Blogs+from+Summer,+2014,+in+Costa+Rica

Joey Wells http://joeywells0615.tumblr.com

Joey's blog is full of unique photos and videos from his experience in Costa Rica. There are many videos of the activities such as zip lining and surfing that students were able to participate in. Throughout his blog, he mentions various pharmaceutical techniques used throughout this country and how different the lifestyle is in Costa Rica in comparison to life here in the United States. His final blog research post is about African Oil Palm and how it can be used as an alternative fuel source.

Samantha Hancock http://samanthaledean.tumblr.com/

Samantha is a Pre-Veterinarian student and her love of wildlife shows in the blog of her Costa Rica adventure. Her research project is about the sea turtle conservation that the Tropical Ecology students were able to help with in Cahuita, Costa Rica. Not only can you see how incredible the wildlife is in her blog, you can also see how much of a bonding experience a study abroad trip is for all students involved. Usually, the photos on Samantha's blog feature various students that took this trip, and you can tell how close they became during their time in Costa Rica.

Laura Ruskoski http://2laurar2.tumblr.com/

Laura gives a day by day description of her journey through Costa Rica with the Tropical Ecology class as well as her mother. She does a great job of incorporating the Costa Rican culture into her blog. She has photos of a variety of meals, drinks, traditions, as well as local Ticos in her blog. She may have came back with two broken bones in her thumb, but she definitely enjoyed her time spent in the beautiful country of Costa Rica.

Anna Williams http://myfirstpassportstamp.blogspot.com/

Follow this blog as Anna gets her first stamp on her passport. While in Costa Rica, she decided to focus her studying on the birds that call Costa Rica home. Her blog features many photos and videos of the unique species of birds in this area of the world. She also presents a great question pertaining to fishing regulations in Costa Rica in comparison to the United States and whether being required to have a fishing license or not has an effect on the fish population of an area.

Cynthia Sanders http://displacednaturalistbiology.blogspot.com/

Cynthia wanted to gain knowledge in order to compare the ecosystem of the Rain Forest to that of the Prairies here in Oklahoma. While on the trip, it was very important to her to respect the environment while being able to observe the habitat, climate, and species that are home to Costa Rica. Her blog is very informative and provides a biological outlook on her journey through Costa Rica.

Emily Demoss http://emdemoss.blogspot.com

Emily took the trip to Costa Rica with her sister, while on the trip she focused her studies on the plants located in the region. She did a great job of showing the plants that she saw during the adventures she was able to participate in during her time in Costa Rica. In her final research post, she discusses that 91% of the energy in Costa Rica is provided via renewable resources such as energy generation from wind turbines.

Rebecca Demoss http://rebeccademoss.blogspot.com/

The other Demoss sister, Rebecca decided to focus on birds while on the trip. Not only did she incorporate the many birds she saw on the trip, she did a very good job of describing the climate changes that were observed at the various locations that were visited on the study abroad trip. She also discusses the trade winds that were felt while in the Monteverde Cloud Forest. The elevation of the area contributed to the winds and cooler temperatures in comparison to other locations visited in Costa Rica.

Christopher Steltzlen http://steltzlen.blogspot.com/

Christopher is a non-traditional student who has a love for birds. His blog incorporates many different facts about the ecosystems and various biological factors that he was able to observe throughout the trip to Costa Rica. He also includes many historical facts and photographs that capture the rich history of Costa Rican culture; this includes various facts about local tribes, buildings, and other facts about the people local to this area.