| |
|
|
| |
Hours
spent at the zoo today.
3
Number
of tapirs spotted
3
hours
of sleep we expect tonight
5
|
|
| |
|
|
 |
Lesson
Plans
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Daily
Dilemma
|
|
|
We are having trouble figuring out how we
should pay for things in Costa Rica. How much
money should we bring? Should we bring Travelers
Checks, US Dollars, pay for things with a
credit card, try to get Colones before we
leave? Or maybe we should just offer to wash
dishes in exchange for food! What should we
do!!!!! Help us come up with a detailed plan!
|
|
 |
|
Walking
on the wild side at the Brookfield Zoo!
|
Today
we continued to prepare for our departure to Costa Rica.
Preparing for an expedition is very important. The more
we know about the country, its animals and plants, people,
and place, the better off we'll be once we arrive. Even
though we've spent over 6 months researching Costa Rica
and the rainforest, during the past few days we have
spent time gathering even more information.
|
|
We decided
that going to the Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield, Illinois would
be a great opportunity to see some of the animals we might encounter
in Costa Rica. It's one thing to read about animals, but it's
another thing to see them up close. Right when we entered the
zoo, we found ourselves in the Pacaderm House. Elephants and
rhinoceroses are members of the Pacaderm family, as well as
Costa Rica's largest land mammal.
Click
photo to enlarge
Just
as I was about to take a photo of a really cool bird
Frosty decided to pose for the camera! We saw all
sorts of great critters today in the bird house! Remember
Costa Rica has over 850 species of birds.
|
We
immediately found ourselves staring at the Baird's Tapir.
The tapir
is a silly looking animal, but one worth studying. Because
of over-hunting and habitat destruction, the tapir
is now an endangered species. The tapir is also one
of the world's oldest animals. Tapir
fossil records date back to nearly 20 million years!
|
|
Then
we strolled onto my favorite exhibit at the zoo: Tropic
World. If you've been to the Brookfield Zoo, it might
be your favorite exhibit too. Tropic World is an open
exhibit of the Earth's rainforests. We approached the
South and Central American Rainforest with high hopes
of seeing some of the primates and large mammals we're
likely to encounter in Costa Rica. Right away we noticed
spider monkeys and howler
monkeys climbing around on the branches of the trees.
Below we could spot a giant anteater. Then in a tree
no more than 5 or 6 feet away from us was a sleepy sloth.
|
|
Sloths
are some of my favorite animals. The more I learn about them,
the more interesting they become. This sloth was exhibiting
its natural defense while sleeping. It wraps itself up into
a ball to keep predators from disturbing it. A sloth doesn't
see very well, but can detect vibrations made by animals.
This particular sloth also had some green algae growing on
its back. The algae on the sloth helps add to the sloth's
camouflage. Small insects feed off the algae and actually
serve as cleaners for the sloth's fur.
Make sure
you help us with our Daily
Dilemma. Tell us how much money we should bring with us
and how we should pay for things. Plus you can Cast
Your Vote and decide what we should do during our first
week in Costa Rica.
Notes
from the Trail Index
|
