Bird Monitoring Program

 
 

Education Program

 

The PMA feels that in order to change habits and to encourage people to practice sound, ecologically friendly agriculture we must look to the future.  Therefore, the goal of the PMA’s La Vida en Vuelo environmental education program is to make conservation of migratory and resident avian populations and their habitats a consistent elementary and secondary schools educational component throughout the VCTBC.  The La Vida en Vuelo program focuses on hands-on, experiential learning to create a unique experience that leaves a positive impression on all who participate.  Students, teachers and volunteers all have the opportunity to literally have a “bird in the hand”.  Participants are able to see, touch and learn the ins and outs of bird monitoring while learning the importance of conservation and preservation in the context of migratory and resident avian species in the VCTBC. Over 100 teachers and school children, along with 20 plus volunteers participated in the La Vida en Vuelo environmental education program during PMA’s inaugural year. 
 
The program is open to all regional schools with an interest in learning more about their local environment.  The La Vida en Vuelo staff and volunteers will open up a new world to all participants who will gain a wealth of knowledge through:

 

  • Checking/extracting birds from the mist nets with staff ornithologists
  • Learning bird characteristics to aid in bird identification and monitoring
  • Seeing birds up close and in the hand
  • Discovering the difference between resident and migratory birds
  • Observing banding of resident and migratory birds
  • Learning the importance of biological corridors in conservation and preservation of avian species
  • Discovering and learning actions that are important for conservation
  • Releasing birds back to their environment

 

The La Vida en Vuelo program monitors six different habitat types within the CATIE campus.  Participating schools and classrooms can choose from the following habitats:

 

  • Abandoned coffee plantation
  • Shade coffee plantation
  • Cacao plantation
  • Cane field
  • Live fence in pasture
  • Forest

 

If transportation to CATIE is a problem, we would be happy to try and organize a bird mist netting activity in an alternate location within the VCTBC that is more convenient to the schools needs.  The education program is free to participating schools that attend the program within the CATIE campus.  If an alternate site is selected, a donation will be requested to cover costs.

 

If you are interested in scheduling a La Vida en Vuelo field trip please contact us at least two weeks prior to your anticipated visitation date. 
Contact us.

           

Looking to the Future

 

The La Vida en Vuelo program is looking to expand.  In the near future we will be adding two new components to the program:  teacher training workshops and an additional participatory, hands-on activity section during the field trip.


The La Vida en Vuelo teacher workshop will utilize a hands-on, thematic, participatory approach to prepare teachers for participating in the Vida en Vuelo environmental education program. The objective of these teacher workshops is to provide elementary and high school teachers in the VCTBC with the knowledge and materials to integrate conservation of migratory and resident avian populations with standard reading, writing, and science curriculum.  In addition, trained teachers will be prepared to bring their students to the PMA’s bird monitoring field trip on the CATIE campus. Teachers participating in the workshop will familiarize themselves with wildlife and habitats within the context of the VCTBC while learning how to use the biological corridor as an outdoor classroom.  Emphasis will be placed on identification and conservation of migratory and resident avian populations and their habitats through bird friendly practices based on best science.  The workshop will enable teachers to literally experience a “bird in the hand” during the mist netting monitoring portion of the workshop as well as participate in the on-site activities their students will experience during a La Vida en Vuelo field trip. Each teacher will receive a workbook with detailed information on VCTBC habitats and wildlife as well as hands on classroom activities to encourage awareness and action in the context of conservation within the corridor, and to prepare their students for participating in the PMA Environmental Education program.  All teachers who complete the workshop will be invited to participate in one or more La Vida en Vuelo field trips for their students. 

 

The skills teachers will be able to impart to their students will include: 
 
1) awareness and sensitivity of migratory bird species and the habitats and environs they inhabit;
2) acquire an understanding of the importance of migratory species in the context of different habitat types, both nationally and internationally;
3) motivating them to actively participate in migratory bird habitat restoration and conservation;
4) acquire the tools for identifying, understanding, and solving environmental issues;
5) learn to work together with various interest groups both within the community and internationally to solve problems; and
6) to develop a life long enjoyment of birds and to encourage them to include their families and peers. 
 
The La Vida en Vuelo field trip will be a unique experience that will focus on hands-on, experiential learning in the context of conservation and preservation of migratory and resident avian species in the VCTBC.  Teachers who have completed the teacher-training workshop will be able to choose from a list of age appropriate activities that will be administered by PMA staff and volunteers.  Once the students arrive at the PMA monitoring station, they will participate in two distinct activity sections.  In the first section, students will rotate through activities of their teacher’s choice, which focus on the VCTBC as an outdoor classroom and impart a greater understanding of their local environs. The second section will include the current hands-on participation in the bird mist netting and monitoring program.