Visitors at Reserva Las Tangaras

¡Hola! Daniel and Amanda, the reserve managers, here!

One of our greatest joys working at Reserva Las Tangaras is spending time with the visitors who journey here from all over the world, near and far, and for many different reasons. Everyone who visits the reserve is someone who loves exploring the natural world and has a sense of adventure! They love spending time outside surrounded by the sight, sounds, and smells of the cloud forest and enjoying the tranquility and excitement of the wilderness.

People all over the world share a great love of beautiful and intact wilderness areas inhabited by a plethora of plants, animals, fungi, and other species. Nature has the great power to unify us, and the reserve reveals this to us in many ways!

The reserve is an exciting and fantastic gathering place to meet travelers and local people who share a similar love of nature. Many find themselves engaged in lively conversation about a variety of different topics, providing a great opportunity to learn from the diversity of knowledge and experiences of others.

When we’re not involved in these exciting exchanges, the hummingbirds enchant us all, no matter where we are from! You can find yourself on the porch with others from around the world and find similar looks of wonder on their faces while gazing at these amazing birds.

Here you can meet other environmentalists, scientists, photographers, writers, artists, chefs, farmers, yoga instructors, guides, non-profit organizers, doctors, nurses, and teachers, just to name a few of the kinds of people who join us here. We even met one family traveling around the world in their RV. Check out their blog! http://glob3trotters.canalblog.com

One of our most exciting and favorite activities for visitors is visiting the Andean Cock-of-The-Rock (ACOR) lek. We rise at five am for a pre-dawn hike up steep slopes to the lek, where the ACOR males gather for courtship displays. Hot coffee, fresh bread, and a banana snack definitely help get you going! All around us, frogs chirp and sing while the forest prepares for sunrise. As we sit up in the hide, the first light of morning peeks in through the canopy and the magic unfolds as the first ACOR male arrives in a flurry of bright red feathers and with a high rattling “heeeoooowoop.” It’s now time for their most exciting part of the day, too! I won’t tell you anymore, you will just have to come see for yourself how amazing these fellows, and occasional gal, really are. Though not normally as active as the morning lek, the afternoon lek offers visitors another opportunity to see the ACOR in action!

Visitors also love learning about the research at the reserve. Those who visit the lek with us understand why we study the fascinating social dynamics between the males. Some even spend time learning the hummingbird species so they can help with our daily hummingbird observations. If you are a scientist interested in conducting research at the reserve, let us know! We have also been enjoying going on some great hikes with visitors and learning about the many plant and animal species here!

The reserve is also a great place for volunteers to contribute to a meaningful project while learning new skills, knowledge, and the ins-and-outs of running a nature reserve. It is an incredibly rewarding and enriching experience!

Most visitors wish they could live and work here like us. We wish you would stay longer as well! We feel very lucky indeed to be here in our cloud forest home! Come visit us!

¡Hasta luego!

Amanda and Daniel