COSTA RICA CONSERVATION

                                      Conservation and Wildlife

            In Los Chiles, Costa Rica we boarded a boat for a ride down the Rio Frio. The river borders the 24,600-acre Cano Negro Wildlife Refuge, which sits in the migratory flyway of hundreds of thousands of birds. It is a birder’s delight.

            Moving down the river was a slow process as the tree lined banks were full of birds and monkeys. We saw white face and Howler Monkeys, including a couple of Howler babies.

            White face monkeys will eat anything, but Howlers are vegetarians and eat early in the day because they need sunlight to digest their food. Their scrotum is white and that is how they thermo-regulate their bodies.

            The boat driver got us close to a tree where we could see tiny tiny bats spread out on the tree trunk. They looked like part of the bark. They weren’t more than 2-3 inches long and they were lined up vertically 6-7 in a row. We saw several kinds of lizards. The river eventually opens up into a shallow lagoon.

            The beautiful macaws live high in the forest canopy so we did not see any that day, but we saw numerous other birds and the guide and driver knew them all. I heard toucans in the jungles in Panama and Belize, but could not see them as both times they were high in the canopy. However, it was in another preserve in Costa Rica that I was most excited to finally see toucans.

            I had read and our guide confirmed that Costa Rica is one of the most ecologically aware countries in the world. In fact one quarter (26%) of its land has been set aside as national park or preserve; 13% land is National Parkland, and an additional 13% of the land is private reserve abiding by government agreements. These nature and biological preserves protect a vast array of animals and their habitats, and insures the survival of over 850 species of birds, 205 species of mammals, 376 kinds of reptiles and amphibians, and more than 9000 species of flowering plants, including 1200 varieties of orchids.

            Until 1970 there was hardly a protected area in the country. The country’s conservation efforts are even more remarkable considering that it is not a wealthy country, having limited resources. During the first years of the country’s park systems, conservationists raced against rampant deforestation to protect as much of the nation’s wild lands as possible. Infrastructure is still lacking, and many of the areas can only be reached on foot, or horseback.

            Out hotel in Chachagua was located in the depths of a rain forest in a private preserve.  We crossed a waterfall and walked through lush vegetation to our single cabin. Looking out our windows we could see nothing but lushness. The cabin was cozy, and each night I was lulled asleep by the sounds of the waterfall.

            The lodge had a resident green macaw that was a little on the cantankerous side. Its mate died a couple of years before, and since they mate for life, more than likely she’d be alone for the rest of her life. She flew about at will, but often perched on the dining room rail, always watchful for fallen crumbs.

MONKEYS

                                             Entertaining Animals

         There are many species of monkeys, but I’m only going to relate experiences I’ve had with three of them  in Costa Rica.

        Costa Rica is home to four distinct species of monkey. The deep guttural sound of the howler or the rustling of leaves overhead is a telltale sign that monkeys are in the area.

        Capuchin monkeys , also called white face monkey, are native to the tropics, but not to Africa as movies sometime depict. They are agile, medium size and make good use of their long prehensile tail. They inhabit diverse habitats from the high altitude rain forests to the lowland mangroves. White face monkeys will eat anything

Howler monkeys are named for their distinct eerie call that can be heard as far as a mile away. They are large black animals that seem ferocious because of their physical appearance and their deep howls. It is believed that they mark their territory with their guttural sounds. The howler monkeys we saw in Tortuguero seemed much smaller than the howlers I’ve seen elsewhere in

the country. Only the males make the growling-grunting sound. In the presence of humans they are quite shy and stay higher up in the canopy. They are common and easy to spot in dry tropical forests. Howlers are vegetarians and eat early in the day because they need sunlight to digest their food. Their scrotum is white and that is how they thermo-regulate their bodies. On one trip to Costa Rica we were awakened early each morning by the howling monkeys that sounded like they were right outside our window!

Spider monkeys are long, slender and dark brown to black in color. They prefer the high canopy of primary forests. Although very adept with their prehensile tails they actually travel through the canopy hand over hand. They are often seen along the edges of Tortuguero’s jungle canals and that is where we saw them.

            Squirrel monkeys are the most endangered and rarest of Costa Rica’s monkeys. These small brown monkeys have dark eyes surrounded by large white rings, have white ears and chests, and long tails. Predominately fruit eaters, they  travel in large bands. So if you see one, you’ll see several.  We saw them at Manual Antonio Park where they entertained us for some time while they scampered down out of the trees onto the beach to see what they could snatch to eat. They were usually successful. Surprised tourists looked on watching the monkeys scamper off with a confiscated cracker.