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On the trail of the horned guan, the jaguar, the quetzal and the tapir

Sumary

Theme: Conservación y monitoreo biológico Placement Core zone at El Triunfo Biosfere Reserve, and a coffee farm and at Independencia on the state of Chiapas, Mexico. Requeriments: Mínimum age of 18 years old, good phisical condition, strong interest on conservation, some knowledge of Spanish. Project language: Mainly Spanish and limited English Highlights: This is a unique opportunity to visit one of the remotest and beautyful places in the world: the cloud forest of El Triunfo and look for critically threatened species: Jaguar (Panthera onca), Tapir (Tapirus bairdii), resplendent quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) and horned guan (Oreophasis derbianus). The long treks on the trails are also a good chance to watch other local flora and fauna species. This is an ongoing project carried by a research team formed by experienced park rangers and scientific researches whom use diverse techniques such as traps cameras, analysis of tracks and food, animal behavior and geographical reference systems. Short description: The general purpose of this project is to investigate the condition of the species populations, which are priority for the conservation of El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve. Throughout the year, the volunteers can collect the fieldwork data for the biological monitoring, which is carried out by the park rangers and researchers. The work is done on two sites: in the core zone of El Triunfo, with its base in El Triunfo Camp and on a coffee farm. Both sites are situated in El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas, Mexico.

Date of start february the 15th 2010 Volunteers needed 4 Duration Minimum 3 months Maximum 10 mo. Prices (In US dollars) 3 months $ 4,500 4 months $ 5,400 5 months $ 6,300 6 months $ 7,200 Additional month $ 900 Book online    Other projects Promoting fair trade of organic coffee at CESMACH Teach English and institutional development

 

Detailed information

A typicial day’s fieldwork

Initial training will be given on the follow topics:

• first aid
• survival in remote places,
• RCP and food preparation in remote places,
• the use of GPS, radios, and trap cameras.

Skills will be developed to identify wildlife, to work in teams, to use fieldwork techniques like the identification of bird vocalization, transect work, the identification of animals’ footprints and excrement, the use of trap cameras and to manage a database of the collected samples.