Stay Connected to Students and Researchers in the Tropics – Get Social with OTS!
|
|
New positions
OTS has launched a search for its next leader and is seeking applicants for its next Executive Director/President & CEO. OTS is also looking for a Director of its Costa Rica Field Stations. For more information about these opportunities please visit
here.
New School of Record
OTS is pleased to announce that the University of Connecticut will become the School of Record for OTS Undergraduate Study Abroad Courses in South Africa. You can learn more about this partnership
here
.
|
|
The OTS Board of Directors met on July 8, 2019 and approved a Fiscal Year 2020 Operating Plan and Budget designed to ensure the smooth operation of the Costa Rica field stations in the fiscal year commencing July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. The budget anticipates an operating deficit but also forecasts enough unrestricted cash to manage the operating loss. In FY20, OTS will pause its Costa Rica undergraduate program, continue to offer its African Ecology and Conservation program in South Africa, maintain full operations at all Costa Rica field stations and move its finance and accounting functions to Costa Rica. Miguel Mendez, formerly our Controller, has been named the OTS Chief Financial Officer based at Costa Rican Office (CRO). Also at the board meeting on July 8, 2019, David Knell was elected a Stakeholder Director of OTS. Mr. Knell is a businessman and entrepreneur based in Breckenridge, Colorado.
On August 16, 2019, Jim Prager, the OTS Interim President and CEO held an Information Session for OTS Institutional Members presenting information on FY19 financial results and the FY20 budget, as well as information on the graduate course plans for calendar year 2020 and on recent staff changes. In response to the comments from the University of California, Santa Cruz, the schedules for the OTS 2020 graduate courses were adjusted to ensure graduate students from schools on the quarter system (such as the University of California) could attend.
The Board of Directors will meet next on November 1-2, 2019.
|
|
Please welcome Dr. Sofia Rodríguez to the OTS family!
|
|
Sofia will serve as the Manager of Costa Rica Education Programs, with initial responsibility for our Faculty Led Academic Groups
(
FLAGs) program and our Costa Rica graduate and undergraduate courses. Dr. Rodriguez will join us on November 1, 2019 and will be based at the CRO office on the University of Costa Rica (UCR) campus in San Jose.
Since 2018, Dr. Rodriguez has been a coordinator of and instructor in two of OTS’ graduate courses: Ecologia Tropical y Conservacion and Tropical Biology: an Ecological Approach. Since July of this year, she has also been an OTS education consultant to OTS President and CEO.
Dr. Rodriguez is a graduate of the University of Costa Rica receiving her B.Sc. Biology in 2005. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2016. Her research interests involve diseases of the tungara frog and she expects to continue her research at La Selva.
Sofia has recently relocated with her husband Teo from the University of Arkansas to San Ramon de Tres Rios, not far from UCR, with their son Nicolas (age 3) and their daughter Ines (age 10 weeks).
|
|
|
|
USAID’s Office of American Schools and Hospitals Abroad (USAID/ASHA) has awarded OTS a $692,772 grant to construct a Visitor Center and to modernize its sewage treatment facilities.
The goal is to enhance the visitor experience through new exhibits that highlight the advancement of science, health and sustainability in the tropics. Funding will also be used to update the sewage treatment system to produce reusable water and eliminate environmental impact. Look for more information in upcoming newsletters.
|
|
18 New Species of Bark Beetles!
|
|
Eighteen new species of rainforest and cloud forest bark beetles have been identified in Costa Rica as a result of decades of collecting efforts. Fourteen of these new species were found during the Arthropods of La Selva (ALAS) projects, which ran from 1992 through 2005. The goal of the projects was to exhaustively sample local taxa with a focus on insects, mites and spiders and was supported by four National Science Foundation grants. The Arthropods of La Selva projects included collecting from a typical lowland Neotropical forest and up an altitudinal transect and identified many valuable species that are potentially new to science. Data from the ALAS projects have contributed to our knowledge of the composition of hyper-diverse tropical arthropod communities and provided critical ecological analyses of tropical biodiversity patterns. Article from ZooKeys Journal.
Read more
here
.
|
|
A collaboration among researchers, La Selva staff, and local guides has resulted in an updated guide to the common frogs of La Selva Research Station. At least 40 different species of frogs were listed into this guide.
Those involved in the project include: Michelle E. Thompson, Juan G. Abarca, Enrique Salicetti Nelson, Hansell Rodriguez Vega, Carlos de la Rosa, Ralph Garcia Robleto, Maureen A. Donnelly, Florida International University, Universidad de Costa Rica, Organization for Tropical Studies.
You can see the complete list
here
|
|
La Selva Biological Station Getaway!
|
|
La Selva has been a pioneer site in education, research, conservation, and eco-tourism in Costa Rica since 1963. The station is located in the Caribbean foothills of Costa Rica and comprises 1,600 hectares (3,953 acres) of old growth and new growth tropical wet forest. Species diversity is spectacular, including more than 2,080 varieties of plants, 420 species of trees, 467 species of birds (representing more than 50% of the species in the country), and approximately 700 species of ants. Activities that you can enjoy at La Selva are regular tours of the forest, early birding tours, night tours, and boat tours. Lodging is available if you want to stay more than a day in this paradise. For more information or reservations
click here.
|
|
A visitor shared with us the following note about her experiences at La Selva:
"La Selva Biological Station, in Puerto Viejo of Sarapiquí, has always been there, invisible to the eyes of gluttonous and bustling tourists. It is a tropical ecology research station, with an environment of students and researchers who get up early, make three healthy and frugal meals, and at night they are collected early and silently. The visitor must follow these guidelines and this walker followed them with pleasure. During the day, you can make great walks through the forest, visit the research booths, read or write, in a prehistoric silence, these lines
".
