. The fact that the water was so clear that we could see it was incredible, but also a little nerve wrecking. One day was spent at the zoo and it is unlike any zoo around here. While there were many beautiful animals to look at behind cages, there were also animals to see walking around freely. There were very large iguanas and some colorful birds flying around. My favorite part was the numerous peacocks walking around the zoo on their own. They were amazing and so close I could have touched them. It was incredible when I realized that all those animals that were in the zoo could actually live in that environment and survive if they were healthy. Unlike the zoos in the states that zoo was an animal reserve. All the animals that they had were either in rehabilitation or can’t survive in the wide. Costa Rica seems to do a lot of things such as this and the recycling that are beneficial for the environment. It makes me stop to wonder what the US could possible do to better our economy even if it is steps such as these. Clearly we could learn a thing or two because the biodiversity was amazing, and I fell in love with the outdoors very quickly.
– Katherine Kostuk
The LEAF Project
www.leaflanguages.org
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0
