Birds & Bugs – Association Les Fruits de Mer

Birds & Bugs Post-event Press

Mark Yokoyama — Wed, 09 Dec 2015 22:19:41 +0000

Once again, we thank local and regional media for helping us share what we do with the people of St. Martin and the Caribbean. Here’s a round-up of some of our post-event press features.

The Daily Herald, December 2015

SXM Fax Info, December 2015

Le Pélican, December 2015

Today Newspaper, December 2015

Record Crowds Enjoy Activity-packed Birds & Bugs Event

Mark Yokoyama — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 23:47:17 +0000

Attendees of all ages gather for one of the event’s guided bird tours of the forest.

Over 400 people attended the second Birds & Bugs event on Sunday at Loterie Farm to learn more about the birds and invertebrates living in the tropical broadleaf forest on St. Martin. Activities included interacting with live insects, going on guided birding tours and creating “bugs” out of natural materials. Birds & Bugs 2015 was presented by the Les Fruits de Mer association in partnership with Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) and Loterie Farm.

“The turnout was fantastic—our best-attended event so far, and perhaps the biggest wildlife education event in the history of the island,” reported Jenn Yerkes, President of Les Fruits de Mer. “Our amazing experts and volunteers worked hard to make this event a real success for everybody!”

Event-goers examined caterpillars of every stripe at the Bug Discovery Station’s Caterpillar Corner.

The Bug Discovery Station was a busy attraction, featuring a Caterpillar Corner and a fascinating array of live insects and spiders, from walking sticks and beetles to a Tarantula Hawk Wasp and a tarantula. There was even a Souliga Wall Crab Spider, which is only found on St. Martin. The station also included an area where guests could try their hand at identifying a variety of species with the help of guidebooks, magnifying glasses and a microscope. Many guests came to the event with questions about the caterpillars that are currently particularly abundant on Flamboyant trees.

The art activity station was abuzz with kids and adults having fun creating strange new forms of bug life from natural materials at the Build-A-Bug Workshop. These crazy critters were constructed in all shapes and sizes and could be made into clips or refrigerator magnets to take home.

Kids and adults created extraordinary insects from natural materials at the event’s Build-A-Bug Workshop.

Hundreds of visitors took guided walks in the forest with professional bird guide and local bird expert Binkie van Es, where they also had a unique chance to learn about bird banding from EPIC’s President Natalia Collier and Senior Biologist Adam Brown. EPIC has been banding birds for research at Loterie Farm for 15 years. Although the wet weather was not ideal for birding, guests had the opportunity to visit with the bird researchers and find out about the tropical broadleaf forest, a rare and important habitat that covers only a small part of the island.

At EPIC’s Bird Education Station, hosted by Environmental Educator Laura Bijnsdorp, 100 kids played a Bird Bingo birdwatching game for prizes. Les Fruits de Mer’s Club Gaïac native tree replanting project introduced a new crowd-sourced experiment, distributing dozens of free seed kits with instructions for testing different seed preparation methods at home to increase germination rates.

The Bird Bingo birdwatching game at EPIC’s Bird Education Station was a big hit with kids.

Les Fruits de Mer’s next public project will be a series of free, fun wildlife presentations at Mardis de Grand Case, every Tuesday evening in Grand Case starting January 12th.

Birds & Bugs 2015 was a free, public Wildlife Discovery Event hosted by Les Fruits de Mer in partnership with EPIC and Loterie Farm. Birds & Bugs 2015 was sponsored by Buccaneer Beach Bar, Delta Petroleum, Hotel L’Esplanade, Island Mattress, St. Martin Voyages and Tri-Sport. For more information about Les Fruits de Mer, visit: www.lesfruitsdemer.com or stop by their booth at Mardis de Grand Case.

A team of wildlife experts and volunteers from Les Fruits de Mer and EPIC brought Birds & Bugs to life.

Birds & Bugs Photos, Part Five

Mark Yokoyama — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 14:15:48 +0000

Here’s my last batch of photos from Birds & Bugs, feel free to share yours on Facebook or email some to info@lesfruitsdemer.org. Also, get ready for some pretty exciting stuff in the new year. We will take a couple days off—maybe—and then start planning for Mardis de Grand Case, every Tuesday evening for 12 weeks staring on January 12th.

Birds & Bugs Photos, Part Four

Mark Yokoyama — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 11:02:06 +0000

Our Birds & Bugs wrap-up wouldn’t be complete without a shout out to our sponsors. Like all our events, Birds & Bugs is totally free and the only way that can happen is through the generosity of our sponsors, who foot the bill for all our supplies and expenses. Thank you!!!

