Apoyo Spanish School

Studying Spanish at Apoyo Spanish School is not just about Spanish class. There are lots of fun moments with new experiences as well as the grammar, verb conjugation, and vocabulary. Here are a a few scenes which demonstrate the unique aspects in which you learn while you enjoy.

Students of Apoyo Spanish School visit the Catarina overlook, with Lake Apoyo below. 

 Each week, students of Apoyo Spanish School visit the Pueblos Blancos, which include Catarina and other nearby small towns near Laguna de Apoyo. These authentic villages are full of precolombian and colonial heritage, with indigenous ethnicities predominant and artisan traditions which pre-date the Spanish arrival. From this view, it is easy to see why Cacique Diriangen loved Laguna de Apoyo.

Simba loves to join swimmers for a dip in Lake Apoyo. Heidi is his best friend!

Lake Apoyo is a water-filled volcanic caldera, and  Apoyo Spanish School is located along the shore of the lake in the Apoyo volcanic caldera. There is ample time for swimming in its clear waters and relaxing along the shore. Lake Apoyo is slightly salty, clear, the best swimming hole in all of Nicaragua. The lake is warm and inviting for a swim both day and night.

Trolls learned Spanish here, and returned for a visit a year later. 

Students at Apoyo Spanish School often return for visits to Laguna de Apoyo, and we are always happy to see them!

Students at Apoyo Spanish School also serve as bird perches.

Our staff at Estacion Biologica is always involved in some conservation or research project. Students at Apoyo Spanish School can participate as volunteers in many of these projects, including reforestation, animal rescue, wildlife monitoring, and others.

Bela is the newest canine addition to Apoyo Spanish School.

The modest infrastructure of Estacion Biologica is simple but comfortable. Hammocks are available for relaxing at any time, and Bela, our youngest dog, will visit to say hello. You can stay with us as just a visitor, take Spanish classes, or participate in our volunteer program.

Birdwatching before classes at Apoyo Spanish School. 

The staff at Estacion Biologica includes several professional bird diversity specialists. Each week, students of Apoyo Spanish School go on birdwatching and nature interpretation walks in the forest of Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Birdwatchers typically see about twenty-five bird species in a one-hour birdwatching activity before breakfast. Bring your binoculars and a field guide!

If you would like to learn Spanish or improve your Spanish language ability, we would like to help you. Apoyo Spanish School is the oldest intensive Spanish language school in Nicaragua and the only school officially operated by a Nicaraguan not-for-profit foundation. Please contact us if you have any questions or would like to register for a Spanish course.

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Trafficking in Wild Animals in Nicaragua

The traffic in wild animals pervades the Nicaraguan society. As one drives along a highway, parrots and macaws are sold alongside monkeys, armadillos, iguanas and virtually any other animal that can be made a pet or eaten. The pet trade in wild animals affects the populations of many wild animals which have gone extinct in large areas of the country. We dedicate this blog entry to the wild animals who are bought and sold illegally.

The Yellow-naped Amazon (Amazona auropalliata) in the foreground is protected but, nonetheless, is more easily found tied to a stick or in a cage than in the forest. The bird in the background, an Orange-fronted Parakeet (Aratinga canicularis), has been dyed to change its appearance by these traffickers. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary.

The Yellow-naped Amazon, like many of its relatives, is a very social bird, residing in colonies of up to a few dozen individuals. Its range is the tropical dry forest along the Pacific coast, from Oaxaca in Mexico to northwestern Costa Rica. The soft vocalizations and great capacity to learn make this bird a highly prized pet. Its range, furthermore, has been highly impacted by man, leaving the remaining population with small populations at great risk of capture. The Yellow-naped Amazon population in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve is very small, with only a few individuals and a single nest documented to date. 

Nicaraguans actively hunt and eat armadillos. Photo by Ron Reagh.

The nine-banded armadillo is common in Nicaragua, and is not protected from hunting in Nicaragua. We picture it here to show how hunters market their products daily along the highways of Nicaragua, whether legal or not. In fact, marketing wild animals is not permitted, even when they are hunted legally. Next to these armadillos, seen on the Managua-Leon "new" highway, there were numerous iguanas for sale.

