Costa Rica Volunteering Programmes

Conserve Sea Turtles

Help in protecting and conserving sea turtles of Costa Rica. Along with saving these critically endangered animals, this will increase alternative livelihoods for coastal communities to take the need for poaching and hunting turtles away and to achieve a long-lasting sustainable sea turtle management.

Location: The project is located in the north of the Caribbean province of Limón, 1km north of the Pacuare River Mouth.

Basic accommodation and food available.

The project is located in a quiet, remote area, bordered by the sea on the front and a canal on the back, therefore, it is only accessible by boat. The accommodation is basic and simple. Electricity is only available from solar panels and has to be used rationally. You will have to wash your clothes by hand, Pillows, blankets and bedsheets will be provided.

What is that you can do:

1. Night Patrols: An average night patrol will take 4 hours but can last longer in case of sea turtle encounters. Once a turtle is encountered on a night patrol, the volunteers work directly with it, taking carapace and nest dimension measurements, collecting eggs and collecting data. The number of eggs, nest location and turtle identification information (tag number) are then recorded by the hatchery attendant for further data analysis, for example determining hatchling survival rate.
2. Hatchery Work: The main tasks in the hatchery will be relocating nests (as described above and after having had thorough training), monitoring nests, keeping predators out (ants, crabs, and dogs), taking temperatures and measurements and releasing hatchlings.

 Please remember:

• Safety and sea turtles always come first!
• We address threats like: illegal poaching, hunting or environmental damage.
• The majority of the work is at night, either working between the hours of 7:00 PM and 4:00 AM on night patrols walking an average 14 km in the dark on soft, wet sand, or working in the hatchery monitoring it.
• There may be times when volunteers will be asked to work both during the day and night, and more than 30 hours/week, but also times when volunteers don’t have a lot to do and have to spend their time on their own.
• Night patrols will STILL take place during the rain.
• There will be some nights when there are few or no turtles nesting. Patrols will still take place. We cannot be sure when or if turtles will nest.

You will be provided with practical training in data collection on the beach and in the hatchery (how to take measurements, tagging, tissue sampling, weighting, relocating etc.)

Requirements:

You must be in good physical condition (on night patrol you will walk on average 14 km in the dark on soft, wet sand), able to work hard and live in basic conditions. We recommend having basic knowledge of Spanish.