Volunteer to survey turtles and tropical coastal habitat in the Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica.
Costa Rica Sea Turtle Conservation
Who: Frontier
Where: Playa Carate, Corcovado National Park, The Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
Focus: Surveying of Olive Ridley, Pacific Green Turtles, and tropical coastal habitat
When: All year round, Peak turtle nesting seasons:
- June to November for Olive Ridley turtles.
- November to March for Pacific Green turtles.
- March to May sightings are less frequent.
Duration: 1-20 weeks
Suitability: Over 18s
Cost: 1 week starts from GBP 415 – EUR 475 – USD 600 | Extra weeks from GBP 150.
As a volunteer, you will:
- Experience one of the most biologically intense places on the planet with an incredible 4% of the world’s species living within the Osa Peninsula.
- Gain valuable field-based experience focusing on the two resident sea turtle species.
- Learn about sea turtle ecology and biology and the various threats that these species are under, and how to conserve them.
- Carry out day and night patrols on nearby beaches on the fringes of the rainforest to record species abundance, nesting preferences, female turtle health, nest success and act as a deterrent for predators and poachers.
- Tag turtles and give them a health check.
- Survey other wildlife including: primates, big cats and other mammals, tropical birds, amphibian and reptiles and butterflies (seasonal).
- Assist with the conservation of vital habitats and their resident species.
- Maintain and create trails.
- Support awareness-raising events in the local community.
- Work to improve the conservation status of some of the world’s most endangered species.
- Learn to surf.
The Base
Accommodation: The comfortable but basic camp is based amongst dense tropical forest on the edge of Corcovado National Park near to Carate. The camp is a 5 minute walk from Playa Carate, a beach which stretches for over 20 miles.
Sleeping: Simple, shared, mixed-sex eco-cabins. Occasionally, volunteers will sleep on the beach in a tent or in a hammock
Food: 3 healthy meals a day. Cooking and cleaning are shared on a rotational basis, .
Support: 24-hour in-country support; International HQ emergency support and back-up; UK residential briefing weekend available.
Transport: Pick up from Puerto Jimenez weekly on a Monday before 12:00pm. Pick-ups available at all other times for an additional fee.
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