Mr.
Johnson's Class asks,"Do cashews grow on trees or underground?"
Cashews
grow on medium size trees – they are native to Central
and South America. Cashew Trees are a relative of poison
Ivy. The nut is covered with an oily toxic substance which
must be burned off before one can touch it. This makes picking
a real challenge. Even the smoke from burning can cause
ulceration and extreme pain to the eyes, nose and throat.
The lethal oil is extracted and used for waterproofing,
as an insecticide and for other industrial purposes. It
thrives in drier areas than most nuts and is related to
the mango and pistachio.
Dave
Joe asks, "How big can an ostrich egg get?"
Ostriches
produce the world's largest egg. On average an ostrich's
eggs are over 6 inches (15 cm) tall and 5 inches (12.5 cm)
across. That is one big egg! However, ostriches do not live
in the rain forest they live on the Africa plains.
Dave
Name:
Yakub
Grade: 8th
Why
did you decide on Costa Rica?
Because
it is the most biodiverse country in the world and we have
heard many wonderful things about the people of Costa Rica.
Dave
Name:
Altaf
Grade: 8th
What
gave you the idea to go on this trip?
Students
and teachers wanted to learn more about the rain forest
so we decided to travel to Costa Rica to study the rain
forest.
Dave
Name:
Hyun Wook
Grade: 8th
Is
Costa Rica cold?
No
it is not cold. It was about 86 degrees F. today and very
humid. It is always hot in the rain forest. However, in
the mountains it sometimes gets cold.
Frosty
Name:
Ali
Grade: 1st
How
many national parks are you planing to visit?
We
are hoping to visit at least 4 national parks. We drove
through Braulio
Carrillo National Park today.
Frosty
Name:
Tyler Brown
Grade: 8th
Would you consider living in Costa Rica after this experience.
I
am not sure if I would want to live in Costa Rica. It seems
like a wonderful country, but I would like to get to know
it better before I would think of moving here.
Dave
Name:
Skylar
Grade: 8th
How
will you be transported through the rain forest?
One
of the great things about the rain forest is all of the
different type of transportation that we get to take. Since
we've been in Costa Rica, we've been driving Pika's car
to cover long distances. Now that we're in the lowland rain
forest, though, most of the travel is done by foot and by
boat. Today we traveled in a dugout canoe, a dugout canoe
powered by a motor, and by foot.
Frosty
Name:
ShinWoo
Grade: 8th
How
do you feel now?
I
feel great! I've been wearing a smile since I landed in
San Jose. Everything is so exciting, new, and different.
Costa Rica is a great place to relax, even though many of
our days are spent hiking through rugged terrain. Today
we hiked for about 8 hours, and then took a swim in the
Caribbean. It was really hot today, but it' starting to
cool down, making for a very pleasant evening.
Frosty
Student:
Hyeueon
Grade: 8th
Why
did you start thinking about this project? And why do you
guys work together, and are both so much interested in rain
forests? Did you visit any other rain forests? How much
does the rain forests cover the Earth's surface?
We
started thinking of the Rain forest Project about 8 months
before we left. We wanted to travel to a tropical rain forest,
because many teachers and students suggested that we do
so.
Dave and I work together, because we both get along very
well. Not only are we business partners, but we're also
friends. We've known each other for about 6 years.
This is my first time in the tropical rain forest I've visited
temperate rain forests, but never a tropical one. Dave has
been the Amazon basin in Peru.
7% of the Earth's surface is covered by tropical rain forests
Great
questions!
Frosty
Name:
Phoebe
Grade: 8th
Are
there going to be people living in the parts of the rain
forest that you plan to visit? If so, do you plan to meet
up with them?
Today
we got the chance to meet members of the BriBri tribe located
near the Panama border. The BriBri were the first inhabitants
of Costa Rica. They are some of the only indigenous people
left in Costa Rica, and number only a few thousand. However,
much of their way of life has remained intact, because they
choose to isolate themselves from the rest of the country.
In order to visit them, you have to have special permission
given by the elders of the tribe. They rely on the rain
forest to provide them with food and shelter. They also
don't use money like we do. They trade amongst themselves
for goods.
Frosty
Name:
Holli Benson
Grade: 8th
What
do you hope to Accomplish in Costa Rica? What are your goals?
That's
a great question. I hope to accomplish a number of things
while I'm in Costa Rica. Primarily I want to teach others
about the importance of the rain forest to the Earth as
a whole. Because once we learn how amazing the rain forest
is (all of the animals, plants, and people that make it
up), we can only try to save it. By investigating new cultures,
new ecosystems, and new ways of thinking, we gain a greater
appreciation and tolerance for the world we live in.
I
also hope to learn quite a bit about the rain forest We
can't teach about what we don't know, right? So, each day
I try to learn as much as possible about Costa Rica, the
rain forest in general, and the plants, animals, and people
who call it home.
I
really am interested to visit some of the conservation projects
throughout Costa Rica. Saving sea turtles, helping scarlet
macaws, and maybe planting a few trees is how I can do my
part to help the rain forest while I'm in Costa Rica.