Buccaneer Beach Bar
Conveniently located on Kim Sha Beach, Buccaneer Beach Bar is a friendly watering hole for locals and visitors alike. Relax in the glow of the fireballs on Friday and Sunday evenings, or bring the whole family on Fridays for kids movies on the beach.
http://buccaneerbeachbar.com

Delta Petroleum
Founded in 1985, Delta serves the Caribbean with superior performance diesel, gasoline and LPG meeting U.S. and European standards. Delta is a proud and growing member of the communities from the Virgin Islands to Martinique. Delta Petroleum has been a sponsor of many of our events.
http://deltapetroleum.com

Hotel L’Esplanade
This hotel has established a cult following from guests that enjoy an authentic, luxurious, unpretentious and un-touristy Caribbean experience with a homey feel. Recognized by TripAdvisor as one of the Caribbean’s “Best Hidden Gems”, and recently named #19 of the top 25 hotels in all of the Caribbean, Hotel L’Esplanade has been a Les Fruits benefactor member since 2013 and has sponsored many Les Fruits de Mer events.
http://www.lesplanade.com – Hotel L’Esplanade on Facebook

Island Mattress
Island Mattress stocks the largest selection of mattresses in the area and specializes in the art of good sleep. Visit their showroom in Hope Estate to check out their mattresses and contemporary furniture.
http://www.island-mattress.com

St. Martin Voyages
Your agent for fantastic holidays, St. Martin Voyages is an official retailer for all airlines, with a mission to provide the best possible service for all your travel needs, from flights and cruises to custom trips and packages.
https://www.facebook.com/sxmvoyages/

Tri-Sport
Tri-Sport is the go-to shop for the active community of St. Maarten/St. Martin and the neighboring islands of Anguilla, Saba, Statia, and St. Barths. They run ecologically-friendly tours that get people out and moving – kayaking, bicycling, hiking, boogie boarding, and snorkeling. Tri-Sport’s retail shops carry all the necessities for triathlons with an emphasis on bicycles.
http://trisportsxm.com

Birds & Bugs Photos, Part Three

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 20:46:24 +0000

We also couldn’t do Birds & Bugs without our fantastic partners, EPIC and Loterie Farm!

About Environmental Protection in the Caribbean
Environmental Protection in the Caribbean (EPIC) is a non-profit organization registered in St. Maarten and the United States. Founded in 2000 with the mission to protect the Caribbean environment through research and community-based action, EPIC has conducted long-term studies on the birds of the island while working to raise awareness of bird conservation issues. EPIC biologists have partnered with Loterie Farm for over a decade to study the health and diversity of birds in this rare habitat. http://www.epicislands.org

About Loterie Farm
Loterie Farm is a private nature reserve on the western slope of Pic Paradis. The 54-hectare property includes broadleaf forest as well as the remains of historical buildings dating back to the 18th century. Loterie Farm aims to safeguard both the history and the environment while also sharing these unique natural surroundings with the public. One of the most ecologically significant sites on St. Martin, Loterie Farm has hosted a great deal of biological research, including ongoing studies of birds and other animals. Loterie Farm offers hiking and zip-lining as well as a gourmet restaurant, lounge, and spring-fed swimming pool. http://loteriefarm.com

Birds & Bugs Photos, Part Two

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 18:41:40 +0000

If you see a lot of folks in blue shirts in these photos, you’ll have an idea of how many wonderful volunteers we have. We couldn’t do fun, free events like this without them! Thank you, team Birds & Bugs: Adam Brown, Natalia Collier, Laura Bijnsdorp, Binkie Van Es, Paul Fry, Jill Kellsall, Patricia Coppie, Jovan Halley, Sarah Allen, Mael Renault, Simon Aubert, Clement Rouard, Muriel Morice, Roxane Boquet, Corinne Draesner, Anouchka Henocq, Rodger Boutelle, Marie-Estelle Pradel, Dorothee Allanic, William Allanic, Jenn Yerkes and Mark Yokoyama!

Birds & Bugs Photos, Part One

Mark Yokoyama — Mon, 07 Dec 2015 16:40:44 +0000

Yesterday’s Birds & Bugs was fantastic—huge thanks to all the volunteers and everyone who came to the event! We took a few photos of the event, so here’s a batch to kick off our post-event coverage. If you took any photos at Birds & Bugs, we’d love to see them. Share them with us on Facebook or email some to us at info@lesfruitsdemer.org.

Birds & Bands

Mark Yokoyama — Sat, 05 Dec 2015 16:12:36 +0000

In this week’s Bird Watch SXM article, we give some background on one of the most important techniques scientists use to study birds, their life cycle and their migratory habits. This also happens to be a technique you can see in person at Birds & Bugs tomorrow, December 6th from 9am-noon at Loterie Farm. Read more and invite your friends.

What’s that bug? Tell me what’s a-happening.

Mark Yokoyama — Fri, 04 Dec 2015 12:44:40 +0000

Are you a bug ID superstar? Test your microscope skills with the “What am I?” activity or try your hand at insect ID with specimens we have. Got something that’s already stumped you? Bring in critters or photos and we’ll do our best to tell you what they are. All at Birds & Bugs, Sunday December 6th from 9am to noon at Loterie Farm. Invite your friends!

Press for Birds & Bugs

Mark Yokoyama — Thu, 03 Dec 2015 21:33:09 +0000

We’re very excited to share local and regional press for Birds & Bugs and very grateful for all the news organizations that are helping spread the word about this event. Below is a sampling of online and print coverage for the event. More info on our site and on Facebook.

The Daily Herald, December 2015

Le Pélican, December 2015

The Daily Herald, December 2015

97150, December 2015

Today Newspaper, December 2015

The Kids Herald, December 2015

Voilá, November 2015

Soualiga Newsday

St. Martin News Network

SXM Info

SXM Island Time

Anguilla News