Tag Archives: Caracol Ruins

Day 2: The Climb

May 20, 2025 es101 Leave a comment

Today was definitely the coolest day…so far. Seeing Caracol in person was like nothing I’ve ever experienced, even compared to exploring other ancient structures like the Colluseum. I think part of what made the experience so special was the absolute overwhelm of the rainforest. Driving for hours through pristine, preserved forests created a real build-up, as I could truly picture the Mayan worldview and landscape. Also, being the only group trouring Caracol today cast the whole trip in an almost ethereal light-as if we were the only ones who got to enter some other-worldly dimension. It was fascinating to hear about the Mayan religious practices, something that appears to transcend all time and borders. Hearing about the blood letting, sacrifices, and extreme sports they played (10 pound balls?!) made me wonder which practices or rituals I partake in that would make future civilizations raise an eyebrow.

Turning to the rainforest more broadly, it was cool to get a little taste of what the rest of our stay at LCRS will look like. Although I am a bit wary of flying insects, I really enjoyed the thrill of stepping into the unknown underbrush. There is so much more complexity to the rainforest than I could ever comprehend. From the epyphytes to the complex paradox of the rainforest soil, it feels like every single part of the landscape is just as, if not more alive than me. LCRS is truly situated in such a fascinating spot, and I am happy I get to spend nearly a week exploring here.

Still, I have not stumbled across any cockroaches. My presentation this evening went smoothly and I learned that the Giant Cockroach nyphs have a unique defense mechanism: secreting a sticky, stinky substance that repulses its predators. I am hoping to turn over a couple logs in the forest tomorrow and finally have my first spotting!

-Emily

Uncategorized

Day 2: Monkeys, Ruins, and Angry Ants

May 18, 2025 et66 Leave a comment

“Toto, I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” Today, our group officially entered the jungle with a tour of the ruins of Caracol and a hike around Las Cuevas Research Station. While I encountered neither an amphibian nor an angelfish (I would have been really surprised to see that one), we saw many amazing species. While at Caracol, we observed a species of bird called Montezuma’s Oropendola. This species has a long tail with yellow feathers and builds pendulum-shaped nests. Our guide, Leo, noted that if the female Oropendola does not approve of a nest, she will push it to the ground and the male Oropendola will have to build another. We also observed several Howler monkeys (including a baby Howler monkey) and a Toucan from the road out of Caracol.

Caracol is a site of ancient Mayan ruins and we had the unique opportunity to climb the stairs to several large temples. I particularly enjoyed the view of the surrounding forest from the top. One of the structures we climbed remains the tallest building in Belize to this day. I learned a lot about Mayan culture and traditions, including their practice of playing ball games in large areas surrounded by rock walls, sometimes as a means of war.

After the tour of Caracol, our group arrived at Las Cuevas Research Station. We took a short hike around the area and observed several epiphytes and ant species. We discussed a bit about the mutualistic relationship between the bull-horned acacia and acacia ants after observing them on the trail. Acacia ants will fight anything that touches the acacia plant in exchange for food and shelter.

It was exciting to see these species in person after learning about them in biology classes in prior years.

We ended the day with dinner (pork, mashed potatoes, bread, and vegetables) and presentations. I am looking forward to exploring Las Cuevas more tomorrow with our first big project! I plan to wake up around 6 to bird watch before breakfast. That’s all for now!

Uncategorized

Caracol and LCRS Night 1!

May 18, 2025 Sam Forman Leave a comment

May 17 – First Full Day, CPE —> LCRS Travel Day, Caracol Visit, and Inaugural Hike

Hello! Today was yet another great day here in Belize. When we woke up, we were met with a lovely breakfast from the Crystal Paradise Ecolodge before we hopped in the van for a ride to the Caracol Maya Ruins. Caracol was one of their larger cities, with a 5 mile radius of the site, 35,000 structures, and an estimated population of 200,000! Visiting the site and seeing the ruins, along with the beautiful Cotton Trees (pictured below with large above-surface root systems called Buttress Roots) was so awesome!

