In the dead of night, a boat with thirteen white-lipped peccaries (Tayassu pecari) crossed the Golfo Dulce in Costa Rica. Around them sparkled bioluminescent waves and falling stars, while the animals quietly chattered in their crates. Veterinarian Denis Ortiz Angulo later compared the moment to scenes from "Life of Pi" — except instead of a tiger, the key "builders" of the tropical forest were on board.
White-lipped peccaries disappeared from Piedras Blancas National Park about eighteen years ago due to hunting. They are not just forest dwellers: these animals dig the soil, disperse seeds in their dung, and create small wallows where frogs, insects, and other species settle. Without them, the ecosystem loses an important link, and jaguars lose their main prey and more often come into conflict with people. According to monitoring data, after the relocation the herd stays together and looks healthy.
Preparation took more than ten years: they studied populations, worked with local residents, and accustomed the animals to bait in an enclosure. On the day of the operation, thirteen individuals — three males and ten females — entered the trap earlier than expected. Then began a sixteen-hour relay: weighing, cooling with water, transport by trucks, and a night crossing by boat. In the park, the peccaries were first kept in an acclimatization enclosure and then released. Two animals were fitted with satellite collars.
The Osa Conservation project shows how natural recovery can be accelerated. The forest would not have brought back the peccaries on its own in a reasonable time — by estimates, it could have taken up to a hundred years. The relocation became a kind of "medicine" for the ecosystem, as the organization's director Carlos Manuel Rodríguez put it. Success depends not only on science but also on the support of surrounding communities: a survey showed that 72 percent of residents approve of the species' return.
The next stage is another batch of peccaries this year, with a goal of 25–30 individuals. The organization plans similar projects with other vanished species, such as harpy eagles and giant anteaters. Such actions remind us: sometimes, to make the forest alive again, you need to manually bring back those who shape it.
