Want to be a Volunteer?

We receive many requests from scientist about volunteer opportunities at our biological field stations in Costa Rica. Volunteer opportunities are very limited and are not always suited to the research interests of the volunteers. Due to the nature of our research we require volunteers to make a significant time commitment, as well as a financial commitment to cover their housing and meal costs. If you would like to be considered for a volunteer research opportunity, please send us an email at

We have a more general volunteer program at our Las Cruces Biological Station where you can volunteer at the Wilson Botanical Garden which forms part of this field station. The Garden was founded in the early 1960’s by Robert and Catherine Wilson, and is arguably the most important botanical garden in Central America. It is famous for its worldwide collection of tropical plants which include palms, aroids, bromeliads, gingers, marantas, heliconias, and ferns. More than 3,000 species of plants can be found in the 12-hectare (~ 30-acre) Garden, including one of the largest collections of palms in the world. In addition to the high plant diversity, there are over 100 species of mammals at Las Cruces and we also have an impressive diversity of birds with over 400 recorded species and 1000s of insect species. So come join us and support the Las Cruces Biological Station and Wilson Botanical Garden. For more information contact station director Zak Zahawi at zahawi@ots.ac.cr or email the station at lcruces@ots.ac.cr.