I moved from the southern part of the island of Puerto Rico in Ponce, to the eastern part, in Luquillo because of this opportunity and so far it has been an interesting journey. Even though I stayed in the same small Island, and as some would say, not many things ought to change in a portion of 3,400 square miles of land, things do change. For example, here in the eastern part of Puerto Rico they eat “arepas de coco”, which are not that common outside of this area, meanwhile in Ponce they eat something quite similar but they call it “domplín” instead of “arepa” and it does not have coconut in it, and it is usually eaten with leftover beans from the day before… but anyways, that is a story for another moment. Things do change in a small island like Puerto Rico in a relative short distance, and those regionalisms that we see captured in the food can also be captured in the ecosystems. For instance, Puerto Rico has a system of mountains which interrupts the humidity from the trade winds and make some part of the Island dryer than others, specifically the Luquillo Mountains where Sabana Research Field Station is located. This changes in geography alter the climate which in turn brings with them contrasting and diverse ecosystems, that not only drives your skin crazy with its changes in humidity but allows for the coexistence of an array of distinct ecosystems in close proximity. In this case, I will to be working with an established elevational gradient project in the Island that encompasses a variety of ecosystems in the east that ranges from dry forest in the coast, to cloud forest up in the mountain.

The project related to the elevational gradient involves diverse spaces which in turn comes with a variety of challenges such as the slippery conditions and high humidity of the tabonuco forest, in which most of the time you end up soaking wet of either sweat or rain, or the low humidity and constant sun, of the dry forest with its thorns, razor grass and its abundant wasps. Though it is not as chaotic as it looks, most of my time is spent in Sabana categorizing the vegetation collected in the elevational gradient, which is a relaxing predictable task given that sometimes one just need to balance things in a controlled environment. Overall, this first weeks in Sabana Research Field Station have been exploratory. I got to meet my supervisor, my new colleagues and the projects in which I will be working for the following 8 months. I got to explore amazing places, that otherwise I would not be able to access, and have met amazing people. Like everything in this small diverse Island I am embracing change and looking forward to the new exciting opportunities to come.