Expedition: Day 3
The museum toured with a colorful array of birds, big and small. It was the first time seeing this wildlife for many of the students. Chical, Ecuador. Photo by Callie Broaddus.
Friday, September 20th
Written by Carter Ries
We woke up around 6:30 AM to a beautiful blue sky and the sun barely up behind the mountains. I had a great view of the east from my room, and loved every glimpse. We went down to have breakfast and had eggs, rice and some slices of pineapple with grape juice, then started our morning by going down to Chical where the previous night, a team had set up a museum for the local students.
Busses transported people to and from town to visit the exhibit. Photo of Lucy Houliston by Callie Broaddus.
When we arrived, we gawked at the set up of all the different creatures from Ecuador. From twenty plus different types of birds, to the mesmerizing ocelots and bears of the Ecuadorian world, and even a tiger from the Quito zoo! There was no lack of attention to detail, as every creature was set up carefully.
Some of the students had no idea that this wildlife lived in their backyard. Through the weekend, over 1,200 students from Ecuador and Colombia toured the exhibit. Photo by Callie Broaddus.
It brought back memories of my first time going to a museum and seeing the beautiful wildlife for the first time. At around 8:00, kids started to arrive, and by the dozens, they entered and admired the set up. There were kids who had crossed the border from Colombia to come and join their Ecuadorian peers in a fun and eventful learning process. Lucy, Callie, and I filmed not only the exhibit, but the kids as they walked around and learned from Marco, Javier, and the other members of EcoMinga’s team. As we looked through our camera lenses, we saw the excitement kids’ faces as Javier explained what a howler monkey sounded like, or when Marco showed the different types of birds and their calls.
The only non-Ecuadorian specimen was this tiger, a former resident from the Quito Zoo. Several students asked if they had tigers in the Chocó, too! Glad we cleared that up! Photo by Callie Broaddus.
As students waited for their turn to enter the exhibit, they peered through the barred windows and asked questions of anyone who passed by. Photo by Callie Broaddus.
It was obvious that each party was as interested as the other. We stayed for about three and a half hours and witnessed hundreds of kids enter and even bring their parents back out of pure joy. As the event ended at noon, we headed outside to an open plaza area where large, hand-painted banners of frogs and orchids were hanging to show the town the biodiversity of the rainforest. There we met a man by the name of Santiago Levi who worked for Fundación Altropico, and he showed us books and pamphlets about birds, frogs, snakes, and more that he had been studying and creating for the last several years. We spoke with Santiago for nearly an hour and a half and learned so much about species I had never even heard about.
In commemoration of our visit and our work, he gave the three of us each a straw hat, traditionally worn in the Andean foothills. We decided we wanted to have fun with it, and we laid down in front of the banners and sported our new hats. When I had a free moment, I walked over to Santiago and asked him questions about his birding experience. He had told me that he had gotten interested at a young age and ever since, he dedicated time to studying the sounds and looks of the different species. It took him years to master the art of birding, but when he did, he said it was extremely rewarding.
Three hand-painted signs by a local artist, three gifted hats, and three silly conservationists.
We went to lunch at quaint little place with two windows, a tv, and small kitchen. The main meal that we received throughout our time at this diner was rice, chicken, and plantain. I decided to put quite a bit of hot sauce on my rice and I may or may not have regretted that after the first few bites. It was a good meal, and we sat there for four hours going through drone footage, photos, and videos we had taken earlier in the morning, when suddenly, a truck pulled up next to the diner carrying a crate in the back. A man walked in and introduced himself as Damina Ponce, from the Ministerio del Ambiente (environmental ministry). Javier had known him for years, and smiled when he saw him. They stepped outside and spoke for a while about what was in the crate. Javier came back in with the widest grin on his face and told us that the creature in the crate was an agouti, a rodent resembling a small capybara.
It had been captured the previous day and was being sold as bushmeat when Damina found it and rescued it. The first time I saw the creature, I noticed it had a beautiful gold and brown fur color which shone in the light. Javier asked if Lucy and I wanted to sit in the back of the truck with the agouti to try and get footage of it before we released it. Being the adventurous people we were, we thought it was a great idea.
Callie jumped in the front seat of Javier’s car, and we were off. It was an 8km drive…within minutes of sitting in the back, Lucy and I knew it probably wasn’t the best idea we had. After about 4km, the agouti began to make noise and I looked inside the crate to see him throwing up his lunch. I looked away as soon as possible, as I had just eaten and did not want to do the same. The poor agouti threw up three times on our 8km journey, and by the time we arrived, I couldn’t blame it. Lucy and I hopped out of the truck and hugged the stable ground.
Paul, getting ready to film the agouti release.
Callie and I began setting up cameras to capture the release of this beautiful creature. Damina and Javier set down the crate and opened it. The creature stared out at everything for a second and then quickly hopped around over the tall grass looking for refuge. It began running in my direction, and I swore if it took one more jump in the direction it was going, it would have landed in my lap. It was an unforgettable experience.
After a successful release, from left to right: Lucy, Damina, Javier, Paul, Marco, and Carter. Photo by Callie Broaddus.
It was beginning to get dark when we left the release site and we knew we still had work to do when we got back to Casa Dracula. It took roughly 30 minutes to get back to the house, and when we did, I hopped in bed, got on my computer and began writing down information from the day and editing images until dinnertime. Callie and Lucy did the same.
The dinner consisted of a green broccoli soup and rice with plantains. As we were finishing up our delicious meal, we saw eight young students arrive with Daniel, another Reserva Youth Council member who works for our partner EcoMinga. They told us that they were friends with Daniel through their interest in wildlife, and suggested that we go herping later (looking for reptiles and amphibians). So, after cleaning up, we got our headlamps, flashlights, and warm clothes to go out and spot the night wildlife. Half of us went ahead to see what was further along the road, and the other half (Lucy, Callie, and two or three boys) stayed behind to get good photos of whatever was found.
Helping a rhinoceros beetle cross the road. Photo by Callie Broaddus.
The group I went with consisted of Daniel and four other boys (ages 15-21) who did not speak much English; however, we were able to communicate through gestures well enough. They were all so amazing at spotting the smallest of frogs and insects that I would never have seen. We found frogs, caterpillars, massive spiders and insects, moths, and even venomous wasps.
We spent a good three hours talking and growing a very nice friendship with each other. During our walk, some of the boys began making a whistling sound with their hand that mimicked some of the toucans and doves of the area. I of course had to try it, and sadly failed in doing so. They all began coming over to me showing me how to do it and after an hour of just teaching, I blew into my hands and heard a long, clear whistle. They all cheered for me and we all laughed at how long it took for me to achieve this simple task. At 11:30 we headed back to the house and we all said goodnight. As I was falling asleep, I pictured the whole day like it was happening all over again, and cherished every moment.