 Abdala put up researchers in his farmhouse until a small vacated house on the edge of the forest had been renovated.This house became the Caratinga Biological Station (Estação Biológica de Caratinga) in May 1983.The biological station was supported by Abdala, the Federal University of Minas Gerais, the World Wildlife Fund and the Brazilian Foundation for the Conservation of Nature (FBCN).