Esteban Brenes-Mora

En cada visita al Tapir Valley me convenzo más de que, con los ojos puestos en el impacto a largo plazo y las botas bien puestas en el suelo día a día, podemos generar cambios reales y escalables. El nacimiento de esta nueva cría de danta en un bosque que @donaldtapirvalley restaura por hace no más de dos décadas, me llena de esperanza. Me hace creer firmemente que sí podemos cambiar el rumbo y que un mundo con MÁS ÁRBOLES Y MENOS VACAS beneficia a todos los seres que habitamos el Planeta Tierra. Desde niño, me obsesioné con las dantas, y como residente de Bijagua, soy afortunado de poder tenerlas cerca en @tapirvalleycr y luchar por su conservación globalmente junto a un gran equipo en @rewild y @bairdstapir . Como especies clave, proteger y recuperar a las poblaciones de dantas es clave para la supervivencia de los bosques tropicales. English Below ⬇️ EN 🇬🇧 With each visit to Tapir Valley, I become more convinced that with a long-term impact vision and boots firmly on the ground day by day, we can generate real and scalable changes. The birth of this new tapir calf in a forest restored just two decades ago by Donald Varela, fills me with hope. It makes me firmly believe that we can change the course and that a world with MORE TREES AND FEWER COWS benefits all beings inhabiting Planet Earth. Since I was a child, I’ve been obsessed with tapirs, and as a resident of Bijagua, I am fortunate to have them close at @tapirvalleycr and to fight for their conservation globally with a great team at Re:wild and Baird’s Tapir Survival Alliance. As keystone species, protecting and recovering tapir populations is key for the restoration and survival of tropical forests. #moretreesfewercows #conservation #tapir #costarica #bijagua #Rewilding #BiodiversityConservation #WildlifeProtection #NatureRecovery #RestoreNature #EcosystemRestoration #ProtectWildlife #ConservationEfforts #HabitatRestoration #WildlifeConservation #SaveOurSpecies #EndangeredSpecies #SustainableLiving #EcoConservation #ConservationAction #NatureConservation #ProtectOurPlanet

Tapirs brought me where I am right now in my career and life. They mean the world to me. For the world, tapirs mean resilience and hope. Once on the brink of extinction, the “gardeners of the forest” have made a remarkable comeback in some areas of the country, symbolizing the success of national conservation efforts and the commitment of local communities. Through a well-designed process of disincentivizing destructive activities and innovative solutions such as adding value to forest protection and a deep community engagement in ecotourism, Costa Rica showcases the power of commitment to rewilding and providing to its people alternatives to develop hand-in-hand with nature. As Carlos Manuel Rodriguez mentions: “In Costa Rica, this special species has taught us some very important lessons that we need to prioritize elsewhere as well. This is important not only in individual countries but across regions and in decisions about international resources for conservation and biodiversity”. With the right decisions and empowering the right people we can save tapirs, and with tapirs we can save the world.

Check out a conversation that Carlos Manuel Rodriguez @carlosmanuelrodriguez4600 , chairperson of @gef_global_environment and fellow tapir lover, and I shared some time ago. (Link in bio). @rewild @bairdstapir @naiconservation

⚠️WARNING: THIS IS NOT A TAPIR POST I spent most of 2016 deploying camera traps in Cerro de la Muerte along @naiconservation team. Those were amazing long days exploring the heart of the Talamanca Highlands. The landscape was surreal: cloud forest and paramo; surrounded by quetzals; hiking under freezing temperatures. Perks of being a conservation biologist. It’s hard to describe the joy of arriving to a functioning camera trap station, the way back to base was all about guessing which species were captured. We were targeting for tapir, but in camera trapping, “bycatch” its unevitable. These unintentionally caught animals surprised us plenty of times, but this shot of a jaguar (Panthera onca) was probably the most beautiful surprise we got. 

Camera “F06” was perfectly placed by Cris, Nick and Laurie deep inside the Tapanti - Macizo de la Muerte National Park. Then it was lost inside the forest for over 15 months, I tried once to recover it and failed: after 8 hours of hiking inside the forest I had no luck finding it. I thought it was stolen or wrongly referenced in the GPS. Cris insisted it must be there.

With not much hope to recover it, Cris decided it was time to give it a last chance, and she was right. F06 was safely retrieved back to base. It was still working and filled up with over 4000 images, including tapirs, oncillas, and a long-lasting dispute between pumas (Puma concolor) and jaguars. As an example, five hours before this jaguar shot, we captured a puma defecating right in front of the camera. Judging by the jaguar’s reaction, he wasn’t happy at all. I am glad of working with tireless and passionate conservationist like Cris, she was the one insisting on going for the infamous F06. @la_bicha_azul @hedgeslaurie @nickhawkinsphotography @crwildlife @zsledgeofexistence @officialzsl @sinac_cr @global_wildlife_conservation #jaguar #conservation #tapir #STEM #costarica #wildlife

