Taller de Biodiversidad con Instituto Juan José Díaz

Nosotros como equipo de personal de Gaia nos preocupamos por lo que piensa la gente en Nicaragua sobre la naturaleza. Desafortunadamente, mucha gente en Nicaragua piensa en serpientes con veneno mortal cuando piensan en el bosque. Invitamos a la comunidad siempre en nuestras actividades de investigación sobre los animales y la naturaleza en la Reserva Natural Laguna de Apoyo. AquÍ, presentamos unas fotos de un pequeño taller de biodiversidad de aves con jóvenes estudiantes de quinto año en el Instituto Juan José Díaz, que es el colegio para nuestros vecinos en la zona de la entrada principal a y dentro de la Reserva Natural Laguna de Apoyo.

Una joven examina una ave capturada en nuestro estudio. Foto Bart Verdick.

Los estudiantes acompañaron al campo a uno de los sitios de estudio donde una captura de aves con redes de neblina. Los estudiantes podían observar la operación de las redes y cuando se capturaba un ave, también podían observar cada individuo de cerca y aprender a manipularlos y anotar datos sobre cada uno.

Se retira de la red de neblina una ave para el estudio. Foto Bart Verdick.

En este taller, los jóvenes valoraban el trabajo técnico de campo en nuestro estudio de aves con redes de neblina, y luego consideraron las aves capturadas en las redes durante el curso de la mañana del taller.

Nicaragua necesita igualmente de científicos dedicados a estudiar y defender a la vida silvestre del país, y una sociedad conocedora y amante de las maravillas naturales del país. Cuando conocemos con la Reserva Natural Laguna de Apoyo, ya vemos que las maravillas son diversas, y no terminan con lasque se encuentran dentro del agua. Las aves de estos bosques son diversas y especiales.

El senzontle (Turdus grayi). Photo Bart Verdick.

Los participantes del taller, conducido en la Reserva Natural Laguna de Apoyo, vieron al proceso de captura, extracción de las redes, toma de datos, y inspección de las aves, y finalmente, su liberación para volver a sus actividades normales. Cuando se capturó un senzontle (Turdus grayi), los participantes apoyaron en la toma de datos y liberaron al animal a la conclusión de su observación.

Una mano joven libera al senzontle. Foto Bart Verdick.

Es doblemente importante desarrollar un afecto hacia el bosque cuando uno vive en la mera orilla de un gran monumento a la biodiversidad como la Laguna de Apoyo. Nos gusta participar en actividades con el Instituto porque lo vemos como una inversión en el futuro de esta laguna y sus bosques.

Los estudiantes preguntan a nuestro equipo de trabajo de campo sobre los estudios de aves. Foto Bart Verdick. 

Contáctanos si deseas participar en un curso de especialización o una pasantía en el Programa Gaia. 

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Animal Rescue XVI: Wild animals deserve to live free

Capturing an animal in the wild to make a pet of it is doubly insidious. The pressure on some animal species by the pet trade has caused the complete elimination of their populations in large areas. Macaws are a good example of this. We care for two macaws at Estacion Biologica Laguna de Apoyo, both were wild animals that suffered capture and brutal treatment in captivity.

Bumbelina is a Great Green Macaw. Photo Pablo Somarriba.

Both the macaws have broken wings, as a result of the rough treatment given to them in captivity. These poor animals will never fly again. Because of the cruelty of the commerce in wild animals in Nicaragua, they are permanently condemned to live with humans. At least we can give them natural surroundings where they can be happy. The have large enclosures which permit them to move around and see in all directions, into the sky and the forest. They are allowed to leave their enclosures daily, and they get an ample, varied diet, with lots of interactions with people and other birds.

We kept the two macaws in a common enclosure several months. The Scarlet Macaw (Ara macao), however, has developed a common ailment among captive new world parrots-feather plucking. She plucks not only her own feathers, but also the feathers of her best friend Bumbelina, the Great Green Macaw (Ara ambiguus). We have placed a mesh divider between them, so they can see each other and even touch through the mesh, but no more plucking! Feather plucking is one of many pathological manifestations of wild animals in captivity when they should be free in their natural habitats.

