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Florence Vallet
Originally from Valleparisis, France, Flor has been a volunteer guide at Hacienda Baru for 2 years. We couldn’t possibly be luckier, to have this primate specialist who worked for several years in the French Zoo, La Vallee des Singes, and was in charge of the new world primates. This particular zoo is a copy of the Apenheul Zoo in Amsterdam. The concept is to give the animals an environment that is as similar as possible to the wild. They sleep inside but are free to roam on islands during the day. Her life as a zoo keeper involved arriving two hours before the zoo gates where opened to check on her brood and make sure that they had a good night, next move them to their open air island and the first feeding of the day. It was also Flor’s responsibility to keep an eye on the visitors of the zoo to make sure that they weren’t feeding or trying to touch the monkeys. Every two hours Flor gave a talk about the animals under her care, she remembers that this was one of the things she most enjoyed.
Flor first came to Costa Rica with a friend who was working with an NGO on Spider Monkeys. She then worked in the Curu Wildlife Refuge assisting with a Scarlet Macaw reintroduction project. She returned to France for a brief time but bought Jack Ewing’s book, Monkeys Are Made of Chocolate on her way home. She set the book aside for several months, but when the yearning for the tropics began she picked it back up and loved it. On a whim she wrote Jack and asked him if he would be interested in hosting a volunteer, she was willing to translate for any French speaking guests. A couple of months later Jack called her back, it worked out beautifully for both of us.
When she’s not translating for French guests on our trails, Flor will be studying the two different troops of White Faced Capuchin Monkeys on Hacienda Baru. Her first project is to identify the individuals, once that is done she plans to study their behavior and yearly cycles.
Flor is an avid reader and is currently polishing her knowledge of Ants. EO Wilson and accompanies her during down time.
Hocus and Pocus - Strange, creeper cats
- By Jack Ewing
When I first laid eyes on the two black kittens a quote from a Robert Heinlein novel popped into my mind,. It has been so many years ago since I read it that I can't even remember which one is was, but I remember the quote. In referring to a complex subject Heinlein said that making sense of it was “... like searching in a dark cellar at midnight on a moonless night for a black cat that isn't there.” These two kittens were that black without a hint of any other color. Even their eyes were black. In addition to their extreme blackness there was always an air of mysteriousness about them. They didn't walk like ordinary cats, rather they walked all crouched down, more of a creep than a walk, like they were constantly stalking something. They never made any noises other than purring; they never clawed the furniture; they were never underfoot and never got into trouble of any kind. There was always something strange about them. We named them Hocus and Pocus.
Buy Jack's book
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Discover the mysterious and fascinating ways in which animals and plants-and people-interact with one another in the rainforests of Costa Rica. Author and naturalist Jack Ewing shares a wealth of observations and experiences, gathered from more than three decades of living in southwestern Costa Rica, home to some of the most prolific and diverse ecosystems on Earth. More than just a simple collection of essays, Monkeys are Made of Chocolate is a testament to the wonder of life in all its countless guises, as seen through the eyes of a man with a gift for subtle discernment and a natural flair for storytelling. |
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Capuchin Capers
The troop of 26 monkeys was strung out over about 100 meters, moving through the forest. The lead monkey, a mature female, came to an area where the tree cover was broken by an open swamp with only a narrow corridor two trees wide going around it.
Chocolate Monkey Gift Shop
Our Gift Shop is well known in the area for having a wide variety of gifts. Not only will you find T-Shirts, Hammocks and Jewelry, but also a beautiful selection of Costa Rican made Arts and Crafts. Our policy is to buy (as much as possible) from local artisans who work with local materials of a sustainable resource.