COSTA RICA´S RAINFOREST

 

Costa Rican wildlife is rich and abundant. It is one of the primary reasons many decide to visit. Whether you’re an avid bird watcher or novice naturalist, opportunities abound for you to get up-close-and-personal with a wide range of Costa Rican wildlife.

Costa Rica is home to approximately 6% of the world’s species, meaning that more than 500,000 recorded species are represented in Costa Rica.

Costa Rica’s rainforests are abundant and popular.  Being an extremely rapid ecosystem, the competition among species of flora in these forests is quite intense.  Trees can grow up to 100 feet (30 meters) tall, absorbing up to 90% of the forest’s photosynthesis.

 

 

With over 860 native and six endemic bird species, Costa Rica is a true paradise for all bird watchers and ornithologists. Sloths, spider monkeys, howler monkeys and many other mammals also frolic in the trees. A variety of amphibians and reptiles hide one floor below. Small, colorful and fast, the exotic frog species in particular fascinate visitors. Animals threatened with extinction such as the leatherback turtle can be discovered in Costa Rica.

 

 

Flora in Costa Rica

Costa Rica boasts more than 9000 species of flowering plants and about 800 species of ferns, as well as many other species which are spread throughout the country.

All flora species survive in the rainforest by adapting.  Canopy trees adapt by reaching to the crowning heights, while bromeliads adapt by holding rainwater and decomposing matter into food.  Vines adapt by hanging to trees and working their way up. 

Costa Rica is home to many of the world’s endangered species of flora and even to some species that still haven’t been discovered.  Hence the importance of protecting Costa Rica’s different ecosystems.

 

Fauna in Costa Rica

Costa Rica’s fauna is rich and abundant and has made this country one of the most admired territories on the planet.  Over 200 species of mammals, 850 species of birds, 220 species of reptiles, 200 species of amphibians and over 300.000 species of insects inhabit these lands.

Costa Rica supports such an enormous variety of wildlife, due in large part to its geographic position between the North and South American continents, its climate and its wide variety of habitats.

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