These baby opossums were brought to us by kind-hearted folks who found them abandoned. Photo Pablo Somarriba.

We at GAIA provide shelter for wild animals that have been found injured or unable to survive in the wild without rehabilitation, and pets that owners request to return to the wild. Recently, we received two young common opossums (Didelphis virginianus). These animals were found by a Nicaraguan family who gave them lots of care while they grew. But they found that the animals were needing more space and soon should be ready to be liberated. We took them and quickly returned them to the wild. They lived a few weeks in a hollow tree on our property, before moving on to the forest behind Estacion Biologica in Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve.

This White-throated Magpie-Jay (Calocitta formosa) chick was raised at Estacion Biologica and released into the wild, where he continues to live happily. Photo Jeffrey McCrary.

We have great plans to continue, to improve and amplify our capacity to handle wild animals. We need your help. Would you like to volunteer some time to care for wild animals? Or donate food or money to pay for their well-being? We need lots of cashews, fresh fruit, and materials for cages, among other things. Please contact us if you would like to volunteer or make a donation. Please help us make Nicaragua a better place for all beings.

Contact us to participate in animal rescue!

Under the water

We spend hundreds of hours per year under the water in Laguna de Apoyo, in counts of fish, documentation of the quality of the habitat where they live, the vegetation found there, and yes, even in retrieving the trash that folks discard which ends up all along the lake bottom. Here is a small collection of photos which show what we see when we are down there, in the most beautiful spot in Nicaragua. In the photoessay below, you can experience what one of our interns saw during a study of the fish with the director of the Gaia Program, Dr. Jeffrey McCrary. Dr. McCrary is leading an international team in the study of the fishes of Laguna de Apoyo, and to date five new species have been discovered as part of the program. 

These fry of an Amphilophus zaliosus pair recently hatched in a nest hole which is often seen with babies. 

Lots of fish are hanging out in this site, including a probable male Amphilophus zaliosus in breeding coloration in the center of the photo. 

Counting fish along a transect.

Juveniles and nonbreeding adult Amphilophus seek refuge under rocks in Laguna de Apoyo.

Breeding season is approaching, and breeding pairs are forming. A pair of Amphilophus zaliosus are in the foreground, and a pair of jaguar cichlids, Parachromis managuensis, are in the background. 

As can be seen from the photos, several Midas cichlid species are locally abundant in the waters of Laguna de Apoyo. Of the six species recognized in Laguna de Apoyo in this group, the most abundant of the group in most locations is the little Apoyo cichlid, Amphilophus astorquii. Other fish species are in the lake, too: Atherinella sardina, Poecilia sphenops, and Parachromis managuensis, as well as some invasive species.

Fish ahead!

A multispecies school of Amphilophus cichlids.

The species of Amphilophus cichlids in Laguna de Apoyo vary by body shape, spot pattern, and background colors. 

Dozens of cichlids are always under this rock!

Much of the lake bottom is covered with recently eroded sediments which cover the rocks and destroy all the high-quality habitat. Furthermore, ordinary garbage accumulates along our transects, such as this plastic cup, sold by the local bars. 

In some areas where waves clean the substrate, the lake bottom is covered with fine mud or sand. 

Fragments of snail shells (Pyrgophorus coronatus) litter the surface in many places. Snails are an important component of the diets of the Amphilophus species flock in Laguna de Apoyo. 

Filamentous algae has displaced Chara vegetation along the bottom in much of the lake. We do not understand why Chara often disappears from the lake, although it is known that tilapia will consume large quantities of it. 

In shallow areas with small rocks, juveniles of the invasive species Gobiomorus dormitor abound. 

Many shallow areas are covered with snail shell fragments, demonstrating the abundance of snails in Laguna de Apoyo.

A human-altered waterscape in Laguna de Apoyo. Filamentous algae and a plastic beverage bottle displace native fish and vegetation. 

Silversides, Atherinella sardina, put on a show in the water column. Silverside schools may exceed ten thousand individuals. 

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Dive Laguna de Apoyo

Let's get in the water! Photo by Kim Bracken.