Roadside armadillo sale. Photo by Ron Reagh. 

Three species of monkeys are found in Nicaragua. The most charismatic of them is the Nicaragua spider monkey (Ateles geoffroyi geoffroyi), listed as Critically Endangered. Throughout the Pacific region of Nicaragua, spider monkeys are rare or completely extirpated. Nonetheless, some people seek spider monkeys as pets-among the most important reasons for their sad situation in the wild. The pet trade is driving the species into local extinction throughout the Pacific region of the Nicaragua.

This sad Nicaraguan spider monkey is confined to a leash on wire suspended between two trees on the property of some wealthy owner of one of the Isletas near Granada. 

A juvenile Nicaraguan spider monkey sulks in its cage in El Coche Cafe in Managua. 

Do you know of any illegal traffic in animals in Nicaragua? Please let us know. We will protect your identity, confirm and document the situation, and provide the information to the Nicaraguan Police and the Ministry for Natural Resources and the Environment. Please contact us! 

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Reptiles in the food chain: Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve

The wildlife of Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve includes many species of reptiles. Our volunteer Trolls Hummelgren documented two reptiles in a life-and-death struggle, as a brown vine snake, Oxybelis aeneus, bit and held tightly to a rosebelly lizard, Sceloporus variabilis. 

The lizard bit back, and eventually, the snake released its grip. Both scampered off and out of sight, so we don't know if the venom eventually caught up with the lizard and allowed the snake to catch. Furthermore, the lizard was considerably broader than this snake. Could the snake swallow this? Probably!

FUNDECI/GAIA staff discuss the identification of a lizard from Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Photo by Kolby Kirk.

FUNDECI/GAIA conducts research and population monitoring on several groups of flora and fauna in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. We have developed a reptile and amphibian list of over twenty species.

Conophis lineatus has a firm grip on Ameiva festiva in the garden at Estacion Biologica. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary. 

Would you like to volunteer in conservation of native flora and fauna in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve? There is much to do, so please apply!

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Saving the planet, one tree at a time: Reforestation II

An important part of our natural forest restoration project in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve is our tree nursery, or vivero. Here is where seeds turn into seedlings under the watchful eye of Estacion Biologica staff and environmental volunteers. Most (but not all!) trees in the tropical dry forest ecosystem produce seeds during the dry season, between December and May. We gather seeds of native trees in the forest, prepare them, and then plant them in nursery bags in our vivero. Once the rains begin in May, we begin the laborious task of transferring the seedlings to plots where the trees become part of the restored, natural forest.

Lu fills bags in the Vivero Laguna de Apoyo. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary.

Reforestation trees are grown in small, plastic bags. In the foreground, milk bags and soft drink bottles are recycled as nursery receptacles for nursery trees. By re-using materials, we reduce waste and we also reduce our costs. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary. 

Maria volunteered in our vivero, saving the earth one tree at a time. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary.

Thanks to reforestation volunteers such as Wyatt, the vivero gives us ample trees to  plant in our reforestation plots every year. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary. 

We try to plant trees of all possible species native to Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve, but we usually have some ten to twenty species in a season. A recent inventory showed the following species that went into one of our reforestation plots:

Helequeme                                          Erythrina berteroana
Madero Negro                                    Gliricidia sepium 
Caoba                                                 Swietenia humilis
Guapinol                                              Hymenea courbaril
Sardinillo                                             Tecoma stans
Genizaro                                              Pithecellobium saman
Javillo                                                  Hura crepitans
Guacimo                                              Guazuma ulmifolia
Guanacaste                                          Albizia niopoides
Panama                                               Sterculia apetala
Guarumo                                             Cecropia peltata
Jaboncillo                                            Sapindus saponaria
Anona                                                 Annona reticulata
Pochote                                              Bombacopsis quinata

Elmer screens the rocks and debris from compost in our vivero. After screening, the composted earth is ready for planting tree seeds. Photo by Wyatt Reed. 

