Foreign Knowledge

I learned a lot of stuff over the summer. Most of my unique learning was done in the company of the Advanced Biology group when we were in Costa Rica. While the trip was fun and exciting, my thirst for knowledge will be forever broadened.  I experienced new things, took some risks (zip-lining, white water rafting, swimming the rapids, hiking an active volcano) and I hope they turn out not to be just once in a lifetime opportunities.  I learned all kinds of things while on that trip, but one of my favorite experiences was the night we went on the Sea Turtle walk. 

Imagine this- You are a child again, about 7 or 8. You wait crouched in the shrubs on the edge of the beach, all the while keeping a lookout for jaguars. You know your friends are hiding further down the beach. This will be the first time you have done this without your older brother. You are really excited because this expanse of time (March through May) is Leather Back Sea Turtle season. Finally you see one slowly, laboriously making its way up the beach. You wait as the turtle crawls to a place she feels safe to build a nest. You watch as she first digs the body hole and lowers herself into it. Then you duck for cover as she flings the dirt about with her back flippers: the process she uses to dig the egg chamber. You wait as she lays her eggs (100 to 150 at a time). When she is finished you watch her bury the eggs. You watch as she climbs out of the body hole and covers it with sand. She even drags weeds and driftwood over the nest to protect it from nest raiders such as jaguars. wild dogs and humans. (Before they were into conserving the turtles, people in Costa Rica would hunt the turtles during laying season for their shells and skins to make jewelry and for their meat. They also raided the nests for turtle eggs which are still sold on the black market today and used in a popular drink where an egg is cracked into a shot glass and mixed with alcohol.) As she begins her trek back to the sea, you seize the opportunity. You and your four friends burst out of the shrubs and climb on the turtles' back. You ride her all the way to the ocean, using touches on her nose like a brake system. When she gets close enough to get her flippers wet, you all quickly jump off and dash away. You move fast because you know that turtles can maneuver much quicker and more efficiently in water and  she would not hesitate to bite your arm clean off!!

This is a story told to us by one of the guides, the night we took our walk. He told us this story and used a stick to draw intricate and accurate pictures of the five kinds of sea turtles that nest in Costa Rica during different times of the year. It was pretty cool. We ended up doing some of the things he described to us. We walked for a long time through the jungle at midnight, to get to the beach. There was some screaming along the way however, because no one was expecting the first wave of blue land crabs that we startled by walking through their territory. They are pretty big and walk sideways, and several went across the path, glaring at us with their eyes on long stalks. When we got to the beach we had to be quiet and wait for a turtle to come on shore. We were in Costa Rica during Giant Green Sea Turtle laying season, so the turtle we saw, though not as big as a leather back, was as big as my outstretched arms. You can only touch the turtles and get close to them when they fall into a trance and physically begin to lay their eggs. We got really close and got to see everything, we even got to touch the turtle. Of course, the guide waited until we were on the beach  to tell us that she has seen jaguars with other groups there. It was a really cool experience. If you have any questions or want to know more about the trip or what we did, I will be happy to answer questions and share stories and pictures! The thing I am most amazed by from this trip was the amount of stuff that I learned. It was truly amazing!

~ Stephany ~