The Parrot Farm
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Manatees in Costa Rica
Apr 17, 2020
"...it has filled my heart with joy to read about recent sightings of the manatees in Limón..."
April 17th, 2020
Manatees in Costa Rica!
In times of COVID-19 it is mandatory to stay motivated and active, so I decided to start this new blog on my Tropical Pass website.
Not everything has to be bad these days, we have to learn to open our eyes, and marvel about the things happening out there… in nature!
Costa Rica, being a very small country, holds 6% of the world’s biodiversity, and finds itself among the top 25 countries in this matter! With more than 500.000 species, this country, that has been my home for almost 40 years now, keeps amazing me immensely.
So now, that we are all sitting at home and planes are on the ground and no tourists are to be seen, some animals are returning to their homes, they are taking over what has always been theirs! You have seen the eye-opening pictures from Venice and the clean waters with fish and dolphins… and in Costa Rica we are also enjoying this phenomenon! Recently a puma was seen in a residential area, wondering why there are no cars nor noise.
But todays blog is about the fascinating manatee, which was not seen for many years in Costa Rica and has now returned!
In 2014 the Caribbean manatee was declared a national symbol of Costa Rican marine fauna in order to encourage its conservation. Manatees can reach a length of three meters and weigh almost a ton. They are a family of placental mammals of the order Sirenia, commonly known as manatees or sea cows.
They are gentle herbivores that spend most of their time searching for and ingesting riparian plants and the shallow seabed. Manatees live in both sweet and salty waters, near the coasts of America and Africa. Its only predator is man.
In Costa Rica, these animals live in the brackish waters of Barra del Colorado (north of Tortuguero) and the mixed waters of Tortuguero, where they feed on plants that grow on the banks.
"...the Caribbean manatee was declared a national symbol of Costa Rican marine fauna..."
Although their habitat is in protected areas, manatees are not without threats. In fact, this species is in danger of extinction due to the agrochemicals carried by the rivers and the high traffic of boats through the channels, which hit them, causing injuries that make their mobility impossible and, therefore, their ability to search for food.
It has filled my heart with joy
to read about recent sightings of the manatees in Limón, due to the fact that no boats are in the Tortuguero water channels.
This big fat animal has always been one of my favorites! It is so peaceful to see them swim, as if nothing could interrupt their tranquility.
In these difficult times of quarantine, I like to think of the manatee, just swimming slowly and being happy, like my new role model… nothing can disturb my peace of mind.
So stay at home, feel the good vibe, don’t loose control! Grab a good book (maybe about the manatee?) and just relax!
La Carreta - The Typical Oxcart of Costa Rica Have you seen the colorful oxcarts in Costa Rica? Yes, they are painted exquisitely, and yes, you can take them home as a souvenir in any size (for decoration, a dry bar, storage and more), BUT it is important that you know that the oxcart is STILL being used in Costa Rica by our “boyeros” to work on the fields and transport their harvests. Let me tell you a bit more. Where does it come from, when did they start to use it and why?
The best Ziplines in Costa Rica – ADVENTURE TRAVEL Ever dreamed of flying like a bird over broad rainforest canyons? Seeing the trees from above, while the fresh air breezes through your face? This is possible in Costa Rica while enjoying the best ziplines in our country! But...is there really one best zipline? Well, if you ask me, it all depends. You will find different options at different places. There are some for beginners and the less adventurous that still want to experience this amazing thrill. And there are some for the most audacious for whom “fear” is not in their vocabulary. These last ones are my absolute heroes – but I consider myself more like an in-between person. I do enjoy the feeling of butterflies in my stomach while still being able to look 100m below and imagining I am a bird – not a dove but more like a free eagle in search of freedom…
When is the BEST TIME to travel to Costa Rica? This question is probably the one I get the most when I receive emails or phone calls from travelers that want to visit our country. Even though my answer is always quite simple: “ALWAYS and YEAR ROUND is the best time to travel to Costa Rica”, there are for sure some differences that you may want to consider when making this decision.
In and Around the Office of Tropical Pass In my previous Blog “ Manatees in Costa Rica ” I briefly mentioned that Costa Rica holds 6% of the world's biodiversity. If you think about the size of this country, only 51.000 m², that 6% sounds really amazing! Imagine: Costa Rica is smaller than West Virginia in the USA… or just a bit bigger than Niedersachsen in Germany but we are considered to possess the highest density of biodiversity of any country worldwide ! We have four percent of species estimated to exist on the planet and hundreds of these are endemic to Costa Rica.