Read more here.
(Full article is in Spanish)
|
|
|
|
The beautiful Aviary Snake is found in the forests of Las Cruces Research Station and Wilson Botanical Garden. They are quite common and feed mainly on birds and eggs. While they are not poisonous, it is still bes
t
to leave them alone and let them go their own way
.
|
|
All donations make a difference
|
|
Thank you to every OTS donor for your support of our research and educational programs. Donations of every kind are needed to keep our research stations running.
Recently OTS received an in-kind donation of linens from Peninsula de Papagayo in Guanacaste. Staff from Palo Verde Research Station picked up the donation that will be distributed and used in our three stations in Costa Rica. This wonderful donation will improve the experience of our visitors and help save OTS money.
Andrew Fix donated to OTS spotting scopes and binoculars that will be used to support researchers and students with their projects.Thank you!
|
|
African Ecology and Conservation (South Africa):
Course duration: 15 weeks
|
Spring 2020 (Jan 22 - Apr 30)
The African Ecology and Conservation program centers on learning to do quality field research in South Africa’s varied biomes.Students are mentored by local and international academics, conservation managers, and other practitioners in ecology and conservation. By designing research projects with their professors, students will contribute meaningful scientific data to issues faced by managers in South African National Parks. A highlight of the course is a three-night homestay in a rural community; students leave touched by their time shared with the community and gain a deeper sense of cultural and social awareness.
More information here.
Application Deadline: Nov 15, 2019 for Spring 2020
|
|
Tropical Landscape Conservation (Costa Rica) - Offered in Spanish
Course duration: 3 weeks
|
Spring 2020 (Jan 21 - Feb 7)
Conservation of the Tropical Landscape is an intensive course, at the graduate level, taught in Spanish. The activities are carried out in Costa Rica for seven days a week for three weeks, at the Palo Verde OTS Research Station, Palo Verde National Park and its surroundings. The course is distinguished from other OET courses by having two instructors architects, landscape architects and urban planners, dedicated to the conservation and restoration of the natural landscape.
More information here.
Application deadline coming soon!
|
|
Tropical Ecology and Conservation (Costa Rica) - Offered in Spanish
Course duration: 6 weeks
|
January 8, 2020 – February 19, 2020
Tropical Ecology and Conservation is an intensive field course, at the graduate level, taught in Spanish. The activities are carried out in Costa Rica for seven days a week for six weeks, in biological stations and nature reserves. The course is distinguished from other field courses by having two full-time instructors, who coordinate and teach the course, along with 15 to 20 visiting professors, from prestigious universities in Latin America and the rest of the world.
More information here.
Application deadline coming soon!
|
|
Field Ecology: Skills for Science and Beyond (Costa Rica)
Course duration: 3 weeks
| December
28, 2019 – January 16, 2020
Field Ecology: Skills for Science and Beyond is an intensive, three-week course that will challenge you in every way. This course is a shortened version of the Advanced Ecology summer course. Nevertheless, at its heart lie the highly regarded OTS “field-inspired research problems”, which engage students in the fast-paced formulation of research questions based on field observations, experimental design, data collection, analysis, and oral and written presentations.
More information here.
Application deadline coming soon!
|
|
Tropical Plant Systematics (Costa Rica)
Course duration: 5 weeks
|
June 16, 2020 – July 17, 2020
Tropical Plant Systematics is an intensive graduate-level field course focused on the identification, inventory, classification, and phylogenetic analysis of tropical vascular plants. All activities are carried out in Costa Rica over five weeks, during which time the course will be based at biological stations and nature reserves.
More information here.
Application Deadline: Feb 3, 2020
|
|
Tropical Biology: An Ecological Approach (Costa Rica)
Course duration: 6 weeks
|
June 15, 2020 – July 26, 2020
This OTS “fundamentals course” is an intensive, field-based experience in tropical biology for graduate students. With guidance from expert scientists, students will gain experience in critical thinking, research design, data analysis, analytical tools, science communication, ecological modeling, and collaborative research—all in the beautiful tropical setting of Costa Rica.
More information here.
Application Deadline: Feb 3, 2020
|
|
Faculty Led Academic Groups (FLAGs)
|
|
|
|
OTS´
academic logistics staff has assisted hundreds of faculty members throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, and Costa Rica to enhance their course trips by arranging everything from hotel reservations, transportation, meals, day activities, and research permits.
Click here
to learn more about how OTS can enrich your class today!
|
|
You can support OTS by shopping at Amazon.Smile
|
Donate to OTS while shopping on @amazon with @amazonsmile. A portion of your purchase supports OTS. Click the link to begin shopping:
smile.amazon.com/ch/56-2125831.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
