Playa Ostional, Guanacaste, Costa Rica
The Ostional National Wildlife Refuge (ONWR) was officially created in 1983. The refuge is bounded by Punta India to the north and Punta Guiones to the south and includes three nautical miles of marine protected area. ONWR includes four beaches (Ostional, Nosara, Peladas, and Guiones), 8,000 ha (19,768 acres) of marine life, and 468 ha (1,156 acres) of land. The mission of the refuge is to protect marine and coastal ecosystems, especially the reproduction of sea turtles and at the same time the local communities benefit and participate in the process of conservation through the sustainable use of the resources, investigation program, protection, ecotourism and enviromental education. ONWR falls under the Ministry of the Environment, Energy, and Telecommunications (MINAET), the National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC), and the Tempisque Conservation Area (ACT).
Ostional is one of few beaches in the world where the olive ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea) nests synchronously in an event called the arribada. An arribada is when thousands of olive ridley turtles come ashore to lay their eggs at the same time. Arribadas occur almost every month of the year and are typically timed with the last quarter moon. The peak season and the largest arribadas occur in the rainy season (July-November). Ostional is one of the most important nesting sites in the world for olive ridley sea turtles.
So many turtles come onto the beach in a short time span that most of the nests laid within the first several days of the arribada are destroyed by subsequently nesting turtles. In fact, during an arribada, 70% of the nest are destroyed because of natural causes: (1) excavation by other turtles, (2) natural erosion, and (3) microbial infestation. Therefore, in 1987, a legal community-based egg harvest program was initiated to allow local people the right to collect and sell a percentage of the eggs from the first three days of each arribada. This is the only place in the world where it is legal to harvest turtle eggs and this practice is designed to prevent poaching and to benefit the local community by funding local infrastructure and family income. The nests laid within the first several days have the lowest chance of survival and removing them decreases nest density, which is also known to affect hatching success.
The Ostional Integrated Development Association (ADIO) is in charge of the egg harvest program. ADIO has 250 members and the Director of the ACT grants ADIO permission annually to continue the egg harvest. Egg collection is only done on the main nesting beach, where the highest nest density occurs. The money from the sale of the eggs is divided: 70% goes to the members of the ADIO and 30% goes back to the local community. ADIO also has the following obligations: (1) provide local security to protect the refuge, (2) protect the hatchlings from predators such as dogs, vultures and other birds, and (3) carry out regular beach clean ups to remove trash and debris from the beach to facilitate nesting turtles and emerging hatchlings.
The research assistant will primarily be assisting, and working under the supervision of, Vanessa Bezy, in a Masters thesis research project. The primary objective of this particular study is to determine whether there is a correlation between hatching success and the microbial abundance in nest sand at Ostional. This study will sample natural nests and relocate nests into prepared experimental treatment plots to observe hatching success in relation to a range of microbial abundance in nest sand. This will involve preparing a hatchery-like set up of treatment plots, sampling nests within the same night of an arribada, monitoring these nests for oxygen and temperature throughout the incubation period, and conducting excavations at the end of the incubation period to quantify hatching success.
There is also the opportunity for the research assistant to assist in other research and data collection that takes place in Ostional and even to conduct your own independent research project.
Duties
(Training will be provided for all duties, although prior experience is favorable)
• Lead and/or participate in 3-4 hour night patrols (7 km)
• Identify, measure, and tag nesting females
• Collect nest data (egg count, laying time, nest dimensions, triangulation of nest location)
• Assist with construction, preparation, and maintenance of hatchery/experimental plots
• Relocation of nests into hatchery
• Early morning monitoring of nests for hatching
• Conduct post hatching nest excavations and stage embryonic development
• Release hatchlings
• Conduct beach slope survey studies
• Collect nest air samples and measure oxygen content with an O2 analyzer (training provided)
• Monitor nest temperature (HOBO dataloggers)
• Participate in regular beach litter and debris cleanups
• Assist in conducting transect surveys during arribadas (when needed)
Requirements
• Advanced undergraduate student or recent graduate in a relevant subject (i.e. Biology, Marine Biology, Conservation, Environmental Sciences)
• Proficient in spoken Spanish and English. You will be expected to effectively communicate with local assistants and community members (Spanish) as well as volunteers (English).
• Independent, reliable, responsible, hard-working, motivated, open-minded, and friendly.
• Positive attitude, able to take constructive criticism, and adaptable to unexpected situations.
• Strong interpersonal communication skills and team player
• Must be comfortable in an isolated, remote setting.
• Must be fit and willing to work long hours in extreme conditions (heavy rain, heat and humidity). You will be required to carry out physical labor and acclimate to an irregular sleeping schedule.
• Previous experience of working in the field (especially with sea turtles) is desirable.
• Previous experience abroad and familiarity with Latin American Culture is desirable.
• Your own personal health insurance coverage is required to participate.
Benefits/Costs
This is a volunteer position. The research assistant is responsible for airfare, ground transportation, lodging and meals. Pursuing funding and credit through your university is highly encouraged (if available).
Accommodations are available on-site for $26 US per day. This includes 3 meals per day (vegetarian/vegan friendly), a bunk bed and shared room with 6 people. Electricity, plumbing (no hot water), and Internet (although not always reliable) are available on site. There is limited public transportation available in and out of Ostional, with the nearest bank and pharmacy a 20-minute cab ride away.
Additional Contact Information
If interested, please send a resume and contact information for relevant references directly to vanessa.bezy@gmail.com.