Diverse Habitats = Diverse Wildlife
Costa Rica has a complex variety of ecosystems packed into a small and easily accessible country.
Why does Costa Rica have such diversity? The differences in rainfall, elevation, geography and temperature create an amazing variety of habitats. Simply put it’s all about location, location, location!
First of all, Costa Rica is located between two huge continents. North and South America were separate until about 3 million years ago when the Cocos plate collided from the west, creating a land bridge we know as Costa Rica. Flora and fauna from each of the continents met, and now Costa Rica accounts for the southern most range of many North American species, and the northern most range of many South American flora and fauna.
It’s a narrow country between two oceans, with several mountain ranges and a number of volcanoes between. The ranges trap or alter the flow of the prevailing trade northeast trade winds which bring moist air from the Caribbean. The northern ranges are lower, the southern ranges much higher, and each set of ranges alters the flow of moist Caribbean air in different ways. In the north the mountains create a typical barrier with wet tropical forest on the east side and dry tropical forest on the west side, with cloud forest dotting the mountains in between. The much higher southern ranges divert the airflow to curl back like a giant eddy in a river, bringing in moist air from the Pacific Ocean and creating the southern pacific wet tropical forests as well as cloud forest at altitude. The southern ranges are so high that they also create areas of stunted tree growth at altitude called paramo with it’s own unique flora and fauna.
Thus Costa Rica can be divided into roughly four eco-zones, Caribbean lowland wet tropical forest, Highlands with cloud forest and paramo, Dry tropical forest in the north Pacific, and southern Pacific Wet tropical forest.
The geographic barrier of the continental divide has resulted in a number of species pairs, very similar but distinct species on either side of the divide like Cherrie's and Passerini's tanagers, and Collared and Fiery-billed Aracaris.
Cloud forest and tropical wet forest are two of the world's most diverse ecosystems. Subtle changes in moisture and temperature create unique habitats in which a high percentage of endemic species have developed. On local scale, some small creeks in the Monteverde cloud forest have endemic orchids found no where else in the world!
Costa Rica has migrant birds from North America like Yellow Warblers, thrushes and shore birds as well as South American migrants like the Southern Lapwing. There are also elevational migrants like manakins and trogons including the Resplendent Quetzal which vary their elevation during the year following ripening fruits.
Some birds will be familiar to North American birders, like A Belted Kingfisher or a Yellow Warbler, but often whole families will be new like toucans, wood creepers, trogons. Most birders have seen at least one species of hummingbird, but Costa Rica has 50 species!
Our Northern Birding Tour hits the Caribbean lowland, cloud forest and northern dry tropical forest. Our Southern Birding Tour hits cloud forest, dry tropical forest and Pacific wet tropical forest. Our 10 day Birding Tour gives us a taste of all four eco-zones as well as paramo!
Why does Costa Rica have such diversity? The differences in rainfall, elevation, geography and temperature create an amazing variety of habitats. Simply put it’s all about location, location, location!
First of all, Costa Rica is located between two huge continents. North and South America were separate until about 3 million years ago when the Cocos plate collided from the west, creating a land bridge we know as Costa Rica. Flora and fauna from each of the continents met, and now Costa Rica accounts for the southern most range of many North American species, and the northern most range of many South American flora and fauna.
It’s a narrow country between two oceans, with several mountain ranges and a number of volcanoes between. The ranges trap or alter the flow of the prevailing trade northeast trade winds which bring moist air from the Caribbean. The northern ranges are lower, the southern ranges much higher, and each set of ranges alters the flow of moist Caribbean air in different ways. In the north the mountains create a typical barrier with wet tropical forest on the east side and dry tropical forest on the west side, with cloud forest dotting the mountains in between. The much higher southern ranges divert the airflow to curl back like a giant eddy in a river, bringing in moist air from the Pacific Ocean and creating the southern pacific wet tropical forests as well as cloud forest at altitude. The southern ranges are so high that they also create areas of stunted tree growth at altitude called paramo with it’s own unique flora and fauna.
Thus Costa Rica can be divided into roughly four eco-zones, Caribbean lowland wet tropical forest, Highlands with cloud forest and paramo, Dry tropical forest in the north Pacific, and southern Pacific Wet tropical forest.
The geographic barrier of the continental divide has resulted in a number of species pairs, very similar but distinct species on either side of the divide like Cherrie's and Passerini's tanagers, and Collared and Fiery-billed Aracaris.
Cloud forest and tropical wet forest are two of the world's most diverse ecosystems. Subtle changes in moisture and temperature create unique habitats in which a high percentage of endemic species have developed. On local scale, some small creeks in the Monteverde cloud forest have endemic orchids found no where else in the world!
Costa Rica has migrant birds from North America like Yellow Warblers, thrushes and shore birds as well as South American migrants like the Southern Lapwing. There are also elevational migrants like manakins and trogons including the Resplendent Quetzal which vary their elevation during the year following ripening fruits.
Some birds will be familiar to North American birders, like A Belted Kingfisher or a Yellow Warbler, but often whole families will be new like toucans, wood creepers, trogons. Most birders have seen at least one species of hummingbird, but Costa Rica has 50 species!
Our Northern Birding Tour hits the Caribbean lowland, cloud forest and northern dry tropical forest. Our Southern Birding Tour hits cloud forest, dry tropical forest and Pacific wet tropical forest. Our 10 day Birding Tour gives us a taste of all four eco-zones as well as paramo!
The left diagram shows the effects of the lower mountain ranges in the north. The right diagram shows the rotor created on the west side of the southern pacific from the much higher mountain range to the south, which brings in moist air from the pacific. This results in a rain shadow and dry tropical forest in the north and increased rain and wet tropical forest in the south.
Puma tracks at Corcovado National Park
Playa Dominicalito