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Costa Rica, 2006: Parque Nacional Corcovado |
(Click on any photo to open a larger version in a new window, or, go here for even more photos.) | ||
 Corcovado National Park |
A few miles from Drake Bay lies Corcovado National Park, one of Costa Rica's largest and most pristine natural habitats. Approximately 130,000 acres in size, Corcovado is home to about 140 species of mammals and 350 types of birds, as well as the largest tract of primary rain forest on the Pacific slope of Central America. We spent a day hiking around the park with an excellent guide who not only was able to spot critters we would have missed, but he also knew so much information about the plants and wildlife there. Our first hike took us through dense sea-level rainforest, paralleling the coastline. All around us were various types of colorful butterflies - apparently Costa Rica is known for them. High in the treetops we saw three-toed sloths (Bradypus variegatus) and three of the four species of monkey found in Corcovado - mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata), Central American spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi), and white-faced capuchin monkeys (Cebus capucinus). (The fourth species, red-backed squirrel monkeys (Samiri oerstedii), don't live in this area of the park.) Our guide also pointed out a small group of very cute tent-making bats (Uroderma bilobatum) sleeping under a palm frond. These bats partially chew through large leaves causing them to fold, thus creating a "tent" for them to shelter within. On the ground we saw white-nosed coatimundi (Nasua narica), and a trail of leaf-cutter ants (Atta cephalotes?) carrying pieces of leaf back to their nest. Curiously, smaller worker ants ride on the leaf pieces to watch for harmful insects or fungus that might inadvertantly be brought back to the colony. [Short movie of leaf-cutters, 4.5MB] Returning to the ranger station for lunch, we were lucky enough to see a flock of ten scarlet macaws (Ara macao) - five mated pairs all performing courtship behaviours. After lunch we headed west for about 45 minutes, away from the coast, and hiked to a waterfall. There was a nice swimming hole at the base of the waterfall, and we stayed there long enough to cool off. The walk back is quite pleasant when you're not hot & sweaty! |
 A trail through the jungle |
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 Sadly, we didn't see any crocs |
 Wonderful buttress-type roots | ||
 Tent-making bats at rest |
 Mother spider monkey grooms her baby |
 Acrobatic spider monkey |
 Mating scarlet macaws |
 Immature tiger heron |
 Basilisk lizard rests near the water |
 Waterfall at the end of the trail |
 Swimming hole next to the waterfall |
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