The age old question: Why do tapirs poop together in water? @ebrenesmora gives us the dirty details in our episode with Costa Rica’s most successful artist @debinova . And when you consider the sheer volume of vegetation passing through a tapir in a day—up to 50 pounds of pure plant power—it’s no wonder field biologists like Esteban have ample opportunity to observe them at their most vulnerable. Read our essay on the subject at singforscience.org or go to the link in our bio! #tapir #costarica #debinova

De camino a Tikal, el jaguar está en todas partes: en grafitis, en señales de tránsito, en el arte local. Es una presencia constante que despierta esa ilusión de infancia, cuando los emblemas de los parques nacionales me parecían una promesa de que había certeza de ver dantas, lapas, baulas, etc. Con los años, uno entiende que esos encuentros son una rareza de la estadística, un regalo de segundos para unos pocos afortunados que ni siquiera anhelan el momento. Pero hoy, la Selva Maya nos saco de las predicciones. Un encuentro cara a cara que no duró segundos, sino minutos. Este encuentro es un recordatorio contundente de la urgencia que nos aprieta por proteger los Grandes Bosques de Mesoamérica. Seguimos trabajando para mantener viva la probabilidad de que esos jaguares y dantas que hoy pintan las paredes y adornan los escudos no sean solo una ilusión. #wildlifeconservation #rewilding #tikal #selvamaya #jaguares

¡Feliz Día Mundial del Tapir! 🌿🇨🇷 Hoy celebramos a la danta, el mamífero terrestre más grande de Centroamérica y un verdadero símbolo de nuestra biodiversidad. En Costa Rica le llamamos cariñosamente "danta" o "macho de monte", un nombre heredado de nuestra historia que resalta su imponente tamaño. Para nuestros pueblos indígenas, como los Bribri y Cabécar, es mucho más que un animal: es "Nai", una criatura sabia y sagrada vinculada al dios Sibö. Pero su papel más vital es el de "jardinera del bosque"; gracias a su enorme apetito, dispersa semillas que regeneran nuestras selvas y mantienen la vida en equilibrio. Cuidar a la danta es proteger el futuro de nuestras montañas. ¡Celebremos hoy a este gigante noble de nuestro país! #DíaDelTapir #DantaCosta Rica #Biodiversidad #PuraVida #WorldTapirDay

In one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, wouldn’t it make sense that the music of Costa Rica would be just as diverse? Costa Rican star @DebiNova has been investigating what her country sounds like musically. Turns out, there’s not one answer. Costa Rica has diversity as its identity. Debi spoke with @rewild ’s Mesoamerica Director Esteban Brenes-Mora about her album Todo Puede Convertirse en Canción (“Everything Can Become a Song”), exploring the challenges and gifts of rewilding, what drives Costa Rica’s remarkable biodiversity, the bathroom habits of tapirs, and what it means to find balance and coexistence between humans, animals, and the ecosystems we share. Listen to the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or watch by going to the link in our bio! #debinova #costarica #biodiversity

What sounds like home to Costa Rican star @debinova ?A specific bird that has many names, but in English it would be called “The Judas Bird.” Its call resembles, “Cristofué,” or “it was Jesus.” Debi spoke with @rewild ’s Mesoamerica Director Esteban Brenes-Mora (@ebrenesmora ) about her album Todo Puede Convertirse en Canción (“Everything Can Become a Song”), exploring the challenges and gifts of rewilding, what drives Costa Rica’s remarkable biodiversity, the bathroom habits of tapirs, and what it means to find balance and coexistence between humans, animals, and the ecosystems we share. Listen to the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or watch by going to the link in our bio! #DebiNova #cristofue #rewild

5 de febrero 1994: Esa elección la ganó Figueres, pero todos los niños de Calle La Pedrada iba con Miguel Angel, la influencia de @al3xander_cr y su familia era inmensa en la política del momento. Luego rectifiqué con Bambi, Dumbo y hasta el perro de la Sirenita. Resalto la frustración de @de_brenes llamando a votar por ninguno, la paz de @_matiasmora y a @rebek2m quien era la jefa del clan. @martinmoramo mantuvo estos recuerdos.

I kept this cartoon in case this COP became another disappointment. But I’d rather use it now as motivation to do better at COP30. This cannot be just another round of signatures or funding announcements. We must ask: For whom? For what? We need to address the historical inequities in how conservation resources are allocated, and we must call the drivers of biodiversity loss by their real names. We need solutions that are both realistic and transformative. I hope COP30 is not just another line in an inbox. I hope it becomes a turning point.

En 1994 los mocos eran un manjar, aunque había que disimular si @martinmoramo lo estaba grabando. Buenos tiempos en el sur de California. Que bonito regalo recordar esto casi 32 años después… como dice la canción ragga: tomén más fotos y videos.

Music festivals can be such a powerful platform for positive change. 🌍🎶 At @Lollapalooza we loved chatting with @rewild and @rewildyourcampus about how our food choices and rewilding can improve our impact on the planet. 🌱 There’s so much good we can do! #Sustainability #GreenEvents #FoodSystems #Nature #Lollapalooza #Lolla2025