We woke up for breakfast this morning at 8 after a much-needed sleep from our day yesterday—which ended with us sitting around the campfire listening to the Four Nations hockey game (go Canada!) with the Albertan forestry students. For breakfast, we had huevos con jamon y saucito, and refried frijoles, which was interrupted with some exciting new finds from the mist nets, notably the critically endangered Black-capped Vireo, which Javier said was a once in a lifetime find for him. We also netted a Red-Headed tanager, a MacGillivray’s warbler, and an Audubon’s Oriole.
Steve then briefly introduced the research projects we will be working on at Chamela. Most of us are dealing with some pretty itchy bug bites today. We went on an amazing 3.5 km hike on the Sendero El Tlacuache trail in pursuit of rattle snakes and salamanders. It was a beautiful forest with many hanging vines, mosses, and epiphytes. We didn’t find any snakes or salamanders, but we did have some unexpected finds: a handful of brown freshwater crabs, two different species of frogs, and four crested guans! When we reached the upper road again, we searched for different butterflies to identify. We were especially taken with the glass-wing butterfly. We got back to the station and were quite tired from the hike, but kept looking for butterflies and caught up in our field notebooks. Then we had chicken and rice for lunch, with cucumber and lime juice to drink.
After lunch, there was time for the group to take a wonderful long siesta and start to get our things packed for our departure tomorrow. Some of us did yoga in the afternoon sunlight outside of the Flora cabin. Others explored around the station before it was time to go to the classroom and do a few seminars. Alex presented about agroforestry, Mica Mae presented on how climate change is reshaping the tropics, and Mikaela presented about UNESCO World Biosphere Reserves. We had some productive discussions about agricultural subsidies, the effects of climate change on range distribution, and the dynamics of Las Joyas becoming a biosphere.
We ended our session and enjoyed the lovely late afternoon before dinner at 7pm. Our dinner was jamon y queso sandwiches, which was also interrupted by a new bird catch: an orange-billed nightingale thrush. We were all pleased to see this bird, especially Bailey, who earned his bird-holding redemption! Then we lingered near the benches and watched stars appear as the sky darkened. Steve told us some stories about previous field courses he has taught internationally. We ended our night with a cozy campfire and stargazing. We’re ready for a good sleep before our exciting travel day and carnaval in Autlan tomorrow!
Buenas noches, hasta mañana!
black-capped vireo
Trailhead of Sendero El Tlacuache (Opossum Trail)
Glass-winged butterfly
Relaxing after the hike
Twisted vines having grown around a stem that has long since decayed
Male red-headed tanager
Gray-breasted wood-wren nest found along the trail with feathers of other bird species woven in
Searching the stream for leaf litter frogs
A small crab found along the stream
Looking for critters, ever so carefully
Such wonderful updates! The glass-winged butterfly looks unreal. And the range of birds you’re encountering—so different from at home—is incredible.