[vc_row][vc_column width="2/3"][vc_column_text]Bottom line — keep your eyes open and be aware of your surroundings. The potentially deadly danger posed by both of these featured creatures comes from being in a human’s rightful place at the wrong time. Fer-de-lance...
Coatis in Costa Rica
[vc_row][vc_column width="1/2"][vc_column_text]Costa Rica is home to the largest species of coati, Nasua narica, known as the white-nosed coati. They are very fun to watch and are the clowns of the forest. These animals can grow to 120 cm long, their large, bushy tail...
Jaguar King of the Cats
[vc_row][vc_column width="1/2"][vc_column_text]Jaguars are the largest feline species in Costa Rica and the third-largest on the planet, next to lions and tigers. Average size varies by geographic location, with larger jaguars tending to live in habitats further...
Leatherbacks : A Close to Home Concern
The leatherback sea turtle is the largest of all surviving turtle species. It’s also the fourth heaviest reptile, with three species of crocodile weighing more. Leatherbacks are differentiated from other sea turtles by their lack of a bony shell. Instead, the top...
American Crocodile
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] American Costa Rica Crocodile: Visitors in Costa Rica can view the American crocodile at one of several prime spots, about 50 miles (85 km) west of San José, on the Tarcoles River. Here, they can be seen in abundance from the...
Elephant Beetle
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] The elephant beetle is an exceptionally large, herbivorous insect species. Most of its time is spent in trees, feeding on decaying wood, sap and fruit. As the elephant beetle name implies, these creatures are elephantine in size...
Oncilla: Costa Rica’s little spotted cat
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Costa Rica creature feature oncilla: Oncilla, often referred to as the little spotted cat, or in Costa Rica as the tigrillo. This Costa Rica cat is the smallest species of wildcat in this country. Living in the mountain forests at...
Tree Boas
Three species of tree boa are common throughout many areas of Costa Rica: garden, annulated and black-tailed. As their name indicates, all three types of tree boa are characterized by their arboreal existence. They are very efficient constrictors, preying on lizards...
Let’s Hear it For the Howler
[vc_row full_width="full_width"][vc_column][vc_column_text]Howler monkeys are the largest of the New World monkeys, comprising several distinct species throughout the tropics of Central and South America. The Ecuadorian mantled howler is the subspecies recognized in...
Bullet Ants: Pain You Don’t Want to Feel
The lesser giant hunting ant (Paraponera clavata), more commonly known as the bullet ant, is no stranger to Costa Rica. This insect species inhabits the wet neotropic ecozone, from Honduras in the north through Brazil in the south. It can grow to more than an inch in...
Jaguars Have Crucial Place in Ecosystem
Jaguars are the largest feline species in Costa Rica and the third-largest on the planet, next to lions and tigers. Average size varies by geographic location, with larger jaguars tending to live in habitats further south. Male jaguars are generally about 20 percent...