The wildlife of Costa Rica comprises all naturally occurring animals, fungi and plants that reside in this Central American country. Costa Rica supports an enormous variety of wildlife, due in large part to its geographic position between North and South America, its neotropical climate, and its wide variety of habitats. Costa Rica is home to more than 500,000 species, which represent nearly 5% of the species estimated worldwide, making Costa Rica one of the 20 countries with the highest biodiversity in the world. Of these 500,000 species, a little more than 300,000 are insects.[1]
One of the principal sources of Costa Rica's biodiversity is that the country, together with the land now considered Panama, formed a bridge connecting the North and South American continents approximately three to five million years ago. This bridge allowed the very different flora and fauna of the two continents to mix.[2]
Biodiversity
Costa Rica is considered to possess the highest density of biodiversity of any country worldwide.[3] While encompassing just one thirtieth of a percent of Earth's landmass, Costa Rica contains four percent of species estimated to exist on the planet.[4] Hundreds of these species are endemic to Costa Rica, meaning they exist nowhere else on earth. These endemic species include frogs, snakes, lizards, finches, hummingbirds, gophers, mice, cichlids, and gobies among many more.[5]
Costa Rica's biodiversity can be attributed to the variety of ecosystems within the country. Tropical rainforests, deciduous forests, Atlantic and Pacific coastline, cloud forests, and mangrove forests are all represented throughout the 19,730 square miles of Costa Rica's landmass.[6] The ecological regions are twelve climatic zones. This variation provides numerous niches which are filled by a diversity of species.
Benefits for humanity
Costa Rica demonstrates biodiversity conservation for developing countries. Over twenty-seven percent of the country's land has a protected status as national parks, wildlife refuges, forest preserves, and more.[7] The Costa Rican government is active in protecting its biodiversity for the ecological services they provide. The government imposes a five percent tax on gasoline to generate revenue to pay landowners to refrain from clear-cutting on their land and instead to create tree plantations. This provides Costa Ricans, or "Ticos" as they call themselves, incentive to become active tree farmers instead of cattle ranchers.[8] Tree farms provide some habitat for wildlife, enabling some measure of biodiversity to remain in these areas despite humans' use of these natural resources.
Costa Rica's biodiversity contributes to the numerous ecological services the environment provides. Every aspect of the ecosystem from the different species of plants to the diversity of animal species contributes to natural services like water purification, provision of food, fuel, fiber, and biochemicals, nutrient cycling, pollination and seed dispersal, and climate regulation, just to name a few.[9] As the diversity of species increases, more of these services can be provided and to a greater extent.
Biodiversity has contributed to the economy of Costa Rica. Ecotourism brings in 1.92 billion dollars in revenue for the country.[10]Ecotourism is defined as "tourism directed toward exotic, often threatened, natural environments, especially to support conservation efforts and observe wildlife". Costa Rica's abundant biodiversity makes the country an attractive destination for ecotourism. Thirty-nine percent of tourists cite nature as their primary reason for visiting the country.[11] The profitable industry of ecotourism entices businesses to capitalize on natural resources by protecting and preserving them rather than consuming them.
Threats to biodiversity
Threats to Costa Rica's biodiversity include a rapidly growing human population, developing coastlines for the industry of tourism and harmful agricultural practices all contributing to pollution and environmental degradation. The practice causing the largest concern for Costa Rica's environment is deforestation. Costa Rica has the fourth highest rate of deforestation in the world. Almost four percent of its current forested lands are cut each year. Clearing land for cattle ranching is the most common cause of deforestation. This form of environmental damage along with the farming of monocultures leads to areas where only a few species of plants are present. Ultimately, decreases in plant diversity leads to decreased animal diversity.[12]
Introduced Species and Climate Change
In recent decades, there has been growing concern about the impact of introduced and invasive animal and plant species outside their natural habitat, particularly on small oceanic islands where the impact is often more severe due to biogeographic reasons. This phenomenon also significantly affects continental areas. The introduction and invasion of these species are key components of human-induced global environmental changes, accelerated by increased travel and the global economy. The speed of these invasions today is notable, facilitated by climate change and habitat destruction. For instance, many horticultural species are now successfully cultivated much farther north than their known natural ranges, revealing the adaptability and expansion of these species. In this context, management strategies must consider the presence of these "new" species, evaluating whether they should be eradicated, tolerated, or even integrated to enrich the local flora and support ecological restoration. Costa Rica clearly illustrates this phenomenon since the 16th century, where some introduced plants have had significant socioeconomic and environmental impacts. These species continue to arrive and establish themselves, some as invaders. A recent study published in the UNED Journal Research documented over 980 introduced plant species in the country. This situation underscores the complexity of managing the coexistence of native and alien species in a changing context.[13]
There are about 1,251 species of butterflies and at least 8,000 species of moths. Butterflies and moths are common year round but are more present during the rainy season. Ten percent of known butterfly species worldwide reside in Costa Rica.[14]
Costa Rican butterflies and moths have made amazing adaptations to the environment. Some examples of these are the following:
Swallowtail caterpillars imitate bird droppings and many others have bright colours to warn predators of bodily toxins.
