Ecorana Environmental ltd., Blog at it's partner field staiton at the T.R.E.E.S

We are Ecorana Environmental, an eco-travel and environmental education company that specializes in creating and planning applied learning holidays for students, researchers, and ecotourists alike. Our team consists of travel and outreach specialists as well as research biologists and teachers who specialize in environmental education and conservation. We are well-versed in providing comfortable, safe, and exciting learning and travel opportunities to a range of clientele interested in environmentally and culturally conscious travel.Ecorana is poised to offer travel and education abroad opportunities in the diverse tropical country of Belize. Ecorana employs biologists who are well-trained in tropical ecology, herpetology, and ornithology, and as such, studies in tropical biology are the primary focus of our educational holidays. However, our team’s diverse interests and expertise allow us to plan all types of holidays ranging from wildlife ecotours to yoga retreats to West African drumming courses to ecological field technique courses. Wherever your interests lie, you can be guaranteed that Ecorana will be right there with you.Ecorana maintains values of environmental and cultural conservation and stewardship, hands-on education, and inclusive learning, and seeks to instill those values in all visitors to Belize. We work with many field stations and educational centers, scientists, educators, tour companies, tour guides, eco-lodges, and parks, both on the mainland and on the islands of Belize, to make sure you go exactly where you want to go and see exactly what you want to see and more!

One of our main partners is the Toucan Ridge Ecology and Education Society (T.R.E.E.S) and their field station in Belize. The objectives of this environmental education center are to host various cultural and environmental based student courses, workshops and event hosting in the heart of the beautiful Maya Mountains of Belize. We plan on providing our services to international students as well as providing opportunities for Belizean students.

For more information see our website at www.ecorana.ca, or send us and email at info@ecorana.ca or to go directly to the T.R.E.E.S website www.treesociety.org

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Herping it up

We are just recovering from an exciting weekend spent "herping" with a visiting herpetologist from Save the Frogs, a non-profit organization based in California that is, you guessed it, saving frogs. We went out for two nights and two days with Michael Starkey and found some great new species on our property and on the neighbouring property and forest reserve! We also finally had the opportunity to hike to the famous waterfall which you can see from our place; every day tourists and locals alike stop on the edge of our property to oooh and ahhh at this site! So we were excited to finally get up there.

I think the highlight for the frog lovers was a beautiful Maya Mountain Frog, which is a rare species that lives only in the mountains of Belize. We couldn't believe our luck when our little herper dog Eva scrambled up a bank and scared this special little frog into the water right in front of us! 


Now I know the Moms and Dads and Aunties and Uncles are reading this so I probably shouldn't discuss the next herp we found, but I can't resist as it was beautiful and exciting. A little ways up the trail after finding this frog, Will, our guide from the nearby village of Mile 28, started yelling something to us slow pokes down at the tadpole pool that seemed pretty important. We ran up the path and he was holding Eva back, and told us there was a big Tommy Goff (a poisonous snake also known as the Fer-de-Lance) in the middle of the trail. The craziest (and scariest) thing is that it took each of us several seconds to even see it despite it being in the middle of the trail! That's why you need to always watch where you step in the jungle.


We also saw some pretty cool sleeping creatures on our first night out, including a beautiful little Pygmy Kingfisher and our first Green Iguana in trees overhanging the water!


Finally, no blog post is complete without a picture of yours truly holding a beloved critter. This lizard, which is aptly named the Old Man Lizard, is one of my personal favourites and we found him in our own backyard on Sunday! What a handsome little fellow, sure makes me happy to have him in my hands!




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