Flowering Desert Plants

Around 25% of Costa Rica is мейд up of National Parks and protected nature areas making it an absolute treasure trove of rare wildlife and fantastic flora. Indeed although the island makes up only 0.25% of the world's landmass it contains 5% of the world's biodiversity.

As you'd imagine then, eco-tourism thrives here and if you consider yourself a serious wildlife or nature enthusiast you simply must not miss out on Costa Rica holidays.

National Parks:

With such an extensive range of National Parks in Costa Rica it would take time to describe each one in detail and what it can offer. To give you a taster we've focussed on just one of the national parks which we'll describe and go into more detail below.

Others not to be missed include the Parque Nacional Manuel Antonio, Parque Internacional La Amistad and the Parque Nacional Marino Las Baulas de Guanacaste, to name just a few. All of them are most definitely worth checking out during eco-friendly Costa Rica holidays for an encounter with nature that you will never forget.

Wildlife in Parque Nacional Corcovado:

The Parque Nacional Corcovado has received international acclaim from ecologists for its biodiversity. Here you'll find Costa Rica's largest population of Scarlet Macaws, a majestic red bird with a very distinctive call. You'll also find the Baird's Tapir, a kind of river rhinoceros, very rare, but found a lot in this national park. The part is home to the Harpy Eagle and in its waters the Spectacled Caiman, the Bull Shark and the American Crocodile. All four Costa Rican species of monkey live here, including the endangered Central American monkey found only in Costa Rica and a small part of Panama. You'll also see anteaters, sloths, poisoned dart frogs and a variety of big cats.

Flora:

There are at least 13 different types of vegetation in this national park which come together to produce a wide range of different trees and flowers. Amongst the 500 different species of trees is the purple heart tree, notable because of its purple tinged wood. Some of the tallest trees you'll ever see are the Ceiba or Kapok trees which can climb to a height of 230 feet. Interestingly, researchers have seen evidence of animals using some of the parks' wide range of flowers and plants for medicinal purposes. If you take a guided tour in your to see these parks be sure to ask your guide about this and they can point out some of the more useful plants.

============ Susan Crown:

Having worked in the tourism industry for over five years, before and after graduating from university in London, Susan Crown brings a refreshing approach to the latest goings-on in the worldwide travel sector. Originally born in Cuba, from an early age due to her father's job as a representative of Cuba's national flag carrier, Susan travelled extensively and lived in various parts of the world, thus being able to draw from her own experiences and take inspiration from the exotic destinations she has visited over the years.

At present she is a travel news editor at a London-based UK tour operator specialising in Cuba holidays and other exotic destinations in the Caribbean, Africa and the Indian Ocean.