Asa Wright Nature Center

Asa Wright Nature Center

The Asa Wright Nature Centre is a nature resort and scientific research station located in the Arima Valley in the northern mountains of Trinidad and Tobago. The history of the Asa Wright Nature Centre starts with Mrs. Asa Wright, who was born Asa Guðmundsdóttir on 12 April 1892 in Laugardalur, Iceland. She travelled to England as a young woman to train as a nurse at Middlesex Hospital, and on a return trip to Iceland, she met her future husband, Newcome Wright, and his health brought the couple to Trinidad. Newcome's lungs had deteriorated due to exposure to poisonous gas from fighting in the 1914-18 Great War and he was unable to cope with the poor air quality in the UK, so they arrived in Trinidad in 1946. They bought the Spring Hill Estate, located in the Arima Valley at an altitude of 350 meters above sea level. A unique attraction of the estate is the nocturnal Oilbird breeding colony in the Dunston Cave. In 1949, the internationally renowned naturalist William Beebe purchased the Verdant Vale estate and St. Patrick's Estate in the Arima Valley, and his presence became a magnet for foreign visitors to the Arima Valley, creating a business opportunity for Asa Wright to host guests at Spring Hill. Today, the center is one of the best birdwatching sites in the Caribbean, with 256 bird species recorded. Species of birds at the nature reserve include the Purple Honeycreeper, the Tufted Coquette, the Tropical Mockingbird and the Oilbird, which is a nocturnal fruit-eater. In the forests of the center Red Brocket Deer, Ocelot, Brazilian Porcupine and Southern Tamandua have also been observed. The Red-Rumped Agouti is often found in the center near the main building.