Bringing BFREE to You!
Read a full update from BFREE on the latest during COVID-19 here: https://mailchi.mp/225f4bd263bf/bringingbfreetoyou-2447813
For most of us who remain home, trying our best to flatten the curve, cabin fever can set in quick. Many of you have reached out daydreaming about swimming in the Bladen River or hiking the BFREE boundary line. In response, we have decided that if you can’t be at BFREE, then we will bring BFREE to you!
Over the next month, we will be sharing a new educational resource or activity every day on social media. Activities you can do on your own or with kids, as well as videos of virtual hikes at BFREE, the wildlife, the scenery, cooking classes, challenges, meditations, and so much more!
Our goal is to bring positivity, education, love, hope, and BFREE to your homes! Be sure to share your creations or participation with all of us online using #BringingBFREEtoyou
Day One, March 23: Make bird feeder with an upcycled plastic bottle!
“Protect Birds: Be the Solution to Plastic Pollution!” is the theme of this month’s celebration of Migratory Birds at BFREE. For our first educational activity, let’s make our own bird feeders out of recycled plastic bottles. Reusing your single-use plastic is just one way we can reduce pollution harmful to wildlife.
Check out this link for ideas on how to upcycle your plastic bottles:
http://www.bystephanielynn.com/2012/04/25-things-to-do-with-empty-plastic-bottles-water-soda-bottle-crafts-saturday-inspiration-ideas.html
Make your own hummingbird nectar for your upcycled feeder using 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. Recipe and directions by Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute:
https://nationalzoo.si.edu/migratory-birds/hummingbird-nectar-recipe
Day Two, March 24: Imagine you’re a bird meditation
Day two, Bringing BFREE to you with a short meditation created for all ages. Take a deep breath and imagine you are a bird. Close your eyes as you listen to the words or keep them open to take a virtual tour of the BFREE garden. The bird meditation was created to help bring positivity, education, love, hope, and BFREE to your homes during these uncertain times.
Read by Nelly Cadle, inspired by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology BirdSleuth curriculum. Filmed at the BFREE Biological Field Station & Privately Protected Area in Belize. BFREE is sharing daily educational resources, activities, and virtual experiences from our Field Station in Belize over the next month. We are in this together, #stayhome
Day Three, March 25 : Collect Leaves and Compare!
Day Three, Bringing BFREE to you with a short outdoor activity. If you can, take a walk outside and collect a few leaves from non-harmful plants. Sort them by size, color, and texture. Now compare. What did you collect? Can you name the type of trees or plants they came from?
Taking a moment to be in nature can help reduce feelings of anger, fear, and stress. It not only makes us feel better emotionally, but it contributes to our physical wellbeing, reduces blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension, and the productions of stress hormones.
Will you join us in this short exercise to get outside in nature?
Here are some leaves we collected today at BFREE. What did you collect? Share your images, #BringingBFREEtoyou
Our goal is to bring positivity, education, love, hope, and BFREE to your homes! Over the next month, we will be sharing a new educational resource, activity, or virtual experience from BFREE every day on social media. We are in this together, #stayhome.
Day Four, March 26: Time-lapse drive to BFREE
Day four, virtually bringing BFREE to you with a time-lapse of the drive from the Southern Highway to the BFREE Field Station and Privately Protected Area along the 6-mile entrance road. The road begins in open savannah, later oak-pine scrub, and moist tropical broadleaf forest. About 3/4’s of the way into the entrance road the truck passes by the Bladen Nature Reserve observation post. Filmed by Alex Birkman, BFREE Intern in July 2019.
If you can’t be at BFREE, then we will bring BFREE to you!
Day Five, March 27: Belize Culture and Heritage!
Day five, Bringing BFREE to you with the theme, BELIZE! Take a moment to dive into the incredible culture, music, and history of Belize.
The Belize Living Heritage website was developed by the Institute for Social and Cultural Research (ISCR) of the National Institute of Culture and History (NICH) in partnership with local communities, living heritage practitioners, cultural organizations and other stakeholders. Educators and parents can find learning activities and sample lesson plans based on living heritage.
