Forest Ecology

There’s something eerie about walking along jungle trails that you know are frequented by jaguars…especially when you are walking at night with nothing but a headlamp to light the path in front of you. This was our introduction to Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary, the only jaguar reserve of its kind and the site for Forest Ecology. Even though the chances of you seeing a jaguar are rare, you can “feel” their presence — claw marks on trees indicate that these large kitties also need scratching poles. How do you get university students to roll out of bed before the break of dawn? Mandatory birding. It was painful, but it's really something else hearing and seeing the jungle come alive with keel-billed toucans, violacious trogans, red-romped tanagers and other colourful tropical birds, all 400 species of them. Erik Linquist, our professor for the week, had a contagious enthusiasm that moved many to actually enjoy waking up that early. Other highlights of the week included investigating what happens to human excrement in the jungle (thanks for the samples B. and Grant!), swimming in the pristine waterfalls at Tiger Fern, and listening to a Mayan Medicine Healer share her herbal remedies. Now we’re back at the Nab getting some R & R (resting and reading). A few students suspect that they may have new friends (botflies) living under their skin. We’ll see how many we can count...