National Parks in Costa Rica

Costa Rica is a country which is famous for being home to range of tourist destinations- both man made and natural. Situated in the continent of North America, this place is the safe haven of many flora and fauna. The untouched natural beauty of this place resulted in vast diversification of plants and animals. Costa Rica is the home to many endemic species of plants and animals and is considered as one of the richest bio diversity zones of the Neotropical Realm. Recent statistical reports reveal that is consists of almost 5% of the world’s biodiversity. In addition to this, approximately 25% of the total land mass of Costa Rica consists of reserved forests and national parks.

In the modern times, where trees are being cut down for establishment of human settlements, Costa Rica surely sets up an extra ordinary example by allotting a vast amount of forest land for the conservation purpose. One of the better known national parks, that is very popular among ecologists for its rich biodiversity, is the Corcovado National Park. This national park is the paradise of zoologists and it displays wide varieties of big cats and tapirs endemic to this region. Other important national parks of this republic include the following- The Tortuguero National Park, The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve as well as The Guanacaste National Park.

Costa Rica is also a haven to many bird species. A dreamland for the ornithologists and bird watchers all over the world. This natural aviary features a topography consisting of lush green plain lands, forested volcanic slopes as well as the coral reefs off the Costa Rica coast. Over the past few decades, people of Costa Rica are getting increasingly aware of the biological value and natural heritage of this place. The National Conservation System in Costa Rica is taking care of the endangered species of flora and fauna while The Costa Rica National Biodiversity Institute is established for study and analysis of the country’s different varieties of flora and fauna.

With Costa Rica’s rich biodiversity, it exhibits about 9000 different varieties of flowering plants of which around 1400 species belong to the orchid family. The nation is also the home to many types animals of which around 210 are mammals, 383 are reptiles and amphibians, about 2000 butterfly and approximately 4500 moth species. In addition to this, Costa Rica also harbors around 850 species of birds. The forest of Costa Rica features giant tropical trees forming a canopy over the smaller epiphytic vegetations thus creating the ideal habitat of various species of birds. The national bird of this country is the Clay colored Robin.

Famous National Parks of Costa Rica

1.    The Tortuguero National Park: - The Tortuguero National Park derives its name from “Tortuguero” which means “Full of turtles”. As the name suggests, this national park is filled with various endemic species of turtles such as the endangered green turtle, giant leatherback turtle, loggerhead turtles as well as hawksbill turtles. In addition to turtles, this national park also features various species of spiders, three-toed sloth, white throated Capuchin monkeys, parrots, etc.

2.    The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve: - The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is the home to around 2000 species of plants which includes numerous beautiful orchids. More than 400 types of bird species and 100 different species of mammals are found here.

3.    The Guanacaste National Park: - The Guanacaste National Park is situated in the northern portion of Costa Rica and features around 150 mammalian species, 300 avian species, 100 amphibians and reptiles and around ten thousand insect species.

The National Parks in Costa Rica is worth visiting and the perfect conservation system of the endangered flora and fauna makes this place all the more appealing to the visitors.