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Exploring the tropical jungles of Belize to observe animal behavior describes spring break for 38 NMSU students and four professors who are involved with the Belize Field School Program on campus.
The students are either in wildlife science with Gary Roemer, entomology with Scott Bundy, tropical field ecology/biology with Kathy Hanley or anthropology/primate ecology with Brenda Benefit.
"The Belize Field School Program is a series of short courses that are instructed by NMSU faculty," said Kristi Drexler, director of the Belize Field School Program. "The trip went really well. It seemed the students really loved the courses. I think a good measure of a successful program is seeing tears at the airport when people don't want to leave."
Drexler added the professors did a fantastic job teaching in such challenging conditions and explained each class had their core study area to focus on during the trip.
She added the biology class did most of their studies in the Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Sanctuary, while the wildlife and insect ecology classes were doing a biodiversity survey and were moving around more.
As for the primates class, Drexler said they spent most of their time at La Milpa field station in the northwest of Belize.
"Because I study primates, my favorite part was actually seeing them in their natural habitat and watching how they act in the wild," said Lauren Gonzales, a graduate student in biological anthropology.
Before embarking on their trip to Belize, the primate ecology class made several trips to the El Paso Zoo in order to prepare themselves for monkey observation and to improve their note-taking skills.
"It was a completely different experience than seeing the monkeys in the zoo," Gonzales said. "The monkeys in the zoo don't have many trees in their cage, so they stay mostly on the ground, huddled up against each other. However, the monkeys in the wild are very high in the trees and very energetic."
Ashley Teufel, a graduate student in biology, said she really enjoyed the primate observation.
"Looking up in the trees, we could watch the howler monkeys call back and forth to each other," Teufel said. "We howled back at them for a while and they howled back at us. We also observed how they interacted with each other and how the infants interacted with their parents."
Even with the early observations occurring at 5 a.m., Laura Reyes, anthropology graduate student, said she really liked going out early into the jungle.
"It was still dark outside, so the animals were barely waking up," Reyes said. "We actually saw the howlers emerging from their sleeping site and I noticed a bunch of them coming out of the palm trees."
La Milpa
Reyes said the group spent six days at La Milpa, and four of those days were spent observing monkeys, which usually lasted up to eight hours.
Also on the list for observation for the primate class was the spider monkey.
"Spider monkeys are very active," said Zach Brecheisen, anthropology major. "The spider monkeys were very hard to catch and keep up with. They moved around constantly, which is very different from the confined space that the monkeys have at the El Paso Zoo."
Brecheisen said the howlers were not nearly as difficult to observe because they are not as rambunctious.
Brecheisen also said that howler monkeys are called howlers because they are somewhat territorial and like to assert their dominance.
Angelic Villa, a criminal justice major, said she loved the view of Belize and described the landscape as beautiful.
Tabacco Caye
Along with observing primate behavior, the primate ecology class spent the first couple of days on Tobacco Caye in Belize.
"We were lucky to have Dr. Ed Boles, a specialist in water shed ecology, riparian forests and marine ecology guest lecturer, spend time snorkeling with the students," said Tara Clarke, primatology graduate teaching assistant. "He also took several students on night walks and night snorkeling."
Brecheisen said the trip was really fun because of the time spent on the Tobacco Caye.
"Snorkeling around the reef was really cool," Brecheisen said. "We got to see a lot of stuff that I had only seen in movies. The different types of aquatic wildlife we saw were really neat."
Mayan Temples
Students also had the chance to visit the Mayan Temples and climb the structures while touring Belize.
"I enjoyed going to the Mayan Temple," Reyes said. "We climbed the high temple and when we got to the top, there was this excellent view of the jungle and the river."
Wildlife Research
As for the other classes, Drexler said the entomology class brought a collection of interesting insects back to NMSU.
She also said the wildlife class logged more than 100 species of birds and were able to trap and identify mammals while in Belize.
"The biology class was conducting mini-research projects while staying overnight in the Cockscomb Basin Jaguar Sanctuary," Drexler said. "I think everyone was seeing and learning a ton about tropical field ecology."
Blogging the Experience
To document their trip, students implemented the idea of tracking their adventures in a blog that can be found on the NMSU Web site.
"Daniella de Luca at University Communications came to us with the blog idea," Drexler said. "In Belize, especially on busy field courses like these, the limited Internet time we do have is difficult to manage a blog, so we just e-mailed her text and photos from the field and she posted them."
University Communications also let students borrow flip cameras, so they could take YouTube videos while observing and touring.
"The main purpose of the blog is to allow family, friends and fellow NMSU students, faculty and staff to follow the participating students' day by day experience," Clarke said. "The blog can also provide information about the entire experience for those students who may be considering a study abroad program."
Teufel said the blog was a great idea because she can look back and think about all the things she was able to participate in.
Earning Credits, Making Memories
Aside from the three academic credits that go toward a student's degree, Drexler said the Belize program is a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
"Some students have said this experience changed their lives and opened their eyes to the wider world," Drexler added.
Brecheisen said the trip was definitely worth the effort a person has to put into it.
"As for the money, students will definitely get what they paid for," Brecheisen said. "It's a really great deal."
The Belize program was started by Drexler in collaboration with Study Abroad, and administered by Paul Huntsberger and Cindy Liechti through the study abroad program.
"I think this trip had several benefits for the students," Clarke said. "The one that stands out most in my mind is the opportunity to experience another culture. [Students can] interact and learn about that culture while being immersed within it."
To see more pictures and stories about the 2009 Belize Field School trip, check-out the blog at www.neelix.nmsu.edu/nmsubelize/.
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