Costa Rica Sea Turtle Conservation

For the turtle species to survive a great deal of support is needed from both local communities and volunteers. At present, approximately only 1 in every 5000 eggs laid will grow to become an adult turtle. Human interference cannot be held solely responsible, however, our behaviour has greatly diminished turtle population sizes.

Project Location:
Pacific Coast, Costa Rica

Project Age Limit:
The minimum age to participate is 18 years and there is no maximum age.

Programme Information
One way in which we can help is to assist during the turtle-nesting season. During this time, the turtles tend to arrive in large groups - known as “arribadas”, every 3 or 4 weeks, preceding each full moon. The season reaches its peak in December (in December 2002, 1 200 000 turtles arrived on the beach to nest), which is why it is so important that volunteers are involved. We work on 3 different sites along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica, which you are free to choose between: Matapalo (Puntarenas), Buenavista and Playa Hermosa (Guanacaste).

Volunteer activities
You will be involved in a variety of different activities depending on the time of year and which location you choose. For instance, during peak nesting periods, volunteers will spend a greater proportion of their time collecting the eggs and monitoring the behaviour of the turtles.

However, typical daily activities would include:

Site 1: Matapalo turtle conservation project
The town of Matapalo is a relaxed coastal town in the Puntarenas province around 200km from San Jose. The area surrounding the town has a huge biodiversity including plants, fungi, insects and several different species of turtles including the Olive Ridley, Hawksbill, Black sea turtle and occasionally the leatherback turtle; all of which are endangered.

The beach you will be working on is located 1km west of Matapalo town. Other towns in the area are Quepos and Dominical, which all have basic services such as banks, Internet and phones.

Matapalo is a small town and because of this, there are many types of wildlife right in the middle of town! Sloths, iguanas, monkeys and toucans abound with even an occasional sighting of some of the region’s small, wild cats.

On your day off you can easily get to protected national parks such as Baru wildlife refuge, Ballena Marine national park or Manuel Antonio National Park; all great places to experience the abundant wildlife and exotic beaches Costa Rica has to offer.

For those wishing to head into the surrounding countryside or take part in some of the different activities in the area, a number of options are available.

Fishermen interested in a new experience may want to try their luck on the beach or at the nearby Portalón river mouth. Snook and red & black snapper are plentiful, with catches by locals weighing as much as 30lb!

Horseback tours are available along the beach or in the surrounding forest-covered hillsides. Wildlife aplenty, magnificent views and stunning waterfalls make these trips well worth the cost. In a country where 'Pura Vida' is the way of life and 'mañana' doesn't mean tomorrow, Playa Matapalo is a place where a person can truly get away from it all!

Duration
This project runs from June 1st to December 31st, as this is the turtle laying and hatching season.

Volunteer work activities
There are a number of activities you can be involved with; this will depend on the time of year you choose to volunteer. From June 1st to November 30th volunteers help to construct the breeding grounds in preparation for the arrival of the turtles particularly during the early months.

The main bulk of the work you will be involved with includes:

From 1st December to 31st December volunteers will work to release hatchlings as the laying season has finished. You will be involved with the following activities;

Throughout your time at the centre, you will also get involved with maintenance and construction of infrastructure in the surrounding area, beach cleaning programmes and working with local communities in education and community development programmes.

Accommodation
In the project’s premises you will find a rustic house with electricity and shared bathrooms; the shared rooms will have a fan. Less than half a kilometre from the research station, you will find a supermarket, internet access and restaurants that serve national and international food. At the project, you will get a meal three times a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner); these will be typical Costa Rican meals, with rice, beans, pastas and basic grains, meat, vegetables and fruit.

Site 2: Buenavista turtle conservation project
The sea turtle conservation project in Playa Buenavista is located in Northern Costa Rica, in the Nicoya district of the province of Guanacaste. It is located around 3.5 kilometres north of the town of Samara.

This project, like other coastal-marine resource conservation projects, has its origin in the urgent necessity to protect the few natural nesting sites that do not hold any official category of protection from the Government.

The Buenavista initiative consists of four objectives:

The main neighbouring towns to the project are Samara Beach and Nicoya, which provide the main services and comforts for your stay. In addition you can visit the Wild Life National Refuge of Ostional, the Barra Honda National Park and Cabo Blanco Absolute National Reserve during your rest day.

Duration
This project is available from May 1st to March 31st, most of the year.

Volunteer work activities:
For the sea turtles:

For the comfort of volunteers and the local community:

At this time the project has a camping site equipped with tents, a kitchen and a dining room. For your basic needs it has a toilet and space to shower (although occasionally you will have to do it in the Buenavista River!).

It does not have potable water, or electricity; the water for your consumption must be transported from a house in the neighbourhood.

Site 3: Playa Hermosa - Punta Mala National Wild Life Refuge
Protection Project, Conservation and Research of the Pacific Ridley Turtle Playa Hermosa is state-owned and comprises a strip of beach approximately 7 km long with medium-grain dark sand and shells.

The outskirts of Playa Hermosa are used for agriculture and cattle raising. There are also a few mangrove swamps in the area. In this refuge, the Ridley Turtle lays eggs on nights from July to June each year. This species of turtle measures between 58cm and 66cm and weighs around 90 pounds. These turtles can lay between 90 and 120 eggs in a nest 50cm deep that they make when they lay eggs.

Accommodation
There are two simple, rustic houses: one for volunteers, the other for park employees. The house of volunteers has 2 levels, with a balcony in the higher one, and the other has four bedrooms, dining room and kitchen, bathrooms and a place to wash clothes.

In the bedrooms, there are single beds and bunk beds and each volunteer is assigned a bed to sleep in.

We recommend bringing two sheets, mosquito netting, mosquito repellent, raincoats, sun block and personal items.

Volunteer work activities:

Free time and Relaxation
You can visit the beach, as well as the town of Playa Hermosa, which is 4km from the beach. The town of Jacó is 30 minutes away by bus.

There you can find restaurants, convenience stores, banks, Internet and telephone access.

Recommended kit list for all projects:

Orientation
You will have an orientation to help you get settled in and to familiarise you with project itineraries.

Project Support
Throughout your stay you will have the support and guidance of the coordinator. They will be able to provide you with any help or advice you may need during your stay.

In addition to the in-country support, you will have access to a 24 hour emergency contact number should you need to contact one of our UK staff at any time.

Getting There
You will need to arrange your flights to arrive into Alajuela, to the Juan Santamaria International Airport, where you will be met and taken to your accommodation.