Christine Anderson, a much-loved yoga teacher at Ashtanga Yoga Montreal, sends this report from Costa Rica, where she now works at the Rainsong animal sanctuary.





Greetings from Paradise!!!

Finally, I am here at Rainsong and am mostly settled... taking inventory of how your donation has been used since the fundraisers in Montreal nearly 2 months ago. To say that Mary and Simon where surprised to receive over $2600.00 from our friends in Canada, is a grand understatement. They were over the moon! So far, the money has been used to help pay down the debt that builds up at the hardware store during the dry season, (building can only be done in the months from December to the end of April. The hardware store supports the project by allowing Rainsong to carry a large credit on trust.

Since I left last June, Rainsong has been busy rescuing animals and building habitats for the new arrivals: There are 3 new large habitat houses (each cost around $800 to build), 2 medium houses (at about $100 each), 1 new aviary ($1200)... this cost doesn’t even touch the bill for fruit, vegetables, grains, vitamins, surgery and medication. Our monthly budget has now topped over $1000 USD to maintain the animals we care for.



And the new residents at Rainsong are:

2 baby deer whose mother’s were killed by poachers, (when the mother goes grazing, she leaves the baby spread-eagled on the ground, the markings of a deer fawn help to camouflage it from predators. The baby stays there until the mother returns... so many of the babies are found starving to death as they wait for mom to return, not knowing that she has been killed by illegal poachers).

1 Margay / Caucel. Considered to be the most endangered of the wild cats in Costa Rica, (because they are the most arboreal, the loss of habitat hits them hardest). This beauty was hit by a car, and the impact knocked out his left eye. He will never be able to be released because of the loss of depth perception, and possible brain damage he has suffered. (see link below to get a look at this guy).

both of the following large bird species were pursued by hunters for their flesh: 2 breeding pairs of Chachalacas. These beautiful birds have been extinct in this area for almost 40 years (Simon, who was raised in Cabuya, remembers seeing them only as a child). Wild chachalacas are now returning to our area... just this evening we saw a pair sitting in the trees of Rainsong! The offspring of the breeding pairs we have at the Sanctuary will be released, enhancing the genetic pool of the local wild chachalacas, due to the fact that ours come from a distant area of Costa Rica (central Valley).

6 Crested Guans, also extinct in the area since the time of Simon’s grandfather... also to be bred and released.

1 Baby Howler monkey (she is the 5th of the baby howlers to arrive at Rainsong, and if she makes it, she’ll be the first one we save). The other 4 were more than likely electrocuted on the electric wires, and too injured to be saved. Mona Lisa was the victim of an Alpha Coup; This is when a new alpha male moves into a pack of howlers and takes over after defeating the former alpha. Sometimes the new alpha will kill the infants that are not his offspring. Mona will be at Rainsong for life, as she lost her tail in the attack and would need that to survive in the canopy. (see video link).

1 Baby Tepezquintle (paca). The tepes in Costa Rica have been hunted out as a delicacy for years. This one was born to our pair at Rainsong, and because he is a boy, he’ll be traded in for two girls for further breeding and eventual release. (see website for photos).




2 baby goats. Simon paid the owner of the first goat $20 to not eat him... the second was purchased to keep the first one company... Simon has wanted goats his whole life!

1 Resident Volunteer. This species is a rare find throughout the planet-saving community. It is difficult for the majority of volunteers to donate more than a few weeks of service, as the work is sometimes stinky, dirty, hot, and requires hands-in-shit... animal care is not as romantic as it sounds! Mary’s scars from teeth, spikes, and claws, are multiplying daily!

Rainsong Goals for 2009/10: Many of the residents at Rainsong will never be released into the wild due to permanent disabilities. However, we are in the process of building an enclosed, 3000 square meter jungle habitat for our permanent residents to enjoy the freedom of the wild without the danger of predators. For the past five years, Rainsong has been planting native fruit trees and preparing the land for the enclosure. The habitat will be enclosed by walls over 6 feet tall to prevent boas, coyotes and wildcats from getting in and preying on our friends.

Each panel of sheet metal costs $25 and covers less than 1 and a half feet of linear area. The barrier wall also requires a moderately deep trough of cement to prevent predators from digging in under the wall. The frame will be made of homegrown lumber from Rainsong’s windfall trees. The estimated cost is well over $10 000.

All of us here at Rainsong thank you for being a fellow planetary guardian, and taking the time to help us in our efforts to heal our lil’ corner of Costa Rica.

Lokah Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu, om shantih. (May all beings everywhere be happy and free, peace.) Blessings of peace from all of us at Rainsong, feathered, furred, scaly and human.

click here to meet Mary and some of the animals at Rainsong: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O3XmhatOHWM&feature=channel_page

visit our website here: www.rainsongsanctuary.com