All posts by Kristina Cascone

Mangrove and Macaws in Costa Rica by Kristina Cascone

Costa Rica 2024, Study Abroad

1614180_10204231689063042_8989259304927152572_oToday was our first day of not working with the sea turtles, it was bittersweet. As much as I wanted to continue to hang out on a beautiful beach and work on turtle conservation, I was ready for something different. Sophie, our program director took us on a 30 minute walk to a cabina just off the beach where Widecast has a homebase for mangrove conservation. I was happy to be in the shade, although the humidity and heat was no different. At the mangrove station Sophie explained that the mangroves are important for the shorelines during storms and provide a safe place for the turtles to rest. The area we were planting mangroves in appeared stripped as the tide went out. Sophie explained to us that the mangroves need to be in an area where they can soak up salt as well as fresh water in order to grow. Aside from getting stuck in the mud and really dirty, it was a great experience that made me realize how important mangroves are to our ecosystem especially here in Florida. On our way back from the mangrove trip, we had a great opportunity to capture Scarlet Macaws in their natural habitat. There were at least 10 in one tree, squawking up a storm. It was nice to see them free.

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One more off the bucket list! by Kristina Cascone

Study Abroad

10494420_10204231729864062_8616658097554020238_oFor today we had originally planned to go kayaking and horseback riding but we all agreed that we wanted to see if there was anything that did not require too much energy especially with all the work we had been doing the past couple days. The staff offered to take all of us out into the peninsula and see if we could go whale watching. Humpback whales visit the Osa Peninsula between the months of August- December and is a popular feeding ground for them. As our luck would have it, today was August 1st and the whales were plentiful! I have to say, this was an above amazing day! There was a pod of 4-5 whales and calves and they were HUGE! I was so excited to see them, as it was my first time seeing anything bigger than our Florida dolphins in the wild. You could hear them as they spouted the water out of their blow holes, it was an amazing sound. Words can not express how thankful I am to have been given the opportunity to travel to another country, participate in animal conservation and have memories that will last forever, Pura Vida, Costa Rica!

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Buenos Dias from Costa Rica! by Kristina Cascone

Study Abroad

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After an entire day of traveling, we woke to an early breakfast at 5:45 am (the earliest I have ever gotten up for breakfast). Marie, our host, whipped up a tasty variety of fresh fruit, eggs and Costa Rica’s famous rice and beans. After breakfast we loaded up and took a 2.5 mile bike ride to our project site where we had our orientation. Everyone was extremely friendly. At orientation was received important information on the species we will see as well as the do’s and don’ts of catch and release. Our first day at sea we immediately caught 3 Green sea turtles, 2 females and 1 male. Interesting fact, Green sea turtles got their name not by the color of their shells which are generally dark almost black, but for the color of their fat, which is oddly green in color. When the male was caught it was very exciting as, he had not been tagged and it is quite rare to see males in the area, they normally stay out to sea. Once all the excitement calmed down we took to resting on the beach not far from where we set the lines. It was so nice to sit and relax and not have to be anywhere or think about things that needed to be done, it was nice to let the mind relax. Although we did not catch anymore turtles today, it was an amazing experience for the first day out and very memorable.