Most people who SCUBA dive have experience in the ocean. But diving in a tropical lake is a unique experience, especially when diving in Lake Apoyo. Its water is too salty to be potable, however it is still near the buoyancy of freshwater. Lakes differ from the ocean, too, in smaller waves and currents, and fewer dangerous animals. Lake Apoyo has essentially no moving water, making the dives easily managed. No fish or other animals in Lake Apoyo sting or bite!

Lake Apoyo is not just a freshwater lake, however. It is a volcanic crater lake, occupying a huge volcanic caldera between Volcano Masaya to the north and Volcano Mombacho to the south along the string of volcanoes across the Pacific side of Nicaragua. Because the Apoyo volcano is mostly a hole, however, the lake is its most prominent feature.

Divers discuss their dive plan before heading down. Photo by Kim Bracken.

FUNDECI/GAIA coordinates SCUBA dives in Lake Apoyo, where you can accompany scientists in their study of the fishes. Each month, our divers review fish populations in several habitats, and visiting divers can join us on our dives. Divers get to see many species of fish in a single dive, and learn how these fish live, breed, and how we are working to protect them.

Not so many fish species occupy Lake Apoyo: only jaguar cichlids (Parachromis managuensis), mollies (Poecilia sphenops), silversides (Atherinella sardina), and several members of the Midas cichlid species complex (Amphilophus cf. citrinellus) are considered native. These fish populations probably got their start in Lake Apoyo by hurricanes, birds, or even the precolombian human populations that could have brought some individuals from Lake Nicaragua, just four kilometers to the east.

Several endemic fish species from the Amphilophus species flock occupy Lake Apoyo. The research group at GAIA has discovered five species to date. Photo by Balasz Lerner.

The Midas cichlid population of Lake Apoyo has attracted the attention of scientists for many years, and has been the principal cause behind the studies we pursue. In 1976, George Barlow began the current trajectory of interest in Lake Apoyo by declaring the arrow cichlid (Amphilophus zaliosus), as a new species. This lake is among the best study sites in the world for sympatric speciation among animals. 

Our group at Estación Biológica has studied these fascinating fish several years. In 2002, we published the official description of three new species in Lake Xiloa. Then in 2008, we published another set of species descriptions, giving official names to three species in Lake Apoyo. In 2010, we then followed with two more species descriptions in Lake Apoyo among the Midas cichlid species group. 

Our ecological studies in two lakes, Apoyo and Xiloa, where we have also performed several years of monitoring, are essential to the Midas cichlid species discoveries. Without being in the water, observing the fish month after month, we would never have been able to distinguish these very similar and closely related species. Our monitoring program has given us a wealth of information which is behind the species discoveries and several other new findings. 

The members of the Midas cichlid species complex found in Laguna de Apoyo are: 

Amphilophus astorquii

Amphilophus chancho

Amphilophus flaveolus

Amphilophus globosus

Amphilophus supercilius

Amphilophus zaliosus

These six species are elegantly displayed on our new Laguna de Apoyo t-shirts-please purchase one and support nature research in Laguna de Apoyo!

Among the more common fish in Lake Apoyo today is the Bigmouth Sleeper (Gobiomorus dormitor). This fish was introduced to Lake Apoyo in 1991, and its population has grown dramatically. We at GAIA are studying the impacts of this introduced fish on the native species of Lake Apoyo. Photo by Wito Lapinski. 

The fish of Lake Apoyo are not just some rare novelties. They are facing some serious threats to their continued existence. One of the threats comes from introduced, invasive fish species. On a few occasions, tilapias have been introduced, most notably, in the 1990's as part of an aquaculture experiment using the Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). This misguided, disastrous activity was conducted with the approval and participation of the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment during that period. At the time, tilapia was touted by some influential individuals in Nicaragua as an economic "silver bullet" which would make investors rich and would feed poor people, as a kind of pinnacle to the Blue Revolution. The issue of environmental and health impacts of improper tilapia aquaculture methods in Nicaragua was recently featured in the New York Times. Many ripostes followed, too!

