Tag Archives: Maya ruins

Day 2: The Climb

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

Day 2: Life under the sun!

Today we drove for a few hours through a pine ridge ecosystem into the Chiquibil National Forest! We stopped at Caracol, Maya ruins deep in the rainforest 3/4 of the way through our drive where we learned about Maya civilizations. We walked around the large site seeing bases of what used to be homes and temples in a sprawling city from 200-1200 CE/AD. There were huge palm trees with parasitic fig trees suffocating them and some very fragrant wild cilantro plants. I saw a small brown anole on one of the trees in the middle of one of the family housing areas. It was about 6ft up the trunk of the tree.

(Brown anole)

The largest ruin was in a wide expanse of sunny fields. It is the tallest structure in Belize, and we climbed all the way to the top! At the top we could see miles upon miles of mountains. Archaeologists suspect was the home of a local king, and at the top of the ruin was a temple to the sun god. We spent a good amount of time exploring the ruin, and though I was sweating through every layer of clothes, I loved every moment. I also saw a small brown lizard on the outside of the sun temple. Before we left the site, we saw a baby grey fox in the rubble of a partially excavated ruin.

(the view from the top of the tallest ruin)

(Rose bellied lizard)

We continued our day by driving to Las Cuevas Research Station, our home for the next few days. The jungle got consistently denser the further we drove; we even saw a toucan and some howler monkeys on a tree on the side of the road.

At Las Cuevas we took a short walk through the rainforest where I saw a blue tailed skink in the hole of a tree. Now we have started wearing boots anytime we go outside of the research station fields just in case we come across any venomous snakes. Hopefully we see some but not too close.

All in all, today was a super fun day and I successfully ended our sunniest day of the week without a sunburn!

See you later!

Claire C

Off the grid!

We have finally arrived at Las Cuevas! Before getting here, I was obviously aware that I was going to be in the rainforest, but it just hit me that I am IN THE RAINFOREST. The drive through the forest seemed to go on forever as we got deeper and deeper. We saw a toucan and howler monkeys along the way, which I have only ever seen in zoos, so it was so beautiful to see them in their natural habitat. The research station is something out of Tarzan! I feel so off the grid because we only have about 6 hours of internet access a day, no AC, and limited electricity! Time to test how strong my Instagram addiction is.

It’s day 2 and I have yet to see a butterfly up close— but I am holding out hope! Serenity has seen quite a few, and she showed me a picture of one that she found. I identified it as an Erato heliconian. I am glad that I was able to ID my first Lepidoptera. Today, I also gave my Lepidoptera Taxon briefing, which I think went well. I was able to answer all the questions, and everyone was so nice. Tomorrow is our first day really in the field, so I am excited to find a few on our explorations!

Last year, I took a class that covered the natural history of Maya forests, and I loved it! So i have been looking forward to seeing the Maya ruins and forests, which we saw today. The stairs at the ruins were BRUTAL; I definitely got in my leg workout today. But, it was so worth it! The views were incredible and it felt like truly a once in a lifetime experience. Our local guide, Leo seemed to know so much about the ruins and the history. After reading about these civilizations for so long, it was incredible to see them in real life!