5/20/19: We concluded our Cecropia and Aztec Ant project today and found that it might be true that uncolonized Cecropia trees have tougher leaves to prevent herbivory, but with our data, there might be many other possible explanations.

Today was our last day at Las Cuevas. We went to retrieve our camera traps; it was quite a long hike to pick up all seven cameras, and guess what we found? A TAPIR!!! We caught one on the camera that was furthest down the monkey tail trail. Honestly, I never thought I could be that excited for a photo, but trust me, I screamed a little when it came up. We also caught this mysterious photo of an animal that appeared to be cat-like. It was too close to the camera, so it is very overexposed and washed out. We hypothesize it is a Puma based on its outline, but we are not 100% sure. But, for the sake of tropical field biology, it will be a puma in my book.

On another note, I ran into quite a problem today at Las Cuevas. During a break today, Brendan and I used an “icy- hot” type ointment to help our sore muscles. For the first two hours of the break, it went great. But after that, let’s just say, things went a little less great. We went to gear up to investigate the leaf cutter ant mounds around Las Cuevas (super cool by the way!). So, as we were standing in the sun excavating a mound, our skin began to burn as if we were cooking in the sun. We began to remove our socks and ran up to the station to take a shower to remove the remaining ointment from our skin. In the end, we are doing much better, but note to self: do not wear icy-hot in direct sunlight.

Today was a slow day for arachnids. We were hiking swiftly this morning and did not often stop to check out anything on the path, so I saw a few wolf spiders scattered in the leaf litter and a what seemed to be a monster tick walking on a leaf. It had to be least 0.3 to 0.5 cm. It had white speckles on its back. To put it simply, we avoided it as much as possible. Tomorrow we make our way to the reef.  First stop ATM cave!

Wish me luck!

-Bella

5/19/19: Today, we started our day with an early morning research project. We were looking at how hurricane impacts areas within the Chiquibull, specifically how they impact plant diversity.  We were able to create a poster and present it all before lunchtime. I am not going to lie it felt pretty productive to get that all done in one morning.

Next, we had a second research project for the afternoon where we looked at the relationship of Cecropia trees and Aztec ants. We wanted to know if trees that were not colonized by the ants (ants provide tree protection against attack from herbivores) had tougher leaves to prevent herbivory. We are still working on the project, but I will keep y’all updated on the results.

I think my favorite part of the day was overlooking the entire Chiquibul forest from the bird tower. The sun was just starting to set and the dimming sunlight made for a beautiful sight. To see nature undisturbed for miles upon miles, it was incredible. I also got to take some nice photos with a great view which is always a plus.

As for my beloved arachnids, not much has changed. We saw a small Florida Bark scorpion (C. gracilis), orb weaver spider, and a few Red-Rumped (B. vagans) tarantulas today. However, something cool that I have noticed on night hikes is the sheer number of spiders on the forest floor. As we walk with our headlamps, their eyes are illuminated and reflect back towards us. In fact, we thought we saw a wolf spider with a glittery back, but we soon realized, it was not glitter at all. The spider was carrying hundreds of young spiders! With the way things are going, I am excited to start another project tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

-Bella

5/18/19: We retrieved our pee. All 11 sets of pit-fall traps were successfully captured. Wooohoo! As crazy as it might sound, I was kind of sad when I didn’t find too many arthropods in my pee. I mean, I don’t know what I was anticipating, but I kind of wish a beetle would have fallen into my pee. Is my pee not good enough? All I accounted for was a few ants and ticks.

Today, we worked on evaluating our results from these traps and preparing a poster presentation.  Prior to this trip, I would have thought it was nearly impossible to make a poster and present it in one day, but boy was I wrong. We worked very well together, and we were able to create a poster and present it in a single day. I worked on the data analysis which I really enjoyed. Getting to apply what you learn in class in the field has definitely been a highlight of this trip.

It was a slow day for arachnids. I saw a quite a few wolf spiders walking to retrieve the pee samples on the Mayan trail. They ranged in size from 0.1 cm to 4 cm across the body.  And of course, I had a few run-ins with some ticks. But aside from that, my day seemed to be consumed with amphibians and birds. URINE not going to BELIZE what I saw! We saw a Morelet’s tree frog and a toucan walking along the Maya trail. Ahhh! Seeing the Morelet’s tree frog in real life makes reading about it seem so insignificant. The real-life experience was incredible, and I won’t ever forget it. I am going to keep an eye out for a Golden Orb Weaver spider tomorrow because it is something I have really been wanting to see.

 Wish me luck!

-Bella

5/17/19: In class today, we peed. Yes, you heard me right, we peed. For the love of science, we peed in vials that will act as nitrogen sources for our new field experiment. Our 2 questions for the experiment were: Is there a greater species richness and abundance of arthropods on the forest floor or in the canopy? And, is nitrogen limitation more severe on the forest floor or in the canopy? Currently, my pee sits awaiting arthropods in the middle of the Chiquibul forest. I’ll keep you updated as to how it goes.

Aside from that, I think my favorite part of the day was visiting the cave near Las Cuevas Research Station. It is crazy to me how something so beautiful can even exist all on it is own. It is not man-made; it just exists by the natural world. I went on the cave field trip in the second grade and that was the end of my cave-going days, so it was nice to see it as an adult to appreciate it more fully. We even had lectures inside of the cave which was very cool.

Today, I had a few interesting sightings of arachnids. Along the Mayan trail, I saw a wolf spider (genus: hogna) and a harvestman. The wolf spider was carrying an egg sack. The harvestman was red, black, and white. I saw quite a few red-rumped tarantulas today along the trail near their underground burrows. They are always a cool site.

The most intriguing find I had was on a night hike down the Mayan trial. Even with some research, I am unsure of the species of this spider. It was a beautiful orange color with black stripes; it had a thicker abdomen and legs than most spiders I have seen in the canopy.  I nicknamed it the tiger spider. Check out the picture and let me know what you think!

Check in tomorrow because guess what? We are going to extract our pee. Cheese Belize!

Wish me luck!

-Bella