Month: March 2019

For my Spring Break I went to Tamarindo, Costa Rica. This is on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and at this time of year the climate is particularly dry, arid, and windy. The spot that I chose was a small patch of trees in a river bed right before the beach called Playa Tamarindo.

This is a picture of the phenology place

This Phenology place, compared to the one I have in Burlington, is almost completely different. It is much more arid than in Burlington, the dominating flora and fauna are made up of entirely different species, and the area is much less densely populated with plants and animals.

Although there were no visible tracks of any animals, there are crocodiles that are normally in the wetter season, when this river bed is flowing. I did, however, see some small salamanders and iguanas, as well as different birds such as brown pelicans, acorn woodpeckers, and grey headed chachalacas.

The dominating woody plant species in my place was the Tamarind, and small Guanacaste trees. There was seldom and smaller species, as the soil was so dry it was essentially packed sand.

The geographic history of this region is defined by the Orosi, Rincón de la Vieja, Miravalles and Tenorio volcanoes which formed the Guanacaste province where Tamarindo is. That being said the geology of the region is primarily volcanic, igneous rock.

I would classify the natural community in centennial wood as a woodland community. The site is well maintained, has trails and small foot bridges so it could not be designated as a wildland. Despite the brook and other small bodies of water, the dominating community is the forest, and that community seems to have the most diversity and biotic potential. Furthermore the brook cannot support much aquatic wildlife that are significant enough to designate it a wetland. Finally the geography of the land is indicative of a woodland. It is at a higher altitude, the land is more variable in slope and cover, and the trees and shrubs are all of deciduous, or coniferous variety. These are all suitable condition for woodland populations.

The site has changed a lot since the first semester. When I first visited in the fall it was transitioning form green and lush to more autumnal orange, reds, and yellows. Over the time from fall to winter the ground became more covered in leaves and deadwood as well as solidified by the increasing cold. Now, as spring comes, I seen a variety of conditions. The ground can go from solid to muddy and saturated. Snow melt has played a large role in the increased moisture in the soil as well as water levels in the brook. Now there is much more decomposition in the area than in all the previous seasons.