| Alex Martinez operates a well-known bed and breakfast and tour guiding business near the town of Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui in northeastern Costa Rica. For many years he and a small group of dedicated people have served as volunteer wildlife wardens. With little funding or support of any kind, they have been on the front lines of the often dangerous business of investigating and intervening in illegal hunting, fishing, pet trade exploitation of wildlife and logging. Alex is often the recipient of animals, usually birds, that his group and other authorities confiscate from poachers or rescue from illegal captivity. There has been a long-standing need for a place to care for and release confiscated wildlife. At present, there are few places in the country to take animals that cannot be simply released back into the wild. Trauma, disease and malnutrition--conditions frequently seen in animals rescued from this exploitation--often leave few options other than euthanasia. In the fall of 2007, a long-time friend of Alex's, U.S.-based environmental consultant and author, Kevin Brewster, facilitated the purchase of a parcel of forested land near Alex's home. The property proved to be rich in wildlife and plant diversity beyond all expectations; examples of the region's amazing bird fauna are particularly obvious when one first arrives. |
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| Adjoining an enormous expanse of forested lands, this property is now part of a growing network of private preserves that will eventually complete a biological corridor running through the entire country, connecting with critical wild lands in Nicaragua and Panama. Its isolation and abundant resident and transient wildlife make it the perfect location for rehabilitating and releasing native species. of the surrounding countryside (Brualio Carillo National Park), plants and animals found on the property, the new volunteer quarters, the original farmhouse, confiscated wildlife under care here, Alex (releasing a parrot into an enclosure), and Kevin. |
