| Facilities at El Verde
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Dormitory building El Verde has two buildings for visitor housing. The dormitory is a historic building that accommodates up to 30 visitors in four large rooms, each with bathrooms. Two fully equipped kitchens are available for visitors to prepare their meals.
The apartment building accommodates up to 16 visitors in four two-bedroom apartments. Each aparment has its own fully-equipped kitchen and a dinning area.
Laboratory building The station's laboratory have eleven offices, most of them occupied by long-term researchers. Laboratory equipment includes compound and dissecting microscopes, fiber optics illuminators, balances, pH meter, a LI-COR 3050A leaf area meter, drying ovens, stirrer/hot plates and a chemical hood. A computer and conferences room provides visitors with access to PC Macintosh computers. Reference Collections The reference collection room houses floral and faunal specimens from Tabonuco forest containing the following groups: fungi, ferns, dicotyledons, myriapods, arachnids, insects, amphibians, and reptiles. Shade houses A small shade house is available to researchers for plant studies. Artificial streams The artificial streams are composed of channels made of PVC and supplied with water from a nearby stream. The channels are ideal to conduct ecological and behavioral research with shrimps and fishes.
Workshop The station has a small workshop that can be used for electrical and wood work. NADP tower A permanent walk-up tower supports environmental monitoring equipment and provides some access to canopy vegetation and fauna. The tower also houses a station for the National Atmospheric Deposition Program (NADP). Tabonuco Forest The ecosystems, flora and fauna of El Verde is the most important resource surrounding the station. The Caribbean National Forest contains 225 tree species, 83 vertebrate species, and a wide variety of invertebrates. The research area of El Verde ranges from 250 to 500 m above sea level, has a mean annual rainfall of 3456 mm, and monthly temperatures range from 21-25ºC. The forest at El Verde is dominated by tabonuco (Dacryodes excelsa), Buchenavia tetraphylla, Inga laurina, Guarea guidonia and Prestoea acuminata. Canopy Walkway The canopy walkway is now repaired and ready to receive researchers. The original three tower design was modified to use useful parts and build two towers and a bridge connecting them.
Researchers wanting to use the canopy walkway must contact us in advance and should keep in mind that the walkway is located within the Luquillo Forest Dynamics Plot and the scope of projects should be in accordance with its guidelines. |