Click the link below and you will find word search and coloring pages to download for kids.
http://www.belizelivingheritage.org/ich-education
Click ‘Resources,’ then ‘Cultural Celebration Series’ to find videos of celebrations around Belize. Click ‘Our Inventory,’ to find descriptions of culinary, dancy and craftsmanship traditions. More information on integrating living heritage in educational lessons can be found here: http://www.belizeanstudies.com
Day Six, March 28: Lizards!
Jacob Marlin holds a juvenile Old Man Lizard or Helmeted Basilisk which he found on a walk at BFREE last week.
Helmeted Basilisks have some unique behaviors to scare off predators. First they use camouflage—they can resemble lichen with spots forming on their skin when resting and can change color rapidly. They can freeze their body and become completely still. Next they compress their body, erect their crest, expand their gular (throat) pouch and bob their head. By doing this, they hope to appear bigger and deter the predator. If all else fails, they will attack and bite ferociously!
Learn more about cool lizards like this one and other wildlife by visiting https://eol.org/pages/35565
Our goal is to bring positivity, education, love, hope, and BFREE to your homes! Over the next month, we will be sharing a new educational resource, activity, or virtual experience from BFREE every day on social media. We are in this together. #bringingbfreetoyou
Day Seven, March 29:
Day Eight, March 30:
Day 8, Bringing BFREE to you with bird masks! These DIY masks can be made with just about anything you have on hand, such a fun way to get creative. If you need some inspiration, listen to the “imagine you’re a bird” meditation we shared last Monday and then make a mask based off of what you imagined! Or check out the endless how-to’s online such as this one: https://www.paperchase.com/the-journal/bird-craft-mask/
This video is from Church of Christ Primary School in Independence Village when BFREE visited a few weeks ago to talk about World Migratory Birds Day and the effects of plastic. After making their bird masks the class played the migration game where students played the role of a migrating birds and tried to reach their final destination but were faced with obstacles similar to the ones birds face including glass windows, cats, kids with stones and hurricanes, all played by their classmates.
Day Nine, March 31:
Day 9, Bringing BFREE to you with backyard birding! It’s the last day of our celebration of migratory birds for the month of March.
Day Ten, April 1:
Day Eleven, April 2:
Day 11, Bringing BFREE to You with a Facebook Live reading of The Adventures of Herbert the Hikatee, written by Gianni Martinez, a teacher in Belize City. BFREE’s Field Course Leader, Nelly Cadle will be reading the book from her home in Belize! Please join us at 1PM in Belize (noon PST/3 EST) for this fun storytime! #bringingbfreetoyou #savethehicatee
Day Twelve, April 3:
Day 12, Bringing BFREE to You with hicatee activities! If you joined us for our live storytime reading of Adventures of Herbert the Hikatee yesterday, continue the turtle theme today and watch the 16-minute short documentary, “Hope for the Hicatee,” read more about this critically endangered species in the Fact Sheet, or if you have access to a printer, print out the activity sheets for kids.All of our Hicatee resources can be found here:https://www.bfreebz.org/hicatee-conservation-educational-resources/
Day Thirteen, April 4:
Day 13, Bringing BFREE to You with outdoor gardening! We have been busy at BFREE over the last week building raised garden beds and planting a vegetable garden outside the Dining Room. Next time we see you at BFREE we will have fresh vegetables aplenty!What a great time to use things you already have to make your own indoor or outdoor garden! Check out the links below for inspiration.
Planters: https://craft.theownerbuildernetwork.co/2015/03/19/plastic-bottle-planters/
Seed Starter Pots:https://www.diyncrafts.com/10038/repurpose/recycle-plastic-bottles-into-self-watering-seed-starter-pots
Vertical Gardens:https://www.thisiscolossal.com/2013/02/urban-vertical-garden-built-from-hundreds-of-recycled-soda-bottles/
Day Fourteen, April 5:
Day 14, Bringing BFREE to you with Nature Relaxation to get your morning started off right!
