Le Costa Rica du 11 au 26 mars 2011 : 1ère partie

Although Costa Rica is a small country, it is in the bird-rich neotropical region and has a huge number of species for its area. 893 bird species have been recorded in the country (including Cocos Island), more than in all of the United States and Canada combined. Of those species, seven are endemic and 19 are globally threatened. Part of the diversity stems from the wide array of habitats, which include mangrove swamps along the Pacific coast, the wet Caribbean coastal plain in the northeast, dry northern Pacific lowlands, and multiple mountain chains that form the spine of the country and rise as high as 3,500m. Nicole Dupin, Ghyslaine Lalbaltry, Christian Gloria and Bruno Lebrun travelled across the country March 11 to 26, observing 350 species of birds, surprising mammals, impressive reptiles and colourful frogs and butterflies.
We publish here the first part of the report, from the 11th to the 15th of March.