Maripasario - Butterfly Research Lab

Maripasario is a local butterfly house and lab in the town of Colonia Libertad. The Maripasario is a joint effort with the Seeds of Change organization, several U.S. colleges  and the University of Costa Rica (Dr. Adrian Pinto's lab) and the local women of the town. The lab is currently being run by Sivla Ceballos and will be part of the Seeds of Change curriculum and research opportunities. Once operational, it will serve as a new source of income for the local economy as people come to visit the butterfly house.



In addition to the beauty of these creatures (the blue morpho is amazing), the lab has the critical task of finding new antibiotic producing bacteria that may be found in the different stages of the butterfly. Maddie, from Mercy Academy in Louisville, KY, was the first student to experience this type of research. She spent the afternoon working with Silva to culture bacteria found on the bodies of caterpillars. She also got to assist in the dissection of a pupa and culturing the microbiome associated with it. What a great experience for Maddie and we look forward to this being part of the summer research opportunities.











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