The entire Costa Rica program was extremely exciting for me and I had the most incredible time, but one of the highlights for me was getting to help take samples and release this critically endangered species of sea turtle back into the ocean after our research was complete. During our trip we only had two … Continue reading Hawksbill Sea Turtle Research
After arriving in Costa Rica and spending eight hours driving to our destination, our first night in Playa Blanca was a bit of a culture shock, but I was certainly expecting worse conditions. Being away from everything not having any internet or forms of communication, I found myself sleeping better than I have in a … Continue reading Morning Greetings in Costa Rica
This was not my first international trip so I was not in complete “culture shock” once we arrived. It was however, very different from what I imaged. My only preconceived notions of Costa Rica was what I would see on t.v. advertisements for vacationing and what one of my co-workers had told me about it. … Continue reading The culture and lifestyle of Costa Rica
The in water project at Playa Blanca began in 2010. They began this organization known as LAST (Latin American Sea Turtles) in an effort to learn more about the Hawksbill sea turtle’s habits, including foraging sites that they will use for the majority of their juvenile life. When a sea turtle is caught, it will … Continue reading Education while in Costa Rica
One of the most fun parts of the Costa Rica trip was to get crafty for a kids’ day that the WIDECAST team was putting on for the local children to help teach them about the life of a sea turtle. Our job was to create costumes of predators that a juvenile sea turtle has … Continue reading Crafts for Turtle day!
During the ten days spent out in Costa Rica, we were afforded two days out in the water the catch some sea turtles. The first Saturday, May 9, 2015, we headed to the beach and loaded up on the boats, while the research assistants dropped the nets into the water, we were able to see … Continue reading Costa Rica and Sea Turtles
We got to capture a Hawksbill sea turtle the first time we headed out. It was a male that had already had a tracker on it. He was feisty. His shell was beautiful. We were able to get a tissue sample and a blood sample as well to see where he had been eating, and … Continue reading Sea turtles in Costa Rica
I thought that my experience in Costa Rica would be a lot easier than it really was. It was weird when I got off the plane and into the bus because I thought that I was in one of those infomercials about ‘supporting the people of ____ country because they live in slums and don’t … Continue reading Cultural Differences In Costa Rica
First day of sea turtles!! Sadly, we only had one sea turtle come in that day. This is how the day went: We had to load all the equipment onto the boats, Teffy (Veterinarian) and Callie (research assistant) put out the net and six of us jumped into the water and made sure to … Continue reading Costa Rica – Sea Turtle Day One
They do not call me late Tate for nothing. My flight was scheduled May 7, 2015 at 12:20. I thought the night before I had timed the trip perfectly to the airport from my friend’s house in Miami, boy was I so wrong. I woke up at 9:30 that lovely Thursday morning and was on … Continue reading Always be checked into your flight two hours ahead of your flight schedule!