What someone could easily mistake for a butterfly, a wasp, or a leaf in Costa Rica might be a moth engaging in Müllerian or Batesian mimicry.
Ecotourism is one of Costa Rica's primary economic resources, and the country's butterflies add a lot to that. They bring life to tropical forests, not only with the diversity in colour, but with the magnificence of the flowers that they help pollinate.
Some common butterflies and moths in Costa Rica include:
Invertebrate species make up most of Costa Rica's wildlife. Of the estimated 500,000 species, about 493,000 are invertebrates (including spiders and crabs). It is known that there are tens of thousands of insects and microscopic invertebrates in every land type and elevation level. However, they are largely unnoticed or unidentified.
Costa Rica is home to around 175 amphibians, 85% of which are frogs. Frogs in Costa Rica have interesting ways of finding fishless water to raise their young in. Fish, of course, will eat tadpoles and eggs. Poison dart frogs put their eggs in water pools in bromeliads. Other methods include searching ponds before laying eggs, and laying eggs in wet soil. There are 35 species of Elutherodoctylus frogs, 26 species of Hyla frogs and 13 species of glassfrogs.
Notable frog species in Costa Rica include red-eyed tree frog, a few species of poison dart frogs, the semitransparent glassfrogs, and the large smoky jungle frog. Some other notable toad species in Costa Rica include the ten species of Bufo toads and the giant toad, a huge toad known for its wide appetite. It has been documented eating almost anything, including vegetables, ants, spiders, any toad smaller than itself, mice, and other small mammals.
Besides the frog species, approximately 40 species of lungless salamander and two species of caecilian are found in the country, both rarely seen and little known. Costa Rican amphibians range in size from the rainforest rocket frog, at 1.5cm (0.5in), to the giant toad, at up to 15cm (6in) and 2kg (4.4lb).
Representatives of all three orders of amphibians - caecilians, salamanders, and frogs and toads - reside in Costa Rica. Due to environmental degradation and the sensitive nature of amphibians to pollution, Costa Rica has seen declines and even extinctions in amphibian populations. Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is a critical habitat for certain species of the order Anura. However, forty percent of the members of this order that reside in this reserve are estimated to have gone extinct since 1987. This equals twenty species of frogs and toads.[16]
The golden toad, an amphibian once endemic to Costa Rica, is now extinct.
The highland-dwelling golden toad, Bufo periglenes, has not been witnessed in its highly restricted habitat of the central mountain ranges of Costa Rica since 1989. Within one year, the number of juveniles counted at their most prevalent breeding site declined from over 1,500 individuals to only one. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) declared the golden toad endangered, but it is likely extinct due to the lack of sightings since over two decades ago. Suspected causes for the toads probable extinction include a combination of intense El Nino weather patterns which resulted in a drought, increased pollution added to the environment, climate change, and an invasive fungal species, Chiriqui harlequin.[16]
Amphibians in Costa Rica have acquired many adaptations for survival. Some frog species, especially those of the poison dart frogs, have learned to lay eggs in water devoid of predatory fish. For some species this means laying eggs in small collections of water in the leaf litter, then transporting the eggs to bromeliads. Other species have adapted the ability of direct development. This means that the frog develops completely inside the egg without transitioning to the tadpole phase. This decreases vulnerable exposure to predators and the frog emerges from its egg as a froglet, much better equipped to protect itself.[17]
Approximately 225 types of reptiles are found in Costa Rica. This includes over 70 species of lizards, mostly small, forest-dwelling anoles. Large lizards such as the striped basilisk, black iguana, and green iguana are probably the country's most regularly encountered reptiles. Snakes number about 120 species in the country, including 5 powerful boas and a wide diversity of harmless colubrids.
