By Jim Parisi The good people at Ojala Publishing have your invitation waiting for you, in the form of their new book, “Fronteras Naturales”, or “Nature Unbound”, a collaborative project by photographers Luciano Capelli, Juan Jose & Sergio Pucci, with underwater images provided by Diego Mejias and Jose Manzilla. The
Read MoreThe alarms sounded some decades past about diminishing rainforests and the worlwide implications, but dry rainforests were overlooked. In his new documentary “Se Quema El Cielo”, Luciano Capelli waves the banner for all to see. The film focuses on the plight of the Guanacaste tropical dry forest, documenting the struggle to preserve over three hundred thousand species of life. One method is to recreate the natural habitat in the area, from the Pacific coastline to the chain of volcanoes Rincon de la Vieja and Orosi, covering lowlands and highlands. Much of this area was pastureland for centuries. One major problem rose when the cattle were removed around 1977 leaving non-indigenous grasses that were planted as feed to squeeze out local plant life. This is how a downhill chain begins because once the native plants disappear, so does the wildlife that depends on them. Without natural enemies, the grasses took over, dried out and became kindling for natural fires due to lightning, controlled fires, mismanaged campfires and even fires set as arson. Historic winds also play a major role.
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