Stories and photos from the field
Over 4,500 scientific papers have been published on research conducted at La Selva Biological Station, yet it is rare that information from the academic literature makes it out to the general public. Here, MSEM students summarize findings from some of the most interesting recent articles.
We are in the final days here at La Selva Biological station in Costa Rica. 10 weeks ago I started my project in the OSA peninsula which feels like a lifetime ago. Originally pursuing a project looking at seed dispenser activity as it related to fig trees across land use types. These land use types… Continue reading Bats, Primates and Forest Fragments
Greetings friends, This is my first foreign correspondence while I am doing research on bats in Costa Rica. I will be following up at the end of my trip to sum up what I have learned from this experience. Currently, I am conducting acoustic surveys across Costa Rica using two Wildlife Acoustics SM4BAT full-spectrum passive… Continue reading Collecting Bat Acoustic Data Using Passive Recorders in Costa Rica
According to Darwinian theories, nature is locked in a vicious cycle for the survival of the fittest. This cycle involves the evolution of behaviors and adaptations that allow a species to survive and reproduce over time. A process known as natural selection. However, by strictly following these theories, one would not be able to address… Continue reading Game of Survival: Reproduction, Food, and Play?
Date: July 16, 2013 Source: PeerJ, La Selva Biological Research Station Researchers in Costa Rica and Puerto Rico are embracing new digital recording technologies to accurately identify animal, bird, and insect species living in the forest. They have developed an Automated Remote Biodiversity Monitoring Network (ARBIMON) that records information 24 hours a day and determines… Continue reading Automating Science: Identifying Species using Advanced Audio Technology
A recent study conducted in the landscape surrounding La Selva Biological Station, of northeastern Costa Rica, found that landscape matrix really matters for tropical reptiles and amphibians. La Selva is located adjacent to the Braulio Carrilio Nation Park, however, the landscape surrounding La Selva Biological Station is a mixture of pasture, plantations, fragmented forest and… Continue reading Forest-land use complementarily modifies community structure of a tropical hepetofauna
The Night. It is disappearing before our eyes. As the human population grows, so does the light pollution produced by our infrastructure; this concentration of lights produced by cities can be seen from space. Dr. Lewanzik at La Selva Biological Field Station in Costa Rica researches the impact of increased light intensity on bats. A… Continue reading Stealing the Night from Bats
“Global temperature increases over the next century are predicted to contribute to the extinction of a number of taxa, including up to 40 % of all lizard species.” Frightening way to start a scientific paper, but even more so when you realize the drastic implications that this study brings about. By using a cross examination… Continue reading Wanted for the murder of lizards: Climate Change
Recent study at La Selva Biological Station reveals that even tadpoles of Oophaga pumilio have poison. In a recent study, Styonski and colleagues surveyed tadpoles, juvenile and adults of the strawberry poison dart frog to try to determine in which life stages the frogs gain their poisonous alkaloids that so efficiently repel predators. This… Continue reading How do baby poison dart frogs get their poison??
A recent study in Costa Rica revealed some evolutionary secrets of one of nature’s most adorable birds–the hummingbird. Scientists at La Selva Biological Station in Costa Rica wanted to understand feeding habits of the tiny birds and how the relationship between hummingbirds and their favorite flower foods may have developed. Biologists looked at characteristics of… Continue reading The secrets of the hummingbird
Paraponera clavata, commonly known as “bala” or “bullet ant” in English, is a species of ant that is commonly found throughout Costa Rica. The bullet ant has been found to be distributed throughout Central and South America, generally in tropical forest zones. This species is the only member of the genus Paraponera, and it’s closest… Continue reading The “Bala” Ant