There are about 20 venomous snakes, including colorful coral snakes and various vipers such as the common eyelash viper and two formidable, large bushmasters. The venomous snakes of Costa Rica are often observed without issue if given a respectful distance.
Among turtles, five of the world's seven species of sea turtles nest on the nation's beaches. Two crocodilians, the widespread spectacled caiman and the large, sometimes dangerous American crocodile are found in Costa Rica. The country's reptiles range in size from the delicate 15cm (6in) Hallowell's centipede snake of the genus Tantilla to the hulking leatherback turtle, at 500kg (1100lb) and 150cm (60in).
Costa Rica is home to nearly 250 species of mammal. Medium-sized forest-dwelling mammals are often the most appreciated mammalian fauna of the country. These include four species of monkeys such as the frantic white-headed capuchin and noisy mantled howlers; two species of sloths; the opportunistic white-nosed coati; and the fierce predator, the tayra.
Bats comprise more than half of the mammal species in the country, unusually outnumbering rodents twice over. Bats are adapted to various foraging methods and foods; including nectar, fish, insects and parasitized blood, as the case with the infamous vampire bats. Prominent bats include the tiny, communal roostingHonduran white bat and the huge, predatory spectral bat, the largest New World bat. Large fauna, such as tapir, jaguar, and deer are rarely encountered, being both elusive and tied to now-fragmented undisturbed habitats. Costa Rican mammals range in size from the 3-gram thumbless bat of the family Furipteridae to the 250kg (550lb) Baird's tapir.
Anteaters are common in lowland and middle elevation throughout Costa Rica. The most commonly seen of Costa Rica's three anteaters species is the northern tamandua. The giant anteater is huge and endangered. The other anteater is the silky anteater.
Most big cats in Costa Rica are nocturnal or hide in trees in the rainforest like the margay. The most likely place to find a big cat is in the Simon Bolivar Zoo in San José, Costa Rica where there is a selection of all the native big cats along with other animals. Ocelots usually hunt on the ground at night and rarely climb trees. An ocelot's diet consists of birds, monkeys, rats, and other small animals. The little spotted cat is the smallest wild cat and does not grow bigger than a house cat. They live in cloud forests up to 3200m.
The jaguar is the largest wild cat in Costa Rica and can grow up to 2m. They are very rare in Costa Rica and their numbers continue to decline drastically. The jaguarundi looks like a cross between a weasel and a cat. It is plain grey with a sleek body, hunts day and night, and has adapted best to human changes. The margay spends most of its life in trees. The puma is the second largest cat in Central America and its fur is brown and unspotted.
941 bird species have been recorded in Costa Rica (including Cocos Island), more than all of the United States and Canada combined. More than 600 of the Costa Rican species are permanent residents, and upwards of 200 are migrants, spending portions of the year outside of the country, usually in North America. Seven of the Costa Rican species are considered endemic, and 19 are globally threatened. Costa Rica's birds range in size from the scintillant hummingbird, at 2.2 grams and 6cm (2.4in), to the huge jabiru, at 6.5kg (14.3lb) and 150cm (60in) (the American white pelican is heavier, but is an accidental species).
Scarlet macaws are a common species of Costa Rica. Unlike many bird species, macaws form a monogamous breeding pair and mate for life. Both males and females help care for young and raise chicks for up to two years before they fledge. Threats to the macaw include their popularity in the pet trade. One individual can be sold for up to one thousand dollars.[18]
The resplendent quetzal, a trogon with a stunning physical appearance, can also be found in parts of Costa Rica. The bird's long grey and black tail feathers can stretch up to a meter long and are its defining feature. Resplendent quetzals live in cloud forests and are most active in the canopy. They can be found in several of Costa Rica's parks and reserves, including the Monteverde Cloud Forest, Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve, Braulio Carrillo National Park, Poas Volcano National Park, Chirripo National Park, and the Juan Castro Blanco National Park. Resplendent quetzals eat fruit, insects, small frogs, lizards, and snails and have distinctive echoing calls. Unfortunately, the bird is endangered because its cloud forest habitat has been widely destroyed across Central America.[19]
The mangrove hummingbird is endemic to Costa Rica and specializes in feeding from the tea mangrove plant with its uniquely shaped beak.
