The Costa Rica Rainforest

Costa Rica is an amazing tropical country with lush vegetation and vivid green forests. At least 20% of the Costa Rica belongs to a large system of national parks, so the country’s flora enjoys the protection of the State. The Costa Rica Rainforest covers 9,000 species of tall trees and a minimum of 800 species of ferns. Many more species are found all over the country, with some species limited to a particular area or a specific ecosystem.

A Costa Rica vacation will not be complete without visiting the costa rica rainforest and looking at the majestic trees reaching up to the sky. You can ask about a rainforest trip if you are staying in Hotel Costa Rica, or The Costa Rican Condo found in San Jose. From San Jose, you can arrange for a trip to a Costa Rican national park.

There are forest areas which are considered tropical and dry containing many plants and short stocky trees growing less than 45 feet high. There are lots of smaller trees and shrubs with prickly spines growing under these canopies. The Costa Rican forest can be very beautiful from November to March when the poro trees and meadow oaks come out with their beautiful flower display. The dry forests contain more endangered species than the tropical rain forests because they are in the Northern region of Costa Rica and that area is subject to heavy deforestation.

There are many rainforests that are more popular than the dry forests in Costa Rica. Rainforests are hosts to an abundant variety of living things. The flora and fauna thrive because of the rapid decomposition and growth in this particular ecosystem. Rainforest trees can grow very tall at 100 feet tall competing for sunlight’s life giving rays.

Underneath the giant trees are thousands of smaller trees of different species. There is the prehistoric fern-tree that is indigenous to Costa Rica as well as vines, shrubs and many bromeliads. The light gets blocked by the gigantic limbs of the higher trees, so the smaller trees and other species learn to adapt. The canopy trees compete for space for the sun’s rays, the vines cling to trees to work their way up and the bromeliads open their cups for holding rainwater and catching decaying matter for food. The diverse ecosystem of Costa Rica boasts of being host to more than half of all known living things on Earth. It is said that the flora found in all of Europe is equivalent to that found in Costa Rica.

Twelve ecosystems have been identified in Costa Rica. Another area of interest is the tidal-mangrove swamps of the country. Mangrove swamps are very rich in nutrient, making them host to a variety of life. Botanists have identified five species of mangroves in Costa Rica which are classified as halophytes or plants that can survive in salty environments. Mangroves are found between the land and the oceans. They greatly benefit from the river deposits in the ocean’s coastline which carry silt and nutrient rich volcanic ash.

From the Hotel Costa Rica, ask your guide to take you surfing where there is an abundance of mangroves along the way. Your Costa Rican vacation will not be complete without these exhilarating experiences.

There is a proliferation of algae and other living organisms in these mangroves, which are the food of the small marine organisms. It constitutes a complex food chain where smaller organisms become the food of the larger species. It all begins with the richness of the mangroves making them essential for the preservation of Costa Rica’s flora and fauna.