Estación Las Tortugas and Proyecto Pacuare
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Perhaps you’ve seen endangered animals in zoos, but how often have you encountered one in the wild…and had a chance to save it? At Estación Las Tortugas and Proyecto Pacuare, you’ll work with a team of biologists and local experts on conservation efforts of leatherback or green sea turtles. This work could include conducting population studies, tagging turtles, transplanting eggs to protected areas, or releasing hatchlings into the ocean. You might also help build hatcheries or clear the beach of debris to make it easy for them to nest. At night, you will patrol the beaches looking for nesting females, and with any luck you will get to experience the magic of seeing a sea turtle lay her eggs. EcoTeach’s work on these projects has helped create a dramatic increase in the number of nesting females each year. For many of our travelers, working with the turtles is a life-changing experience!
Estacion Las Tortugas 2014 Conservation Report
The Osa “Turtles in Water” Project
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This is a unique opportunity to get in the water and study turtles as part of a new “catch, study and release” conservation project located in Gulfo Dulce, the bay separating the Osa Peninsula from the mainland of Costa Rica. Participants will accompany project staff in research boats and assist in the safe and gentle capture of hawksbill and Pacific green sea turtles. Once the turtle is in the boat, you will help to measure, tag and collect data. Once studies are complete, the turtle will be released back into the water. Circumstances permitting, you may be allowed to get back in the water with the turtle. EcoTeach has partnered with WIDECAST, an international non-profit organization dedicated to sea turtle conservation in the Caribbean region. Little is known about the sea turtle population in this region and EcoTeach volunteers will play a vital role in collecting data about population structure, genetic origin, in-water habitat use and health status of the turtle population.