I knew I would miss my girlfriend tremendously, and my bicycle even more, but the chance to work as a field biologist was too tempting to turn down a paid ride to the largest track of forest left in all of Central America. Suddenly I was on a flight to San Jose, Costa Rica, then a bus ride to San Vito, and a jeep ride up to Las Alturas. See what they're up to, and, if possible, follow them. Look for any hints of nesting. Find the nests and record their location.
Check nests regularly for activity and record the findings.
Before me lay six months of wandering around the cloud forest looking for bird nests and talking to myself. The lush foliage of Las Alturas cloud forest provides cover for snakes, monkeys, birds, and peccaries. Any step could bring a surprise. So far, my searching for bird nests had proved as much a matter of luck as of any scientific skill. No system was more successful than any other.