In 1991, an over-enthusiastic local fisherman added to the mix in Lake Apoyo, by bringing a bucketful of bigmouth sleepers (Gobiomorus dormitor) he had just caught from another, nearby lake, to Lake Apoyo and dumping them in. A few fish quickly became thousands and today this fish is ubiquitous. The threats this fish poses to Lake Apoyo's endemic species is magnified by their loss of sensitivity to the dramatic threat the bigmouth sleepers pose to their fry. The research team at GAIA worked with scientists from Finland and Germany to demonstrate the evolutionary naivete to fry predation by the introduced bigmouth sleepers in a 2012 publication.

We also coordinate underwater lake cleanups periodically, our third one was performed in 2011. 

After collecting data, a relaxing moment by the pier is in order! Photo by Kim Bracken.

Would you like to dive with us in Lake Apoyo? We would be happy to schedule a dive with you. You must have the equivalent of an open water certification. We can provide all the equipment and you can help us in our research on these very special fish.

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Spanish study in small groups in Nicaragua

Although most of our Spanish language instruction is performed one-on-one at Apoyo Spanish School, we often handle groups for Spanish classes, volunteer work, and environmental and cultural training at Estacion Biologica. The Laguna de Apoyo Spanish Language School is the oldest in Nicaragua. Here are some images from a recent group from a school in San Francisco, California. This group studied Spanish with our local teachers, participated in reforestation activities, and participated with our volunteers in mist netting of birds, a practice we use to monitor bird populations in the Laguna de Apoyo Nature Reserve. They also went tarantula-watching one evening-although many were deathly afraid of them beforehand, afterward, they all felt better about them! And they participated in some discussions about the environment and social conditions in Nicaragua with members of our staff at FUNDECI/GAIA.

The shade of tall trees makes the best stting for Spanish study. Miss Mariposa, Aura is a language professor and also an expert at birds and moths and butterflies. She will gladly take you birdwatching. She participates in several research projects at Estacion Biologica. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

The young people enjoyed a swim at the beach in front of Estacion Biologica after Spanish classes. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

A mango provides refreshing shade from the midday sun for these students, who are practicing diction. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.  

Our ample yard at Estacion Biologica is in front of the lake for a fast entry once classes are over! Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

As can be seen on the left in this picture, we often have campers at Estacion Biologica. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

Our volunteer, Soren, is explaining how we use mist nets to study birds to the group of Spanish students in an after-class activity.  Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

Soren is responding to questions about bird study and conservation. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

A Spanish student learns to hold a captured bird during a mist-netting demonstration for the group. This individual is a female Great-tailed Grackle. This species is present where human activity is intense, such as yards of homes. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

Spanish students and their teachers are enjoying a relaxing moment before dinner at Estacion Biologica. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

After Spanish class, students joke around with Lorenzo. Photo by Stephan Beekhuis.

We are happy to provide experiences in Spanish language instruction, culture, and nature by sharing our own experiences with others. We can handle groups of up to a few dozen in size, and we can provide ecology exercises, discussions on culture, society and politics in Nicaragua, Spanish courses, and lots of fun. Please contact us if you would like more information.

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Another species discovery in Lake Apoyo

Lake Apoyo now officially contains six endemic species of fishes, all close relatives of the Midas cichlid (Amphilophus citrinellus). The most recent two discoveries were published in the August edition of Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. The two new species are Amphilophus globosus and Amphilophus supercilius. The first discovered in Lake Apoyo in this group was the arrow cichlid, Amphilophus zaliosus, discovered by George W. Barlow, in 1976. The arrow cichlid was recently categorized as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. We expect that most of the other five species in this lake face equal or greater extinction threats as the arrow cichlid, according to the results to date from population monitoring conducted by FUNDECI/GAIA in Lake Apoyo.

Here is a picture of Jay R. Stauffer, Jr., holding a copy of the Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington, in which the descriptions of the latest two species to be discovered were published. The journal graced its cover with photos of all six known species found in Lake Apoyo.

Photos on the cover of this journal were provided by Ad Konings, Topi Lehtonen, and Matthias Geiger.