Published: Wednesday, 20th August, 2008 12:30
Kincardine student's jungle experience
By Jamie MacDonald
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Sarah MacDonald spent the summer working in Honduras on a wildlife project.
Pic by: David Robertson
A KINCARDINE student has spent the summer monitoring gorillas and catching bats in the jungles of Honduras.
Sarah MacDonald (20), who studies zoology at Edinburgh University, was on a biodiversity research project in the country’s Cusuco National Park aiding scientists as they studied and categorised the wildlife of the area.
During her six weeks in Honduras, Sarah watched howler-monkeys, bats, snakes, lizards and marine life – in addition to spending much of the time living in the jungle.
She told the Advertiser, “We were needed to help the scientists based in the park to carry out projects aimed at helping them protect the park and the animals inside it for years to come.”
With many animals worldwide in danger due to deforestation there was delight during Sarah’s stay as a new species of bat was discovered and a type of frog previously thought to be extinct was found in the park.
Sarah said, “It was quite exciting and good for the park. Everyone was happy to find the bat and frog and it means it is more likely they will get funding to continue the work.”
Sarah explained that a co-operative had been established with locals in an attempt to provide them with a sustainable way of life which did not affect the wildlife surrounding them.
She added, “In the past there were spider monkeys but they were all eaten by the locals.
“To be part of the co-operative locals agree not to hunt or chop down trees, instead they grow coffee which goes to distributors supplying places like Tesco and the National Union of Students.
“It seems to give them a steady income all year round.”
The programme, entitled Operation Wallacea, involved learning how to live in the jungle with participants sleeping nightly in hammocks and cooking eggs in leaves.
Sarah said, “It wasn’t too comfy but you soon got used to sleeping in a hammock.
“The problem was you couldn’t go to the toilet in the night because of the poisonous snakes round about – you just had to wait until morning and you always had to check your shoes for snakes before you put them on too.”
She went on, “One girl set up her hammock over a colony of fire ants – which she stood on – and they bit her all over her legs.”
Once the students were up to speed with jungle life they studied the vocal pattern of howler-monkeys and how different groups interacted, recorded bat species by catching them in nets and learned to scuba dive so they could examine the underwater reefs.
“The monkeys were quite noisy first thing in the morning but after that they didn’t do too much,” Sarah said.
“The bat team was a bit more hands on, we caught the bats and could touch them – they’re a bit like mice with wings really. They’ve recorded 52 species in the park.
“On the reef you could see fish you only ever see in fish tanks.
“There were parrot fish, angel fish, barracuda and sea turtles and we were checking to see what had been damaged by a hurricane that passed through the area a while back.”
Sarah added, “I really liked being in the jungle. It was great seeing so many animals in their natural habitat and it was a bit like being in a David Attenborough programme at times, especially when we were put in harnesses and lifted into the tree canopy.
“The diving was like being in another world, but I really liked just being in Honduras.
“There is extreme poverty there and where we were staying people didn’t have much, only a few people have electricity, but they are happy with what they have.
“At night we would play football or pool with the locals in the village.
“Before I arrived I didn’t speak any Spanish but I could still communicate with them. It was great being there and I would love to go back.”
Sarah would like to thank Kincardine Community Council and Myra Christie for their help in fundraising for her trip.
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