The conservation movement, also known as nature conservation, is a political, environmental, and social movement that seeks to protect natural resources including animal and plant species as well as their habitat for the future.
National System of Conservation Areas or SINAC,, is part of the Ministry of Environment and Energy or MINAE of Costa Rica. It is the administrator for the nation's national parks, conservation areas, and other protected natural areas.
Arenal Huetar Norte Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the northern part of Costa Rica. It contains a National Park, and number of Wildlife refuges and Forest Reserves. It has been proposed that the Maquenque National Park be formed in this area, which would incorporate some of the existing nature reserves and expand on them.
The Ostional Wildlife Refuge is a 85.7 km2 (33.1 sq mi) Wildlife refuge of Costa Rica, part of the Tempisque Conservation Area, was originally declared a protected area in 1982, and its status has been changed several times since then, including covering a larger area both on land and out to sea. It was created to protect important nesting beaches of the Olive ridley sea turtle.
The Nicoya Peninsula is a peninsula on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. It is divided into two provinces: Guanacaste Province in the north, and the Puntarenas Province in the south. It is located at 10°N 85.4166667°W. It varies from 19 to 37 miles (60 km) wide and is approximately 75 miles (121 km) long, forming the largest peninsula in the country. It is known for its beaches and is a popular tourist destination.
The Romelia Wildlife Refuge is a 415-acre (1.68 km2) Wildlife refuge in Costa Rica, part of the Tempisque Conservation Area, near Montezuma, Costa Rica on the Nicoya Peninsula.
Tortuguero Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in Limón Province, northeastern Costa Rica.
Dr. Archie Carr Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge located within the Tortuguero Conservation Area, in the Limón Province of northeastern Costa Rica. The refuge is located north of the village of Tortuguero, between the Barra del Colorado Wildlife Refuge and the Tortuguero National Park. It is named after Dr. Archie Carr, who set up the Caribbean Conservation Corporation in the same area in 1955.
The Guanacaste Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by the Sistema Nacional de Areas de Conservacion (SINAC) of Costa Rica for the purposes of conservation in the northwestern part of Costa Rica. It contains three national parks, as well as wildlife refuges and other nature reserves. The area contains the Area de Conservación Guanacaste World Heritage Site, which comprises four areas.
Iguanita Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife refuge, part of the Guanacaste Conservation Area, in Guanacaste Province, northwestern Costa Rica.
Arenal Tilaran Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the central part of Costa Rica, near the Arenal Volcano and covering the Cordillera de Tilarán. It contains a number of National Parks, Wildlife refuges and Protected Zones.
Central Pacific Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the southwestern part of Costa Rica, on the Pacific coast. It contains four National Parks, and a number Wildlife refuges and other types of nature reserve.
Caribbean La Amistad Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the eastern part of Costa Rica, on the Caribbean coast. It contains several national parks, and a number wildlife refuges and other types of nature reserve.
Osa Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in Costa Rica, on the southern Pacific coast region. It contains two National Parks, and numerous Wildlife refuges and other types of nature reserve.
Central Volcanic Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the central part of Costa Rica, notably the volcanic areas of the Cordillera Central. It contains four National Parks, and a number Wildlife refuges and other types of nature reserve.
San Lucas Island is an island located off the Pacific shore of Costa Rica in the Gulf of Nicoya. It is part of the 11th district of Puntarenas Canton of the province of Puntarenas. Formerly serving as an island prison, it is now a National Wildlife Refuge.
The Sea Turtle Conservancy (STC), formerly known as Caribbean Conservation Corporation is an American not-for-profit 501(c)(3) membership organization based in Gainesville, Florida. STC was incorporated, based on an earlier informal organization known as The Brotherhood of the Green Turtle, in 1959 by Mr. Joshua B. Powers in response to renowned ecologist Dr. Archie Carr's award-winning book, The Windward Road, which first alerted the world to the plight of sea turtles. Dr. Carr served as Scientific Director of STC from 1959 until his death in 1987. Since its founding, STC's research and conservation initiatives have been instrumental in saving the Caribbean green sea turtle from immediate extinction, as well as raising awareness and protection for sea turtles across the globe with 50 years of experience in national and international sea turtle conservation, research and educational endeavors. The organization began its work in Costa Rica, but has expanded its research and conservation efforts throughout Central America and the wider Caribbean.
Tortuguero National Park is a National Park in the Limón Province of Costa Rica. It is situated within the Tortuguero Conservation Area of the northeastern part of the country. Despite its remote location, reachable only by airplane or boat, it is the third-most visited park in Costa Rica. The park has a large variety of biological diversity due to the existence within the reserve of eleven different habitats, including rainforest, mangrove forests, swamps, beaches, and lagoons. Located in a tropical climate, it is very humid, and receives up to 250 inches (6,400 mm) of rain a year.
The Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge is a newly established United States national wildlife refuge that will include noncontiguous properties, especially tallgrass prairie patches, wetland properties, and oak savanna parcels, located in the northwestern region of the Chicago metropolitan area and the southern part of the Milwaukee area. The refuge's boundaries encompass parts of McHenry County, Illinois, and Walworth County, Wisconsin. The refuge will be operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, known as USFWS. 85 percent of the refuge will be in Illinois, and 15 percent in Wisconsin.