Name:
Lulu
Grade: 8th
What
food are you going to bring with you to the rain forest
and is there anything that you can eat from the rain forest?
Like plant leaves, nuts, fruits, or animals.
Believe
it or not, we're not going to bring much food into the rain
forest Most of the people who we will encounter along the
trail will help us find the food we need. We will eat lots
of beans and rice, tropical fruits (they grow all over the
place; it's like having a grocery store in the middle of
the forest), chicken, rice, lots of fish, and eggs. Of course,
it takes years of experience to know what is safe to eat
and what is not. But, we will rely on the experience of
our guides, the people we meet along the way, and our own
knowledge of the local Costa Rican cuisine.
Name:
Hannah
Grade: 8th
What
is the one thing you would most like to learn about the
Costa Rican forest and why?
Every
day I am in Costa Rica, I would like to learn about a new
symbiotic relationship that exists in nature . I think they
are so fascinating. Plants helping other plants, animals
helping other animals, and animals helping plants. Once
you realize how every organism holds a relationship and
purpose in nature, you can begin to understand how important
that we save the rain forest (and all the other ecosystems
for that matter!).
Frosty
Name:
Parwiz
Grade: 8th
Did you hunt over there?
Actually
hunting is illegal throughout Costa Rica. The only people
who are allowed to hunt animals are the indigenous people,
like the BriBri.
Frosty
Name:
Ali
Grade: 8th
How hot or cold does it get there?
The
tropical rain forest stays pretty much the same temperature
year-round. It's usually 75-90 degrees F on the coasts of
Costa Rica and very humid. Tropical climates only have two
seasons: wet and dry. However, the temperature doesn't really
change. Once you get higher into the mountains, it can be
pretty cold. Pika told us that he's only seen snow at the
higher elevations once in his life (and it was only a small
amount that melted as soon as it hit the ground). But that's
extremely rare.
Frosty
Name:
Tyler
Grade: 8th
Did
you you bring your shaver?
I
did, but realized I forgot shaving cream. I'm not sure if
Dave even owns one, and certainly didn't bring one.
Name:
Hyun Wook
Grade: 8th
Is
the weather there (Costa Rica) good or bad?
The
weather has been great. It's been hot, humid, and sticky
for most of the day, but it cools down at night, and is
quite pleasant.
Name:
Shane
Grade: 3rd
Is
the pink dolphin the same a a river dolphin? I just read
a book that had a river dolphin that lives in Costa Rica,
and it looks like the same skull in the Mystery Photo.
The
pink dolphin is a river dolphin, but I think there are quite
a few species of river dolphins. Pink dolphins are found
in the Amazon of South America, and not in Costa Rica. However,
I'm told there are quite a few river dolphins in the waterway
along the Caribbean that we're going to explore in the next
few days.
Name:
Mrs. Doxstader's Third grade class
Grade: 3rd
We
are learning about the metric system in math. Does Costa
Rica use the metric system, or inches, feet, and yards like
us?
Costa
Rica is on the metric system. All of the signs are in kilometers.
However, many people know the US system (which is more difficult
and doesn't really make sense if you ask me).
Name:
Miss Fricano's 4th Graders
Grade: 4th
Is
Dave going to shave his beard again? Why is the pink dolphin
only seen in the rain forest basin? Are pink dolphins rare
in any other place? Why are sloths so slow? Are there anacondas
in Costa Rica? If so, have you seen any? How much of your
visit has been rain??
I'm
not sure if Dave plans on shaving his beard. I know he is
quite fond of it.
I'm
not sure why pink dolphins are only found in the Amazon
basin, but it just must be the perfect habitat for them,
and they haven't evolved or migrated elsewhere. Pink dolphins
are only found in the Amazon basin of Brazil and parts of
Columbia in South America.
Sloths
are slow, primarily due to their diets and metabolism. They
are amazing at storing energy, but they also don't receive
much energy from the leaves that they feed on. Their muscle
structure is also quite different than ours, allowing them
to only move so fast.
Anacondas
are only found in the Amazon of South America. There haven't
been any found in Costa Rica or elsewhere in Central America.
Name:
Mr. Bertani
Grade: 2nd
Have
you seen any cheetahs in the rain forest yet?
Unfortunately,
cheetahs are only found in the dry areas of Africa. Costa
Rica is home to some large cats, though, like the puma,
jaguar, and ocelot. There aren't many of them left, though,
because of habitat destruction. They are really shy and
often see us long before we see them. Many people who have
spent long periods of time in the rain forest have only
seen one or two large cats. They're very elusive.
Thank
you for sending us so many wonderful questions. If we have
not answered your question yet. Please be patient and check
back again in a few days. We will try to answer more questions
soon.
Do you
have a question for Dave and Frosty?
If
you have a thoughtful question for your adventure guides
use the form below to send them your questions. Dave and
Frosty will answer all well thought out questions as soon
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