CICHAZ: Centro de Investigaciones Científicas de las Huastecas “Aguazarca”, A. C.

The Centro de Investigaciones Científicas de las Huastecas “Aguazarca”, A. C. (CICHAZ) is a privately owned field station in Calnali, Hidalgo, Mexico. Founded in 2005, CICHAZ has nonprofit status in both the USA and Mexico in order to help further its goal of “Bringing Science and Service Together”.

Located on 2 hectares at 1000 m above sea level in the Sierra y Huasteca, CICHAZ is in the northernmost “peninsula” of mesic neotropical forest on the easternmost slope of the Sierra Madre Oriental. We are in a biodiverse region of a megadiverse country, boasting over 450 bird species and more than 540 species of plant endemics, including at least 13 in some category of extinction risk. Our main building houses one phenological, one nucleic-acid, and one behavioral laboratory, as well as two indoor fish/vivarium rooms optimized for highland and lowland temperatures. An outlying building provides multi-use space for experiments, and experimental and stock populations of aquatic animals are maintained in 68 outdoor mesocosm ponds. A large palapa on the property provides an open space for classes, workshops, or fiestas.

The field station is a center for both social and natural science research and strives to foster integrative, collaborative work across disciplines. Annually we host some 50 scientests who primarily study hybridizing swordtails but projects also include studies of beetles, lizards, salamanders, soil, water, and more. Our outreach programming focuses on environmental education and thanks to RoSa (Rodando Saberes – Rolling Knowledge), a food truck converted to a mobile learning laboratory, we can bring hands-on science activities to the local schools and communities.