Hummingbird species demonstrate adaptation with bill shape and size. Certain species have specialized bills that allow them to feed from the flowers of certain species of plants. The relationship between the hummingbird and plant is mutualistic because the hummingbird transfers pollen between plant individuals in exchange for nectar. Because different species of hummingbirds are adapted to specific plants, [pollination] of the right plants with the right pollen is ensured.[18] The mangrove hummingbird is endemic to Costa Rica and specializes in feeding from the tea mangrove plant.[5][20]
Costa Rican officials have explored the possibility of shutting down their national zoos in an effort to demonstrate a more advanced appreciation for the wildlife in their country.[21]
Costa Rica is located on the Central American Isthmus, surrounding the point 10° north of the equator and 84° west of the prime meridian. It has 212 km of Caribbean Sea coastline and 1,016 on the North Pacific Ocean.
Eungella National Park is a protected area in Queensland, Australia. It is on the Clarke Range at the end of the Pioneer Valley 80 km west of Mackay, and 858 km northwest of Brisbane. Eungella is noted for the national park which surrounds it. It is considered to be the longest continual stretch of sub-tropical rainforest in Australia. The original inhabitants are the Wirri people. The park is covered by dense rainforest and is known for its platypuses.
Cerro Chirripó is the highest mountain in Costa Rica, with an elevation of 3,821 meters. It is part of the Cordillera de Talamanca, and the range's highest point. It is located in Chirripó National Park and is noted for its ecological wealth. The mountain was named "Chirripo", meaning "land of eternal waters", by indigenous Costa Ricans because there are many lakes and streams around the mountain. The high peaks in Chirripó National Park and La Amistad International Park host important areas of Talamancan montane forest and Costa Rican Páramo with high endemism and extremely high biodiversity. The peaks of these mountains constitute sky islands for many species of plants and animals. Snow has not fallen on the peak in the past 100 years or so, according to the University of Costa Rica, but hail is sometimes reported.
The resplendent quetzal is a small bird found in Central America and southern Mexico that lives in tropical forests, particularly montane cloud forests. They are part of the family Trogonidae and have two recognized subspecies, P. m. mocinno and P. m. costaricensis. Like other quetzals, the resplendent is mostly omnivorous; its diet mainly consists of fruits of plants in the laurel family, Lauraceae, but it occasionally also preys on insects, lizards, frogs and snails.
Corcovado National Park is a National Park on the Osa Peninsula, in Osa Canton, located on the southwestern regions of Costa Rica, which is a part of the Osa Conservation Area. Corcovado National Park was established on October 24, 1975 and occupies an area of 424 square kilometres (164 sq mi). It is currently the largest park in Costa Rica and extends over about a third of the Osa Peninsula.
Maquenque Wildlife Refuge, is a protected area in Costa Rica, managed under the Arenal Huetar Norte Conservation Area, it was created in 2005 by decree 32405-MINAE.
Guanacaste Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by the Sistema Nacional de Areas de Conservacion (SINAC) of Costa Rica for 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.
Piedras Blancas National Park is a national park part of the Osa Conservation Area. It is found in the Puntarenas Province of southern Costa Rica near the town of La Gamba. It protects rainforests and beaches near the Golfo Dulce on the Pacific Coast. It used to operate as part of the Corcovado National Park called the Esquinas Sector from 1991 before becoming a separate park in 1999. Until the mid-1990s, much of the forest in the park was severely endangered by logging.
Xeko is an out-of-print collectible card game revolving around endangered species. It was launched on Earthday 2006. It won the Creative Child Magazine 2006 Toy of the Year Award and the National Parenting Center's Seal of Approval in its first year. Four "Mission" sets have been released. Mission: Costa Rica and Mission: Madagascar, based on biodiversity hotspots were released first. Mission: Indonesia, was released in 2007, with the final release, Mission: China, was released July 19, 2008. A total of thirty more missions were planned but never developed.