Is there anything more relaxing than nature sounds and videos? Our Deputy Director, Heather Barrett, took this short video of a Liana seed blowing in the wind while birds sing in the background.
I only wish this video was an hour-long so I could play it to fall asleep to!
Day Fifteen, April 6:
Day 15, Bringing BFREE to You with a hike to the Agami Lagoon. Nelly Cadle, BFREE Field Course Leader takes us on a hike along the Agami trail at BFREE. Sounds of howler monkeys and boat-billed herons make this virtual hike almost feel like reality! Will you join us for a hike at BFREE today? #BringingBFREEtoYou
Day Sixteen, April 7:
Day 16, Bringing BFREE to You with Tom and Heather talking coconuts! Tom explains that they each have a distinct flavor depending on the age of the coconut. Tom’s favorite? The one that tastes like Sprite! Sit back and take a virtual trip to BFREE with Tom and Heather today, you can even pretend you have a coconut in your hand!
Day Seventeen, April 8:
Day 17, Bringing BFREE to You with Nature BINGO! If you can safely access outdoor space, we encourage you to have some fun in the sun today! Inspired by our friend, Ms. Mallory Adventures all you need is a piece of scrap paper and a pencil to make your own at home BINGO card. Use Ms. Mallory’s word bank to help think of what to fill in the squares. Or, just print a pre-made BINGO card directly from her blog post: https://mallorylindsay.com/my-backyard-adventures-activities/2020/3/17/nature-bingo?rq=bingo
Check out the hand made BINGO card BFREE made today, don’t forget to fill in the center B-FREE space! Share your BINGO card activity with us for a chance to win a BFREE Bandana.
Day Eighteen, April 9:
Day 18, Bringing BFREE to You with wildlife! The BFREE Privately Protected Area adjoins what is now considered the largest tract of rainforest north of the Amazon. It’s an incredible hotspot for biodiversity where tapirs, howler monkeys, jaguars, and harpy eagles are often spotted, and is the last stronghold for many endangered species. We are so fortunate these animals share their home with us as we work to protect wild spaces for generations to come. Today, we are bringing BFREE to YOU with a small compilation of wildlife shots taken at BFREE.
Vine snake, Dan Dourson 
Howler monkey, Erick Ak 
Baird’s tapir, James Abbott 
Mexican mouse opossum, Matthew Stone 
Keel-billed toucan, Parr McQueen 
Boat-billed herons, Sean Wearle 
Puffbird, Dalton Jackson 
Pepper tree frog, Dan Dourson
Boa constrictor, Tyler Sanville 
Jaguar, BFREE camera trap image 
Howler monkey, Erick Ak
Day Nineteen, April 10:
Day 19, BFREE Bandanas! The “BFREE IN THE JUNGLE” bandanas were such a big hit last year that we ordered more to have available to all our guests this year! With visitation coming to a halt, we have a small surplus that never made their way to Belize. If you are in the US, you can support BFREE by making a donation of $25 through the link below and we will mail you a bandana. https://www.givecampus.com/campaigns/5619/donations/new?donation_type=generalUse it as a makeshift face mask or just wear it around your neck at home to pretend you are sweating in the jungle! These are uncertain and difficult times for many of us, your contribution will support BFREE’s staff and program work immensely! Thank you! **Shipping in the USA only. If mailing address is different from billing or you have any notes or questions, send an email to contact@bfreebz.org**
Day Twenty, April 11:
Day 20, #BringingBFREEtoYou with a great book! We miss the hammocks in the dining room being full of students and visitors curled up with a book to read. So today, we are sharing a favorite among BFREE staff, The Nature Fix by Florence Williams. Using research and personal investigations, Williams explores how our separation from nature impacts our lives and our mental health. She considers all five senses when describing how people across the planet connect with nature. And she uses herself as a test subject and has many adventures as a result.
Fun fact from her book: As little as 15 minutes in the woods has been shown to reduce test subjects’ levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Increase nature exposure to 45 minutes, and most individuals experience improvements in cognitive performance.
