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Ostional National Wildlife
Refuge:
Travel
to Costa Rica
Ostional National Wildlife Refuge: This
refuge was declared to protect a major nesting beach
for Pacific Ridley Sea Turtles, as well as the waters
offshore from the beach.
Several times a year, female turtles come
ashore in such numbers that the sandy beach begins to
resemble a stretch of rocky coastline. These mass nesting
episodes are locally referred to as "arribadas,"
or arrivals. One of these events can last from two to
eight days with most nesting taking place at night.
Locals will tell you that the arribadas
begin three or four nights after the full moon, and
this is typically the case in months when relatively
small numbers of individuals nest, but during the peak
nesting season from July through November when more
than 100,000 nests may be made during a single arribada,
any correlation with phases of the moon or the tides
breaks down completely. What triggers the mass nestings
is still a mystery.
Scientists suggest that this species produces
a superabundance of nests as a strategy for survival
against predators, since with so many eggs laid in just
a few nights (a million or more during a large arribada)
it is unlikely that the local natural predators could
possibly consume them all. Likewise, when the surviving
eggs hatch and the young turtles make their scramble
down the beach to the ocean, if thousands of them are
doing this at more or less the same time, then some
percentage of them ought to escape the variety of hungry
predators that range from crabs to coyotes.
Getting there: Vehicular access to Ostional
is somewhat challenging, and a four-wheel-drive vehicle
with good clearance is definitely recommended, especially
if going in the wet season when the bulk of the sea
turtle nesting occurs. The refuge can be reached from
either the town of Santa Cruz or Nicoya (both situated
on the main highway that runs down the middle of the
Nicoya Peninsula), and following a series of gravel
and dirt roads to the coast (at Playa Junquillal if
coming from Santa Cruz, or Playa Nosara if coming from
Nicoya) and continuing south or north, respectively,
until arriving at Ostional. Although more direct, the
route via Nicoya-Nosara involves fording a river which
can be impassable at times in the rainy season.
To improve your chances of seeing turtles,
you can try contacting the village of Ostional to find
out the current status of nesting. To do so, you'll
need to speak some Spanish since the phone (682-0267)
is the local public phone in the village.
Fishing: To the south of Ostional Beach
there are a number of charter operations between Nosara
and Carrillo that can take you fishing for Sailfish,
Marlin, Tuna, Mackerel, Wahoo, Bonito, Amberjack, Roosterfish,
Snapper, and other game species found along this section
of the Pacific coast.
Climate: The afternoon showers that characterize
the months from May through November can make getting
to the Ostional National Wildlife Refuge a bit difficult
during the peak nesting season for Pacific Ridley Sea
Turtles, however, this beach is still far more accessible
than the only other beach in the country where this
same phenomenon occurs, Nancite Beach in Santa Rosa
National Park. Daytime temperatures are hot throughout
the year, evenings are comfortable.
History: The creation of the Ostional
National Wildlife Refuge is a wonderful example of the
"if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" philosophy
in conservation. For many years, the wholesale ransacking
of turtle nests for eggs was a seasonal activity indulged
in by people from all over the region, and from even
as far away as San José. The widespread belief
that consumption of turtle eggs produces aphrodisiacal
effects has led to their popular demand as bocas (snacks
served as appetizers in local cantinas).
Hampered by insufficient funding to adequately
patrol the beach at Ostional, while at the same time
needing the support of the local villagers, the wildlife
authorities proposed a new scheme with the declaration
of the refuge. The proposal was that Ostional residents,
and only Ostional residents, would be granted permission
to harvest a limited number of eggs during the first
two nights of each nesting period and sell them only
to bars with licenses to serve turtle eggs. The idea
was to get the local populace to function as a police
force to safeguard their own interests and protect the
later nests at the same time since these have a better
chance of success (early nests are often inadvertently
excavated by turtles arriving later on during an arribada).
This novel policy has generated much debate,
but it seems to be working effectively.
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