Costa Rica 2010

First, although I wasn't able to blog due to lack of computer, the Venezuela trip went very well. We were able to sample at about 27 sites in the northeast. A few unexpected (new) Myxophaga, but otherwise nothing I would consider bizarre. Fast forward, and the lab is now off to Costa Rica on Sunday for 11 days. My graduate (Taro) and undergraduate (Grey) students, our collection manager (Zack Falin) and I will spend a week at Tapanti National Park and also a bit at INBio. Tapanti is a super-dense cloud/pre-montane forest about 2 hours south of San Jose. I've collected there four times before. It is a challenging place to collect, but the rewards are high. We're going to be implementing some quantitative sampling protocols and doing some reconnaissance for a possible study abroad class.