The Talamancan montane forests ecoregion, in the tropical moist broadleaf forest biome, are in montane Costa Rica and western Panama in Central America.
The wildlife of Ghana is composed of its biodiversity of fungi, flora and fauna.
The wildlife of Liberia consists of the flora and fauna of the Republic of Liberia. This West African nation has a long Atlantic coastline and a range of habitat types, with a corresponding diversity of plants and animals. Liberia is considered a biodiversity hotspot and has more intact forests characteristic of the Upper Guinea Massif than do neighbouring countries. There are 2000 species of vascular plants, approximately 140 species of mammals, and over 600 species of birds.
Hyalinobatrachium colymbiphyllum, also called the bare-hearted glass frog, plantation glass frog and the cricket glass frog, is a species of frog in the family Centrolenidae that is found in moist forests, often near streams, in countries in Central America and South America. They are small, green frogs with many similarities to other glass frogs, however, they have the most transparent undersides of any glass frogs. Their transparent undersides make them ideal bio-indicators for how global warming and other threats are affecting the animals in the forests.
The Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is a Costa Rican reserve located along the Cordillera de Tilarán within the Puntarenas and Alajuela provinces. Named after the nearby town of Monteverde and founded in 1972, the Reserve consists of over 10,500 hectares of cloud forest. It draws roughly 70,000 visitors a year. The reserve consists of 6 ecological zones, 90% of which are virgin forest. A high biodiversity area, consisting of over 2,500 plant species, 100 species of mammals, 400 bird species, 120 reptilian and amphibian species, and thousands of insects, has drawn both scientists and tourists alike.
The La Amistad International Park, or in Spanish Parque Internacional La Amistad, formerly the La Amistad National Park, is a transboundary protected area in Latin America, management of which is shared between Costa Rica and Panama, following a recommendation by UNESCO after the park's inclusion in the World Heritage Site list in 1983. The park and surrounding biosphere reserve is one of the most outstanding conservation areas in Central America, preserving a major tract of tropical forest wilderness. It is world-renowned for its extraordinary biodiversity and endemism.
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 Monteverde Theme Park, previously known as Frog Pond Ranarium, located in Santa Elena, north of Monteverde, Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica, is a frog pond turned animal theme park that houses a butterfly farm with approximately 30 live butterfly species and other insects and over 25 species of frogs and other amphibians from around the country in a climate controlled habitat.
The Chocó–Darién moist forests (NT0115) is a largely forested, tropical ecoregion of northwestern South America and southern Central America. The ecoregion extends from the eastern Panamanian province of Darién and the indigenous region of Guna Yala to almost the entirety of Colombia's Pacific coast, including the departments of Cauca, Chocó, Nariño and Valle del Cauca.
Although the conservation movement developed in Europe in the 18th century, Costa Rica as a country has been heralded its champion in the current times. Costa Rica hosts an astonishing number of species, given its size, having more animal and plant species than the US and Canada combined hosting over 500,000 species of plants and animals. Despite this, Costa Rica is only 250 miles long and 150 miles wide. A widely accepted theory for the origin of this unusual density of species is the free mixing of species from both North and South America occurring on this "inter-oceanic" and "inter-continental" landscape. Preserving the natural environment of this fragile landscape, therefore, has drawn the attention of many international scholars and scientists.
The Children's Eternal Rainforest is a private land trust and preserve in Costa Rica. The 23,000-hectare (57,000-acre) preserve is run by the non-profit Monteverde Conservation League.
↑ (in Spanish) Barrientos Z. (2003). "Lista de especies de moluscos terrestres (Archaeogastropoda, Mesogastropoda, Archaeopulmonata, Stylommatophora, Soleolifera) informadas para Costa Rica". Revista de Biología Tropical. 51 (Suppl. 3): 293-304. PDFArchived 2012-02-28 at the Wayback Machine
1 2 Bermingham, Adrienne. "Birds". Canisius College Ambassadors for Conservation. Institute for the Study of Human-animal Relations.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
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