By composting our kitchen waste, we create organically, nutrient-rich soils for the seedlings to develop. Furthermore, we dramatically reduce our waste going to landfill. The compost soils are completely decomposed with only a little attention after less than one year.

Seeds from the trees in our reforestation project take a number of forms. Photo by Belen Camino.

Justin participated in our reforestation project from Goshen College.

We seek reforestation volunteers year-round. Whether for a week or a year, your contribution would help us keep Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve wild and forested. Please contact us if you are interested in planting trees with us or if you would like to make a financial or in-kind contribution.

Milk bags are given another life as reforestation material. Photo by Jeffrey McCrary.

After collection, seeds require a number of steps for processing before planting . 

Bountiful seed collections are always welcome! Photo by Jeffrey McCrary.

Some seeds do not germinate easily without help. Scratching and soaking are often used to promote germination in tropical seeds. Photo by Giselle Hernandez.

We are proud of the efforts of volunteers in reforesting Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve.

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Volunteers saving wild Nicaragua: Reforestation I

FUNDECI/GAIA maintains a reforestation project over several years in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Given the extremely fragile nature of the volcanic soils in this reserve, we have chosen to dedicate part of our budget and time to protect and increase the forest cover. The soil is mostly very light volcanic ash between volcanic rocks, and it erodes extremely easily with rains when forest cover is absent. Here, we present some information about one of our reforestation areas, in which we have been planting and caring for trees five years, with the essential help of many volunteers. The reforestation plot is next to a working agroforestry plot, both owned by the same, local (Nicaraguan) person.

A native olive species (Simarouba amara) is planted in the forest next to a small banana plantation. Photo by Giselle Hernandez. 

We plant and husband trees in deforested areas to facilitate their return to natural forest inside the Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. One of the species we like to plant in natural forest restoration Simarouba amara, a native olive tree. We only plant native species and we use local genetic material. Olive requires ample light to grow, but its growth is relatively rapid and it produces a wide canopy with evergreen leaves shading the ground from the impact of rain. The fruit is ripe in March and April, and is sought by birds, monkeys and many other mammals. By providing soil protection and food for native species, it helps recover the natural forest rapidly. The olive tree helps forests maintain populations of endangered wildlife such as howler monkeys.

After four years, this tree has reached six meters height. Photo by Giselle Hernandez.

Grasses usually cover the exposed ground in deforested areas, but they are counterproductive for reforestation. Spaces such as the one above do not exist in unaltered natural forest in the tropical dry forest ecosystem. The annual plants, especially grasses, grow much faster than tree seedlings, so they can choke out natural tree regeneration from nutrients and light. In the dry season, the annual vegetation dries and may burn, killing all but the largest and most resistant of trees. Fires make the greatest threat to reforestation in natural areas.
Because our objective is restoring a natural forest and not reforesting with forestry production species, and because we are planting trees in highly eroded and fragile habitats, We expect to obtain far lower survival rates and tree growth. No germination and silvicultural advice exists for some of our species.

Pitahaya (Hylocereus costaricensis), also known in English as Dragon Fruit, is an epiphytic cactus  found in many trees in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Photo by Giselle Hernandez.

The steep slopes which dominate the crater interior accelerate the erosion process when forest cover is removed. Land with more than 15% slopes is unfit for any kind of annual cultivation, yet much of the steeply sloped land in the Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve still has annual crops on it or is just left without forest cover. We make agreements with owners who want to have their land reforested, and we provide the service free of charge, thanks to volunteers!

Melero (Thouinidium decandrum)  planted on the edge of this agroforestry plot in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. Ripening bananas can be seen in the background. Photo by Giselle Hernandez. 

One of the objectives of natural forest rehabilitation is to maximize the diversity of species in each reforestation plot. Most reforestation projects concentrate on one or only a few species of trees in a plot. In contrast, we plant trees of several species, including many that do not grow well in a semi-artificial setting such as a tree nursery. We have to accept very low germination yields and losses of young trees in many species because we don't want only the three or four species that are easy to grow. To sustain wildlife, a patch of forest needs many species of trees. 

