Without a doubt, Costa Rica is a beautiful, spectacular country and a premier tourist destination. Most people, though, have never heard of its natural gem, Corcovado National Park. This teeny park covers only 100,000 acres (about 42,000 hectares) of the Osa Peninsula, situated along the south Pacific coast of Costa Rica, and protects eight unique habitats. It is unlike almost anywhere else on the planet and the largest remaining primary forest in Central America.
In 1502, Christopher Columbus explored the Americas along the Caribbean from Mexico south to a land he called Costa Rica, the rich coast (you may have heard the name!). Spectacular, verdant tropical forests covered the lands from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Wildlife was incredibly abundant back then. Indeed, there were so many sea turtles that mariners, lost in the fog, relied upon the sounds of tens of thousands of them paddling towards nesting beaches to find land. The passing of five centuries has been unkind to both the forests and animals and today most of the primary forests from Mexico to South America have been cut down or burned. Fortunately, Costa Rica showed good sense and preserved Corcovado.
Columbus never saw Corcovado. The first Western explorer to see it was Sir Frances Drake (remember him? The sea captain who destroyed the Spanish Armada in 1588 and saved England from Spain) who landed just north of the Osa Peninsula in a beautiful place now named after him: Drake Bay. The bay serves as the gateway to Corcovado.
Corcovado is very tiny (not small, tiny), less than 160 square miles in size. That is about 20 miles long and 8 miles deep. Tiny. Even so, it is incredible. Described as 'the most biologically intense place' on earth by National Georgraphic, it is largely unspoiled and the single largest surviving rain forest situated on the Pacific Coast from Mexico to South America. The mangroves and other biodiverse areas of Corcovado protect an incredible array of plants and animals. There are 139 species of mammals, including the mighty jaguar, puma, ocelot, and three other kinds of wild cats. You will also find 400 different species of birds (the entire continent of Europe has 1000 species and the continental U.S. has 900) living in an area less than half the size of New York City! The largest remaining Central America population of scarlet macasws live here, along with 116 kinds of amphibians and reptiles. 'Intense" is exactly right: 10% of all the different kinds of mammals in the whole of the Americas are found here---in a park less than 1/20th the size of Yellowstone National Park.
If you like frogs (and who does not?) then visiting this national park will be a rare treat. There are species of poison-arrow, glass, and re-eyed tree frogs which make this park their home. It is one of just a couple of places in Costa Rica to find squirrel monkeys, and visitors are able to watch fishing bats fish the rivers of the reserve at night. At one time you could also find the harpy eagle in Corcovado, however, it has not been see for a number of years and is believed to be extinct in the area.
The beaches of the Osa Peninsula often appear deserted but during nesting season, thousands of green sea turtles, magnificent rare leatherbacks (up to 1,200 pounds), hawksbills and pacific ridleys come ashore to nest. Tapirs are very common and provide a valuable food source for the crocodiles and jaguars inhabiting the park. Jaguars are the largest cat in the Western Hemisphere and, though rare, its paw prints or the animal itself is regularly sighted along the muddy trails that surround the Corcovado Lagoon.
The forests of Corcovado are as impressive as the rainforests of the Amazon, Indonesia, and Malaysia. This area receives as much as 400 cm or rain annually and torrential rains fall during the April to December months. It is best for visitors to plan a trip to Corcovado in the dry months which are January to April.
About the Author:
Victor C. Krumm writes from sunny Costa Rica in his beautiful Costa Rica Vacations website. Discover more about endangered Sea Turtles. You are welcome to reprint this article - but get your own unique content version here.
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