Notes from the station
With all projects moving forward, the crazy times are upon us, with turtle season delivering its normal level of chaos.
We're fortunate to have an amazing group of young interns here - from France, the US, the Netherlands, the UK, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium and yes, even Canada! Many of them will be gone by August, but we're looking forward to visits by Shawnee State University and the University of Kent to boost numbers as the turtle pace picks up.
The season started slowly, and it was a struggle to get the patrol leaders out for the tagging experience they needed. But, as soon as the turtles started appearing consistently on our neighboring Tortuguero beach, our friends at the STC welcomed them over for a night, and they quickly got comfortable with the tagging process. Since their return, the turtles (and the storms) have been consistently arriving so that they've been able to consolidate their skills.
As many of you know, we've long struggled with issues with stray and free-ranging dogs on the beach, but this year we're confronting a new but equally disturbing issue… cats. Over the last 5 years, the number of domesticated cats in the area has skyrocketed and the feral population is also rising fast. While we've often had puppies left in the forest near the station, we recently had our first group of abandoned cats wandering through base. Fortunately, we caught them, got them medical treatment (including castration) and rehomed them - well out of the area. A quick internet search will tell you how devastating even one pair of breeding cats can be, with they and their uncontrolled offspring able to produce 420,000 offspring over 7 years. This would raise alarm in an urban setting, but could be catastrophic (no pun intended) in Tortuguero National Park. We'll be working hard to educate about this issue as well as coordinate with local authorities in looking for solutions.
We were very glad to get the cats into good homes before the station had its first flood of the season - or should I say it's been raining cats and dogs (but holding steady as I write), and it's looking to potentially be the first storm of many with a busy rain season predicted. This makes us all the more grateful to COTERC supporters for enabling us to elevate our buildings, keeping interns and staff safe and dry. A particular thank you to the Griggs Family Foundation who have continued to provide us with support essential for us to move forward.