In addition to the ruins of Caracol, we arrived at Las Cuevas Research Station (our home for the next week) and had our inaugural hike! This was a short hike along the Mayan Trail, where there was no shortage of diverse ants! I saw some stray ants on leaves and the ground, but the real excitement came early on: we saw army ants! They were marching along the path, and marching back the other direction with objects they to bring back to their bivouac, a temporary colony home (as opposed to a traditional ant colony) that is in place for only one reproductive cycle. After the cycle, the entire colony will move to a new place with new forage-ables. When we moved on, after a lull in ant-spotting, we came upon a Bull’s Horn Acacia tree. I know what you’re thinking: what does a tree matter to the ant man? Well, this tree has a secret (unless you disturb it, then it is not a secret.) The tree is protected by ants through a symbiotic relationship! The tree provides shelter in its hollow thorns to the colony, while also providing both carbohydrates and protein, making a full meal. The ants never have to leave! Their rent? Protection. If someone even messes with the tree, the ants will attack that individual (person, animal, rock maybe?) So, for just a 30 minute jaunt in the woods, there was a pretty great amount of ant-stuff to see!

Images:

Cotton Tree

Caracol Ruins

Bull’s Horn Acaciaarmy ants,

Maya Trail Sign

Army ants marching

2022

Welcome to the jungle!!

June 20, 2022 ers10 Leave a comment

Today was our first day full day in the rainforest! We drove from the Tropical Education Center to Caracol, an archeological site full of Maya ruins! Along the way, we saw a Morelet’s crocodile laying on a rock in a stream. Once we got there, our guide, Leo, who had worked on the excavation of the site in the nineties, explained to us the relevance of the site. He told us that it was a large Maya civilization, home to about 200,000 people at its peak, and the pyramid at its epicenter is actually the tallest building in all of Belize. We got to climb the pyramid, which is both a temple and a palace, as the king built his home atop the temple to show his divine right to power.

We saw some other structures, including an astronomical observatory, a ball court, middle class homes, and a reservoir. The ruins were extremely impressive, and it was cool to imagine people living in that city hundreds of years ago.

We also got to see the ceiba trees, which although they were only about 200 years old, were already over one hundred feet tall! In the plants on the ground around the trees, Faith found a small lime green grasshopper. I think it was some type of nymph, as I didn’t see any wings on it. It promptly hopped away, but it was very cute, and I managed to snap a photo of it.

We got rained on towards the end of the tour, but we took refuge in the abandoned houses that were used for the archaeologists. We then had lunch, during which we got to hear howler monkeys. Their howls were a lot lower than I had anticipated. Some other cool things we had gotten to see were leaf cutter ants and their huge nests, as well as a wild cilantro plant, which is more potent than the commercially available cilantro.

After lunch, we headed to Las Cuevas! On the drive over, we saw some scarlet macaws flying overhead, a toucan in the canopy, and multiple turtles that were crossing the road. When we got to the research station, we were welcomed by Rafael, the manager, and then we enjoyed dinner and our class presentations. I’m excited for tomorrow and getting to truly experience the rain forest!

-Elena

2019

15/05/19 Cara-cool Ruins

May 21, 2019 erd5 Leave a comment

I awoke to the sound of birds (or rather, people birding). After breakfast and mourning my last hours of reliable WiFi, I loaded the van with the class to travel an hour to Rio on Pools in the Mountain Pine Range. While there, we swam, but mostly slipped, slid, and stumbled on the algae that blanketed the rocks. We also dunked our heads in waterfalls. Once dried and changed, we embarked on another hour-long journey to the Caracol Ruins.

At the Caracol Ruins, there were many butterflies that appeared to be of the same species (a variant of swallowtail as indicated by long ‘tails’ protruding from each hindwing). The ruins themselves were magnificent, but also a pain to climb; the steps of the ruins were so high that every time I took a step, my knees rose to my chest. It was all worth it though because now I can say that I have conquered the tallest structure in the country of Belize! Also, I stood within a tomb, which was dank, and the buttresses of a ceiba tree. After traversing the ruins, the class drove an hour to Las Cuevas Research Station, our final destination for the day.

Some other cool, miscellaneous things observed en route:

Mayan temple replica currently being constructed by a man who claims to be a descendant of a Mayan god
3 military checkpoints, the second of which was a Dutch army base
carsickness 🙁

At Las Cuevas, I found and captured a butterfly in the restroom. It was sitting with its wings closed (as is the tendency of the butterfly), so I identified it as a butterfly even though the coloration (lacking in vibrancy) was more similar to a moth’s. The butterfly was tan/brown with an eyespot on each wing (forewing and hindwing, 4 eye spots total). The hindwings had significant perforations, but they were erratic in size and depth, so I believe that they were not present as a result of species-specific characteristic.

It began raining lightly (forest’s namesake weather!) Scott heard then saw a scarlet macaw.

After dinner, the class ended the night with a discussion on research question, and lectures on trees, birds, and the paradox of tropical soils.

BIOS 319: Tropical Field Biology