Restoring a natural forest requires a number of elements which are not expected of most reforestation  projects. Photo by Giselle Hernandez.

Our reforestation trees already reach two meters height, providing a complex vegetation structure and  effective ground cover after only a few years. Photo by Giselle Hernandez. 

We have learned a lot about natural forest rehabilitation in the past several years, but we have more to learn and more to do. Reforesting in our crater is essential to provide habitat for the wild terrestrial animals, and to protect Lake Apoyo from erosion. Our project differs from other reforestation projects in Nicaragua, because we try to recreate wild, natural habitat, and we care for our trees years after they are planted in the forest plots. 

Would you like to work as a volunteer or intern on our reforestation project? If so, read more about our reforestation and habitat restoration project, and please contact us! 

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Two days hike around Laguna de Apoyo

Laguna de Apoyo as seen from the Catarina mirador. Photo by Sandra Wallace.

Story by Xaver Schenk, a student of Apoyo Spanish School.

Some people would wonder why I would do a two days hike around the lake which would also be possible to manage in one day. I actually did the hike in one day, two weeks ago with a friendly American I met here. It took us 8 hours to get around the lake and we literally marched through the forest. So there wasn’t any time to really take a close look at the fantastic nature of this forest. That’s why I decided to do it again in two days which has given me the possibility to really enjoy all its facilities.

Simba and Xaver. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

I started right after dinner with my fully packed backpack and Simba, one of the dogs of the station who is tied up too much of his day, so he would love to have a little trip to the forest. So I headed north east on the road, passed a cute little church and several houses. I think I went a little early to the shore because when I continued I had to cross several

Laguna de Apoyo hiking. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

properties which is actually no problem but with Simba I had a lot of fun with the guarding dogs of those properties. We had to make our way over several barbed wire fences but Simba seemed to know the parts where there were holes in it so that it was no big problem. As I continued I passed some ruins of stone terraces. Walking on I, recognized the forest getting cleaner and it was really good to feel the absence of human beings. That’s where I started to see toucans and other tropical birds.

I recognized that I might have a little too much stuff in my backpack because I was sweating and my legs felt kind of weird. At midday I looked for a good place for me to have lunch. I probably should have looked a little better. Because when I took off my shoes and started to get ready for lunch I recognized hundreds of small ants raping my food, so I had to look for another place which was actually pretty easy.

Wild areas along the shore of Lake Apoyo. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

Around four o'clock, I came to a place where the beach was broad enough to build up a tent and it actually was a really beautiful place. So, I decided to set up my camp and try to get a few fishes out of the lake for dinner. I tried to catch some cichlids with what they here call “pescado falso” a plastic fish with hooks. I saw a local the other day catching a lot of fishes with one of those but I had no luck this day.

Photo by Xaver Schenk.

But actually I really enjoyed fishing with my improvised fishing root which was a plastic bottle I wrapped the fishing line on. I was glad that I had some rice with beans in my backpack so I wouldn’t had to go to bed hungry. After dinner I lit a fire and played some songs on my blues harp and just enjoyed being in nature.

Laguna de Apoyo at night. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

Simba guards the tent at Laguna de Apoyo. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

I had Simba tied to my tent and he woke me up once or twice just to show me a rabbit or a goody he had spotted. I went in at dusk and had a nice swim in the lake which is at this time totally calm. After eating some more rice and beans I went back on the track. Now the forest changed because huge rocks from a prehistoric eruption where all over the place. A lot of geckos where hiding beneath the rocks when Simba and I climbed over the rocks.

Gonatodes albogularis in Laguna de Apoyo. Photo by Xaver Schenk.

It was actually pretty hard to get over those rocks with my backpack but it was actually worth it because when I sat down for a break on one of those rocks some howler monkeys started a party over my head shouting at each other. When I finally hit the road one of my shoes lost its soles and I arrived kind of funny walking at the station and fell into a hammock. It really was a great hike. I would recommend it to everyone who is looking for some outdoor trip in Nicaragua.

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