The fauna of Costa Rica is as diverse as its flora. Nevertheless do not expect wild animals to show up everywhere.
The dense vegetation of the tropical rain forests offer protection and food and are therefore a home for several animal-species.
Well camouflaged in the almost impenetrable verdant of the most complex ecological system of the earth, many animals can hardly be seen. But with a little patience and well trained eyes one can catch sight of numerous animals for sure, above all the many colorful birds, monkeys and other mammals as well as different reptiles and amphibians.
Here is a small selection of the different animal species in Costa Rica:
Mammals
Over 200 species of mammals can be found in Costa Rica, most of them -50% to be accurate, are bats. Monkeys can be seen frequently.
Monkeys
In Costa Rica four different species of monkeys reside. These belong to the group of the broad noses and to the family of the capuchin-likes. They live as day-active tree inhabitants in pairs or groups of 10 to 40 animals.
Howler monkey
Spider monkey
White-faced Capuchin
Squirrel monkey
Wild cats
Watching wild cats in nature, ranks is an extremely rare event, since they are rather shy and become active usually only at night. The six different occurring species live very withdrawn in different parts of the country. For the preservation of these graceful animals, different projects have been started, for example the ocelot protection program in Punto Uva in southern Costa Rica.
Felis tigrina
Jaguar
Jaguarundi
Puma
Margay
Ocelot
Canidae (dogs)
Coyote
Gray fox
Racoons
In Costa Rica there are 6 representatives of this family, in which 16 species are found in the Americas.
Racoon
Crab-eating racoon
Coati
Bassaricyon gabbii
Bassaricyon sumichrasti
Potos flavus
Mustelids
Tayra
Skunk
Rodentia
Hispid cotton rat
Red-tailed squirrel
Pygmy squirrel
Spiny pocket mouse
Paca
Agouti
Bats
Bats have a very broad nutrition spectrum: Most species are insectivors or feed from fruits or nectar or even fish.
Additionally there are three species, which feed from the blood of vertebrate animals, the famous "Vampires". Most of the100 in Costa Rica living bat-species are quite small. Bats are night-active animals.
Marsupials
There are marsupials not only in Australia, but also on the American continent. The night-active animals are skilled climbers and inhabit therefore also the tree regions in the Costa Rican forests.
Marsupial rats
Opossum
Sloths
Two-toed sloth
Three-toed sloth
Armadillos
Nine-banded Armadillo
Anteater
Banded anteater
Giant anteater
Little silky anteater
Hoofed animals
Red brocket deer
White-tailed deer
Baird´s tapir
Collared peccary
Marine mammals
Pilot whale
Common dolphin
Spinner dolphin
Manatee
Birds
Costa Rica is despite its small size, is a true bird paradise. With all its various varieties, it offers home and place of refuge to approximately 850 spieces of birds.
Hawks
Harpy eagle
Ornate hawk-eagle
Black-and-White Hawk-eagle
White hawk
Black-collared hawk
Gray hawk
Fish-hawk
Osprey
Falcons
Peregrine Falcon
Carancho
Laughing Falcon
Vultures
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
King Vulture
Owls
Spectacled Owl
Crested Owl
Great Horned Owl
Singing birds
With world-wide around the 4,000 species in 35 families, the singing birds represent the largest subordination. The sparrow birds, which indicates altogether approximately 5,000 different species.
Scarlet-rumped Tanager
Blue-Gray Tanager
Scarlet Tanager
Indigo Bunting
Trogons
Resplendent Quetzal
Collared Trogon
Violaceous Trogon
Orange-bellied Trogon
Slaty-tailed Trogon
Hummingbirds
The 330 species of hummingbirds comprise the second largest, and undoubtedly the bestknown, strictly New World avian family. In Costa Rica 52 hummingbird-species can be found. The "jewels of the rain forest" are notable for their small size, 2 ¼ -8" and 2 to 20g, iridescent colors, manner of flight, which relates to their spezialisation for nectar feeding. Hummingbirds are important pollinators, they take the place of bees and pollinate a multitude of flowers. Hummingbird flight involves rapid wingbeats (200 per sec.) and a unique rotarion of the entire wing enables these small birds to fly in any direction or even hovering in place - both are essential for extracting nectar from the mostly red, purple and/or yellow flowers. Floral tubes often correspond closely to the form of their chief pollinators bill.
Hummingbirds
Little Hermit
Violet Sabrewing
Crowned Woodnymph
Woodpeckers
Lineated Woodpecker
Pale-billed Woodpecker
Toucans
Keel-billed Toucan
Chestnut-mandibled Toucan
Collared Aracari
Fiery-billed Aracari
Parrots
With some 332 living species, parrots can be found almost everywhere in the tropics, some extend into the subtropics and a few even to the more temperate regions.
Scarlet Macaw
Great Green Macaw
Red-lored Parrot
White-crowned Parrot
Barred Parakeet
Cuckoos
Black-billed Cuckoo
Cocos Cuckoo
Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo
Kingfishers
Ringed Kingfisher
Green Kingfisher
Herons
Great Blue Heron
Boat-billed Heron
Tricolored Heron
Ibises
White Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Roseate Spoonbill
Storks
Wood Stork
Jabiru
Large Waterbirds
American White Pelican
Brown Pelican
Anhinga
Olivaceous Cormorant
Marsh and Stream Birds
Green-backed Heron
Least Bittern
Spotted Rail
Purple Gallinule
Wattled Jacana
Reptiles
Crocodiles
Crocodile
Caiman
Snakes
135 species, only 18 poisonous, live in Costa Rica.
Boa Constrictor
Tropical Rattlesnake
Terciopelo
Eyelash Viper
Coral Snake
Sea Turtles
Leatherback Turtle
Hawksbill Turtle
Loggerhead Turtle
Ridley Turtle
Green Turtle
Saurians
Green Iguana
Black Iguana
Lizards
Jesus Christ Lizard
Amphibians
160 species, that are 8% of the worldwide ocurring amphibians, live in Costa Rica.
Frogs
Frogs need generally live in moist areas. In Costa Rica they live well protected mostly in tree holes and bromeliads. Many species are brightly colored, which in many cases indicates they are poisonous.
Gaudy Leaf Frog
Glass Frog
Poison Dart Frogs
Boulenger´s Hyla
Toads
Giant Toad
Mexican Burrowing Toad
Insects and Spiders
About 750.000 insect-species are currently known to live in Costa Rica, although figures over 1 million are estimated. Today the number of insect-species is about 2/3 of the worldwide known animal species. Spiders are represented by approximately 20.000 species.
Butterflies
Costa Rica houses about 1.400 butterfly-species, that is about 10% of the worldwide distributed species.
Morpho
Monarch
Heliconius butterflies
Hymenopteras
Extreme diversity of species within the insect family include approx. 280,000 species among ants and with almost 10.000 species, in the family of bees, wasps, bumble-bees,...
Leaf-cutting Ant
Acacia-Ant
Arboreal Termite
Rhinoceros Beetle
Spiders
Golden Orb-Spider
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