#Stayhome but also if you can safely, #takeawalk
Day Twenty one, April 12:
Bringing BFREE to you, with chocolate bread! Join us in the BFREE Kitchen with our chef, Edwardo Pop. Today, we are making chocolate bread with cacao grown and processed right here at BFREE! You can bake along with us, a recipe card with ingredients and directions are shared at the end of the video. Happy baking!
Day 22, April 13:
Bringing BFREE to you with our chocolate story! The cacao trees at BFREE are extremely special because one of the varieties growing here is the only known 100% pure criollo variety to exist in the world.
Recently discovered deep in the rainforests of southern Belize lies a remnant population of ancient wild Cacao trees. Based on the advice of cacao experts, beans from the wild trees were submitted for genetic testing to the Heirloom Cacao Preservation Fund (HCP). The results determined that this could be the original chocolate tree, 100% pure Criollo parentage, grown and revered by the ancient Mayan Civilizations, and one of the few pure wild cacaos known to exist on the planet. In 2015, the beans were given the designation of “heirloom fine flavor” by HCP, only the 11th chocolate in the world to receive such an honor.
These discoveries were especially exciting to us because of the inherent conservation value – the variety of cacao appears to require environmental conditions that incentivize tropical forest conservation. A high percentage of shade and a structurally diverse forested environment provide natural ecological barriers to disease and cross-pollination, and are likely the conditions necessary for productivity; ultimately correlating a high-value crop to a diverse and healthy rainforest habitat. As a result of this discovery, BFREE began a project to preserve and propagate this rare and wild ancient heirloom fine flavor cacao while investigating its economic, social, and environmental benefits. Propagated from these wild trees grown under a variety of different conditions, BFREE has over 15 acres of cacao growing in an agroforestry environment, where wildlife like Jaguars, Tapirs, Howler monkeys, Harpy eagles, and Scarlet macaws make their home.
Since this designation, BFREE has become an active partner with HCP. Virtually visit BFREE and learn more about our chocolate story with this incredible short documentary made by HCP.
Day 23, April 14:
Bringing BFREE to you with a climb to the top of the Bruce Cullerton Memorial Observation Tower at BFREE. Located about a ½ mile from the kitchen the tower is a 112’ foot galvanized steel observation tower. It’s the perfect place to witness the forest come alive at sunrise, observe and photograph wildlife, conduct research, or just take in a sunset over the Maya Mountains.
Film created by Alex Birkman. Alex first visited BFREE as a student on a field course with Western Michigan University in 2018, he later returned as a volunteer field assistant in 2019.
Day 24, April 15
Bringing BFREE to you with turtles! Researcher, Day Ligon manages the Turtle Ecology Lab at Missouri State University and began research in Belize last year to understand the feasibility of determining population estimates of Hicatee turtles in the wild. Just before the government-issued shelter in place order that put their research on hold, Day along with Denise Thompson and turtle biologist, Donny McKnight visited BFREE. Donny explored the Bladen River and a couple of creeks within the property. He was thrilled to find six White-lipped mud turtles Kinosternon Leucostomum in a small pool left in an otherwise dry creek bed. He was even more excited to note that two of the six turtles had notches on their scutes meaning that they have been caught previously by biologists and were marked for identification. We believe they were marked by students of Ben Atkinson’s 2018 field course from Flagler College. Photos were taken and shared with Dr. Atkinson for review before the turtles were released back into the creek where they were found.
The adult size of White-lipped mud turtles is 6 to 7 inches. They are generally found in quiet, peaceful areas in marshes, lagoons, swamps and ponds that have dense aquatic vegetation and soft sandy bottom. They are not limited to water and can be found strolling on land.
Day 25, April 16:
Many of us are finding comfort in journaling and writing down our thoughts and feelings about these truly strange and difficult times. Here is a short writing prompt to help you record your memories of today and a reminder to get up and stretch your legs!
