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Parque Nacional Corcovado--the Amazon of Costa Rica--is the largest stronghold of primary forest on a Pacific coastline that has been all but destroyed from Mexico to South America. Its 41,788 hectares encompass eight habitats, from mangrove swamp and jolillo palm grove to montane forest. Corcovado is one of "the most biologically intense places on earth", according to National Geographic. Its rain forest are by far the most exuberant in Central America. 500 different variety of trees grow here and up to 100 species can be found growing on just 2 acres of land. The Park is home to Giant Anteaters, Tapirs, Sloths and a few big cat species, like the Jaguar, Ocelot, Pumas and Margay. Four species of Monkeys live in the trees overhead: the Howler, White-Faced Capuchin, Spider and Squirrel Monkey.
It also protects the largest population of Scarlet Macaws in Costa Ric, plus its home to at least 375 other species of birds, 140 mammals,(representing 10 percent of the mamalls in the Americas), 116 of amphibians and reptiles, 40 types of fresh water fish. Plus 6000 - 10,000 different kinds of insects including 220 species of butterflies. A magnificent experience is seeing Scarlet Macaws flying freely in their natural habitat. They can fly at speeds up to 35 miles per hour, often in pairs or small flocks. Here they are eating fresh almonds in almond trees. http://www.fluffytails.ca/COSTARIC/corco11.jpg Bare-throated Tiger Heron. http://www.fluffytails.ca/COSTARIC/corco12.jpg The Park runs parallel with the Ocean, so its easy to leave the rain forest paths and walk along the beach to investigate there. Here are freshTapir tracks in the sand may be found. Tapirs are large animals, resembling a wild boar, but larger. The Costa Rican variety is called Baird's Tapir they are about 6.5 feet in length and weigh up to 700 pounds. We never could find the Tapir, but it was nice to know it was there. They are an endangered species. Corcovado is a good place to spot the red-eyed tree frog (listen for his single-note mating "cluck"), the glass frog with its transparent skin, and enamel-bright poison-arrow frogs. http://www.fluffytails.ca/COSTARIC/corco10.jpg And you can watch fishing bats doing just that over rivers at night. You can even try your own hand for snook inside the mouths of the coastal rivers on incoming tides. They strike plugs all year and during the fall become very aggressive. |
Looks like a nice place really
