Contribution starting at $2,900
Exported from Streamline App (https://app.streamlineicons.com)
7+ days (avg. $414 a day) Includes accommodations, food, and all related research costs
Wildlife & Ecosystems

Conserving Wild Bees and Other Pollinators of Costa Rica

Location
San Luis de Monteverde, Costa Rica Map it
Lead Scientist
Activity Level
Moderate
Accommodations
Housing Varies
Food
Chef-prepared meals
Pollinators on a flower (C) Ben Caraballo
Earthwatch volunteers collect data (C) Blanca Gonzalez
A volunteer plants seedlings (C) Dana Salomon
A butterfly pollinates a flower
An Earthwatch volunteer collects a plant sample (C) Dana Salomon
Earthwatch volunteers measure sample plots (C) Dana Salomon
In the rugged tropical forests of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Earthwatch volunteers will join the research team to investigate how threats to bees and butterflies will affect the critical pollination services they provide.
Pollinators on a flower (C) Ben Caraballo
Earthwatch volunteers collect data (C) Blanca Gonzalez
A volunteer plants seedlings (C) Dana Salomon
A butterfly pollinates a flower
An Earthwatch volunteer collects a plant sample (C) Dana Salomon
Earthwatch volunteers measure sample plots (C) Dana Salomon
In the rugged tropical forests of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Earthwatch volunteers will join the research team to investigate how threats to bees and butterflies will affect the critical pollination services they provide.

Costa Rica is home to over 400 species of native wild bees and about 50 species of hummingbirds. But habitat loss, pesticide use, and climate change threaten the health and survival of pollinators around the world. How can we better protect these important species?


Earthwatch volunteers will collect the pollinators to be sorted and observed back in the lab.

More than three-quarters of the world’s crops depend on pollinators such as bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. These animals provide essential ecosystem services and play a crucial role in the production of many fruits and vegetables. But, a changing climate, pesticide use, and habitat loss or degradation threaten pollinator communities, although the full impact of these threats is not well understood. For example, warming temperatures could force pollinator species to shift their ranges to higher elevations, which could impact agricultural production, or it could be that a changing climate will cause these species to disappear altogether.

One way to mitigate the effects of climate change is by planting “agroforests”—or forests that grow in pastures around or among crops—that could benefit pollinator communities. As part of this expedition, you will meet local farmers and learn about their farms and farming techniques. Additionally, you will help set up experimental biodiversity islands within pasture areas, which could not only help pollinator communities but could also demonstrate to farmers how planting additional plant species can simultaneously protect biodiversity and ecosystem function as well as provide livelihoods for low-income families in the region.

In the rugged tropical forests of the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve or the lower elevation site of Guacima, home to one of the world’s most endangered ecosystems, the tropical dry forest, you will join the research team to investigate how threats to bees and butterflies will affect the critical pollination services they provide.

Conserving Wild Bees and Other Pollinators of Costa Rica Video

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A Typical Itinerary

  • Day 1: Arrival, introductions, travel to accommodations
  • Days 2–4: Collecting, surveying, and observing pollinators
  • Days 5–6: Planting shrubs and trees in experimental biodiversity islands, weather permitting 
  • Day 7: Team departs (volunteers on second week arrive, itinerary repeats)

You have the option to join the expedition for two weeks.

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HOW YOU WILL HELP

When you arrive, the researchers will provide you with information on working with pollinator species. Depending on your team’s location, fieldwork includes the following tasks:

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Collect and observe bees
COLLECT AND OBSERVE BEES

Travel to family farms growing sentinel squash plants. Observe all flowering plant species in close proximity to the sentinel squash and hand collect or aerial net the bees visiting flowering plants. Plant species will be identified using INaturalist App, and bees will be exported from Costa Rica so they can be identified in a lab..

Volunteers work in a tree nursery (C) Dana Salomon
PLANT TREES

Create a tree nursery. Plant trees in pastures to begin the process of reforestation.

Observe and count pollinator visits (C) Blanca Gonzalez
OBSERVE SQUASH OR PUMPKIN PLANTS

Observe and count pollinator visits to these and nearby plants at the different stations where they are set up.

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Field conditions and research needs can lead to changes in the itinerary and activities. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.

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FEEDBACK & QUESTIONS

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11 Reviews on this Expedition

If you have been on this expedition, others considering attending would love to hear about your experience.
Ranee Duncan |
This project gives the opportunity to witness Costa Rica's amazing diversity and conservation practices, working with and meeting inspiring scientists, guides, and farmers. Traveling to various research sites at different elevations and hearing about local farms as well as the bees that pollinate left me wanting to learn more! Meeting local farmers and sampling their products, and visiting very different locations in the area (research sites, farms, and the awe-inspiring Monteverde preserve) added to the experience.
2023 Earthwatch Participant |
This project is a great example of using different phases of research to develop and test theories for the restoration of the Costa Rican rainforests. Using bees as an indicator of ecosystem health, one can see the scientific progression from the determination of key plant species to collecting baseline data on cleared/disrupted plots to planting those plots with the theorized plants that will stimulate the restoration of the rainforest and in the future the results of those plantings. The additional connection the scientist has made with the local community and farmers, to show the value of restoring the rainforest will help insure continued progress in rainforest restoration. My involvement was mainly collecting baseline bee data on the plots prior to planting. Some of the plots are now in the planting phase of the research.
2023 Earthwatch Participant |
Participating in this expedition was a wonderful way to experience the richness of Costa Rica and to interact with Costa Ricans. I gained a new appreciation for both the scientific method and the importance of protecting bee diversity as a way to ensure environmental sustainability. Valerie has long-term relationships with the Costa Ricans who help with the expedition which enriches the experience.

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