Wherever you go, there you are prompt: Get up and stretch your legs, take a walk or a jog, inside, outside, wherever you can, for as long as you have time for. When you get back fill in the following:
While on my walk around ________ (the block, kitchen, neighborhood, etc), I saw _________, I heard __________, I tasted __________, I heard ____________, I smelled ______________, I thought about _______________, I learned __________.
Photos of hummingbirds Deputy Director, Heather Barrett took while on her walk at BFREE. There are at least four species that have been enjoying the Malay Apple Tree lately, providing plenty of entertainment and excitement for those working from the office. #BringingBFREEtoYou
Day 26, April 17:
Bringing BFREE to you with wildlife! This short video is a compilation of wildlife spotted at the BFREE Field Station and Privately Protected Area in southern Belize. BFREE owns and manages 1,153 acres of tropical rainforest that lies within one of the largest contiguous tracts of rainforest in the western hemisphere. Here, we are fortunate to see all sorts of animals including harpy eagles, howler monkeys, coatis, and so much more!
Day 27, April 18:
Day 27, Bringing BFREE to You with snails! This one is for our friends in Belize and is brought to us by biologist Dan and Judy Dourson, authors of the book, Biodiversity of the Maya Mountains – a Focus on the Bladen Nature Reserve.
A fun citizen science activity for all ages! Click the following link for a blog post to learn more and download the Land Snail Diversity of Belize card: https://www.bfreebz.org/un-belizeable-land-snails-activity/
Day 28, April 19:
Bringing BFREE to you with a cooking class! One of our student’s favorite breakfasts at BFREE is a Belizean specialty called fry jacks. Field Course Leader, Nelly Cadle takes us to her kitchen in Belize for a Facebook Live cooking class showing us all of the steps to make these delicious, fried doughnut-like treats!
Bonus activity: The Belize Birding Network has selected today as Belize Big Day! From your home, farm, or wherever you are record the birds you see and submit your checklist and location to eBird.org. If you’re new to birding and want some help identifying what you see check out our post on Day Nine, March 31 to learn about the Merlin Bird App.
You don’t have to be in Belize to participate, let’s see how many birds the BFREE Community can record today!
Day 29, April 20:
Bringing BFREE to You with a story from Canti, BFREE Head Ranger, and Protected Areas Manager. Canti says, “Our ranger team continues to be on the ground throughout the quarantine and are being very careful to practice social distancing measures and good hygiene. We believe that our role as a privately protected area makes us key to keeping our area and the surrounding Maya Mountain Massif safe from incursions. Our concerns are not isolated to our property. We understand that we are connected to a much broader area. We are near the top of the Bladen River which feeds into the Monkey River. Downstream from us – communities and farms utilize this same river. We are all responsible for being good stewards of the river and the forests.
In the weeks and months since COVID-19 has reduced operations country-wide, we have noted that people at home without jobs are starting to move around in order to hunt, log, fish, and extra other valuable resources. Actions like these only provide temporary benefits to the individuals extracting the resource for themselves. Over the long-term, these actions have devastating impacts on the watershed and the flora and fauna that our country needs to remain a healthy place benefiting our planet. We must all recognize the role that we all play and try to make it a positive one.
As Park Rangers, we are establishing and refining protocols now for hygiene, for monitoring wildlife, and for active patrols to manage fire and incursions. We plan to continue these adapted protocols well beyond anything that happens today. We remain true to our mission. We are on the ground making choices for today that will allow all of us and our country to have a healthy future.”
Thank you BFREE Rangers for the incredibly important work you do!
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Day 30, April 31:
Bringing BFREE to You with a tour of our Cacao Discovery Center just after a cacao harvest. Join BFREE Executive Director, Jacob Marlin and BFREE Cacao Staff as they show the many steps necessary to go from harvesting cacao to fermenting the beans. Eat more heirloom fine-flavor chocolate!
LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, the ride back in time. The ride to BFREE did not do the bumps, ruts, sore necks and rear ends fair justice. Guess that part is forever etched in my HAPPY memory. This is such a wonderful idea. Now I can share my visit to BFREE first hand with my grandchildren. Thank you all so much for all of your dedication to conservation.