The Future of Asa Wright Nature Centre

In a country slowly awakening to its need for a sustainable future, Asa Wright has stood for conservation and biodiversity for over 50 years. The National Protected Areas Systems Plan accepted in 2019 still has not been implemented. Asa Wright has held its acreage in conservation as a private holding deeded to a Trust. With the changes wrought by the pandemic, how will the ethos for conservation weather the storm? Faraaz Abdool wonders what the Asa Wright Nature Centre might become in ten years. At the end of the day, its saving grace are the creatures that don't give two hoots about what we think as long as they have a home. Photos by Faraaz Abdool.

A Black Hawk-Eagle cruises in the Arima valley, as seen from the verandah at the Asa Wright Nature Centre. It is the largest bird of prey in T&T.

The Asa Wright Nature Centre (AWNC) has been a beacon to nature lovers the world over for several decades. Visitors from all corners of the globe flocked to the world-famous verandah looking down the Arima Valley. It offered easy access to the wild, with Bananaquits and Purple Honeycreepers, hummingbirds, agouti and golden tegu flitting or sloping into view. This was the Asa Wright Nature Centre we all knew and loved, a place where wildlife encounters were easy, a place where couples honeymooned and memories were made.

Then came the pandemic. Rather shockingly, the Asa Wright Nature Centre announced its closure in January 2021, not even a full year since borders were closed. Caligo Ventures Inc., a US-based tour company booking visitors since 1984, had never stopped booking birding trips to Trinidad and Tobago, proving wrong predictions by renowned wildlife artist and one of the foundation members, Don Eckelberry who didn’t expect the Centre to last a full ten years. (AWNC was established in 1967.) Since TT’s borders reopened in July, Caligo has located other accommodation on Trinidad and Tobago for its tours.

Birds always come in complementary colours, making interior decor straightforward if modelled after particular species. The "Bay-headed Tanager Suite'' seems much more enticing than "Room 15".

T&T has three species of trogons, close relatives of the famous quetzals of Central America. All three can be seen at the Asa Wright Nature Centre, pictured here is the smallest of the three - Guianan Trogon.

Many observations of rare passage migrants like this Rose-breasted Grosbeak have been from the verandah at Asa Wright. 

 

Today, the Asa Wright Nature Centre is seeking to enter a new chapter. The Centre has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a Concession to operate the eco-lodge for the next ten years. From the specifics of the RFP, it is apparent that the Board is seeking a partner to operate the lodge while they retain management of the Visitor Centre and tours. The successful operator will be expected to effect the necessary renovations, maintenance, and all the operations of an eco-lodge, a hotel in the rainforest. The lodge operator would be expected to work alongside the Asa Wright Trust to fulfil the mandate to protect and conserve this part of the Arima valley for the benefit of future generations of Trinidad and Tobago.  Both entities would bear the responsibility of hospitality though, as the Centre plans to continue accommodating day visitors in addition to overnight guests.

Let’s take ourselves a decade into the future and envision the Asa Wright Nature Centre. Let’s close our eyes for a moment and think of the drive along the winding and picturesque Arima-Blanchisseuse Road. The fragrance of the forest, fresh spring water coursing along streams which routinely disappear beneath the roadway only to burst from the mountainside further on. Hummingbirds flash by ginger lilies in the understory. How far would quarrying operations have encroached by then? One must wonder how many twists and bends would be needed to escape the seemingly endless march of machinery, gouging and blasting gaping wounds into the Northern Range; and the loss of native forest to christophene and other cash crops.

In its research portfolio, perhaps sensitive acoustic monitoring may be mounted within the grounds of the Centre to record and quantify the never-ending rumble coming from the other face of the hill. Some curious student might measure the effect of constant mechanical vibration on the life of hearing-sensitive species like bats and Oilbirds.

The only member of the Cotinga family in the Caribbean, the Bearded Bellbird is easy to see along the trails around the property. 

 

The most accessible Oilbird colony in the region at Dunston Caves has provided thousands of people with their only experiences of this unique and incredible species over the years. 

 

 Few things can flourish in a vacuum and, like us, creatures of the forest are constantly adapting. Do human adaptations always require concrete and steel?  What about adaptations and mitigations based on information and the understanding of conservation and change, protection and activism; and children across Trinidad and Tobago coming by the busloads to walk the trails of Asa Wright.

The Asa Wright Nature Centre of the future must pay attention, as that is the cornerstone of decisive action. Aside from being a conservation force, the Centre must pursue outreach and education, leading by example. There is little that can be done for the greater good of all without support from the community and indeed, the country. The Centre can serve as a meeting place for local conservation organizations, a melting pot for ideas to steer TT into a green future. Educating the leaders of tomorrow is no easy task, it requires complete commitment to the cause. Education officers must visit schools from Cedros to Charlotteville, delivering stimulating content to inspire the next generation. Not only must the Centre function as a hub for university research, it needs to be adept at bridging the gap between academia and the public. Engaging media shall prove vital in the digital age. WiFi is an essential service in the hinterland of the Northern Range forest.

Renewable energy sources are great but having a conservation mindset is priceless. Guides must be knowledgeable and genuinely excited to show guests the many wonders of the tropical forest. Numerous trails crisscross the property, each presenting different levels of difficulty and accessibility. Limiting guided walks to one or two overused trails are squandered opportunities. Imagine having a roster for the different trails on the property, the prospect of a different walk every day accompanied by an eagle-eyed local guide will maintain interest over a longer period.

Certainly, there are many exhilarating wildlife experiences waiting to happen. With impressive species lists of more than 100 mammals, 400 birds, 600 butterflies – no accounting of plants and other insects - the Centre is a hotbed of biodiversity. Encroaching human activity both in and beyond the valley is poised to jeopardize this reputation. Hunting must be actively discouraged in the surrounding forest. Every effort needs to be made to ensure the integrity of the mature forest is preserved. Climate change is pushing altitude-dependent species higher and higher in search of appropriate habitat. While little can be done about this on a small scale, it underscores the dire need to preserve as much forest as possible.

Indigenous knowledge and legacy should also play a pivotal role in the Asa Wright Nature Centre of the future. Giving a nod to the invaluable protection of biodiversity provided by Indigenous Peoples across continents, it would be an easy fit to make some of this precolonial knowledge available to citizens and guests.

Cuisine – a kitchen garden and imaginative fare -  are essential offerings. A bedraggled birder at the end of a long, tiring day can be lifted by a creative cocktail hour and a scrumptious, hearty meal. Meals should speak of culture; even as they cater to different dietary requirements. Rooms must be even more welcoming than the kitchen, providing respite from the tropical heat while retaining connectivity to nature. Local artists may be commissioned to decorate rooms according to nature-based themes.

Just as valiant efforts were made over fifty years ago to acquire the funding to secure the premises, other efforts are required now to take the reserve into the future. What will it mean for the Asa Wright Nature Centre to once again establish itself as the gold standard of the ecotourism experience. Will visitors necessarily have to be accommodated on the premises? Does the opportunity exist for BnB in the communities nearby? Is it that bird watchers and nature lovers are mainly foreigners? How will TT citizens be encouraged to see Asa Wright as their own?

 

Visits from high altitude specialists like this Swallow Tanager in AWNC's car park may become more infrequent if the surrounding forest gets degraded. 

 

Many species dependent on intact, mature forests can be seen along the trails further away from the main building such as this pair of Black-faced Antthrushes. (All photos by Faraaz Abdool)