Page 89 - SOUTH GUANACASTE TOURIST GUIDE

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Palo Verde National Park
60%
Wetlands
343
bird species, representing 37% of Costa Rica's total avifauna
This park is made up of lagoons and mangroves that drain into the Río Tempisque. It is a sanctuary for thousands of aquatic birds, both migratory and non-migratory, which is what led the park to be declared a Wetland of Importance under the Global Convention on Wetlands (RAMSAR).
Rainy season
Largest numbers of individuals: 250.000
Dry season
Offers the greatest visibility
Within the park is the 2.3-hectare Isla de
Pájaros (Bird Island), located just offshore
from the park. The island is incredibly important, since it is home to the country’s largest colony of the black-crowned night heron and is one of the most important waterfowl nesting islands in Central America. It is also the habitat of three species of endangered waterfowl:
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Dendrocygna bicolor
Common name: Fulvous Whistling-Duck
Photo: Laurens Alvarado Hidalgo
Aramus guarauna
Common name: Limpkin
Black-crowned night Heron
(Nycticorax nycticorax)
Jabiru
(Jabiru mycteria)
Roseate spoonbill (Platalea ajaja)
Fulvous whistling duck
(Dendrocygna bicolor)
Protected Areas: Palo Verde
Barra Honda National Park
Barra Honda is the only park in Costa Rica with a subterranean cave complex. You can observe various species of fauna; birds like the white-throated magpie-jay (Calocita formosa), white-tipped dove (Leptotila verreauxi) and scarlet macaw (Ara macao).
It is also possible to observe
coatis, raccoons, agoutis,
white-tailed deer and anteaters.
More information
From the middle of the rainy season to the beginning of the dry season
Parque Marino Baulas
Habitat of many aquatic birds. A significant attraction of the beaches here is the leatherback turtle nesting season. More information
Ostional National Wildlife Refuge
Protects the olive ridley turtle nesting sites, with up to 200,000 individuals arriving during the rainy season. Birds: scarlet macaws, great currasow, anhinga. More information here
Diriá National Park
A protected area with a significant value for conservation and ensuring a sustainable water supply. It offers great scenic beauty.
More information
Cipancí National Wildlife Refuge
Its main attractions include mangroves, estuaries, rivers, forests, scenic beauty and diverse flora and terrestrial and aquatic fauna.
More information here
Photo: Laurens Alvarado Hidalgo
al Biological Reserve
l forest, rich in insect species. There are an of bees and 60 species of nocturnal moths. irds have been observed, including the
mot (Eumomota superciliosa), the stub-tailed cancrominus), the olive sparrow (Arremonops
idow or elegant trogon (Trogon elegans), the
headed trogon (Trogon melanocephalus), as well
Crax rubra). In the southern sector of the reserve it is common to observe nowy egrets, herons, whistling ducks and others. More information here
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