Corcovado National Park
An area of 41,788 hectares of tropical rain forest is protected in Corcovado National Park. One of the most interesting parks in Costa Rica, it is considered to be the most species-rich area in Central America. It protects animals that are critically endangered and absent in the rest of the country including jaguars, American crocodiles, scarlet macaws, caiman and Baird’s tapirs. So as you can imagine this is a naturalist’s paradise.
This morning we had a great time in this place; we saw agoutis, mantled howler monkeys, white-faced capuchin monkeys, scarlet macaws, and white hawk in a beautiful tropical humid forest full of big trees, woody vines and plants.
Here in the picture we see a passion flower (Passiflora vitifolia). Truly a beautiful flower designed to be pollinated by hummingbirds that are attracted to the flower by the red color of the flower. This passion vine is also well used by butterflies of the Heliconius family that use the plant as a host for its larvae. As a defense the plant has extrafloral nectar glands. The nectarines protect the plant by attracting predaceous insects that eat herbivorous insects.
An area of 41,788 hectares of tropical rain forest is protected in Corcovado National Park. One of the most interesting parks in Costa Rica, it is considered to be the most species-rich area in Central America. It protects animals that are critically endangered and absent in the rest of the country including jaguars, American crocodiles, scarlet macaws, caiman and Baird’s tapirs. So as you can imagine this is a naturalist’s paradise.
This morning we had a great time in this place; we saw agoutis, mantled howler monkeys, white-faced capuchin monkeys, scarlet macaws, and white hawk in a beautiful tropical humid forest full of big trees, woody vines and plants.
Here in the picture we see a passion flower (Passiflora vitifolia). Truly a beautiful flower designed to be pollinated by hummingbirds that are attracted to the flower by the red color of the flower. This passion vine is also well used by butterflies of the Heliconius family that use the plant as a host for its larvae. As a defense the plant has extrafloral nectar glands. The nectarines protect the plant by attracting predaceous insects that eat herbivorous insects.
