Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo has unveiled a new Conservation Land and Sea Experience. The ‘eco-learning experience’ will first take guests out on the water to help document the local hammerhead shark population and then, on the following day, bring them into the tropical rainforest to help scientists study the various local butterfly species.
Participants will start of the experience with a private plane ride over the coast’s tropical forests, mangrove canals and volcanic formations. The flight will end in the Golfo Dulce, a large marine area home to Pacific green sea turtles, humpback whales, spotted dolphins, bottlenose dolphins and more.
Under the guidance of marine biologists and conservationists Andrés Lopez and Ilena Zanella, guests will learn how to document sharks for their Mision Tiburon non-profit organization. Participants will be able to ‘adopt’ and name their own hammerhead shark, receiving reports of its travels and growth over the course of its life.
On the second day of the experience, guests will take a scenic flight into the region’s tropical rainforest to Dr. Janzen’s lab in Quebrada Grande, the home of the world’s largest collection of tropical butterflies. There, they will venture out and explore the surrounding forest to identify caterpillars and bring them back to the lab. Following a dinner with Dr. Janzen, participants will venture out into the night to observe more rare butterfly species. At the end of the day, guests will return to the resort by luxury SUV.