Animals You Might Encounter in Costa Rica
Planning to travel to Costa Rica? This is as exotic as it gets. The country, which is tightly placed between two continents and even two of the seas, is exploding with unique life forms and animals. This amount of varied wildlife is not found anywhere else in the world. It is known to have over five hundred thousand species which is over four percent of all plant and wildlife species on the planet. Here are the top 7 exotic animals you can spot when you are there:
1. Golden Orb Weavers
This is a unique species of spider. Their web is very strong and gold in color and serves to attract flies and insects and even small birds. It is also the oldest known spider species as their fossilized specimens have been found to be as much as 165 million years old. Also, they are not aggressive towards humans.
2. Three-Toed Sloth
Sloths are very interesting and unique animals. Their lifestyles are interesting in the sense that they sleep 16 to 18 hours a day! They live high among the trees and rarely come down even up to once a week only. They also do not go far away from these places and usually reside within a small area.
3. American Crocodile
These 10 to 13 feet long majestic creatures are also found in Costa Rica, where they actually measure from 13 to 16 feet in length! This is a threatened species primarily due to the loss of habitat.
4. White-Headed Capuchin Monkey
This is a very clever monkey. They have a long lifespan of up to 54 years and are well populated in the region. Their intelligence can be seen from the fact that they rub herbs on their bodies for medicinal purposes and are even known to use tools to get food, by using them as weapons.
5. Ocelot
These cats which roam around at night are larger than house cats, being almost twice their size. They are lightweight cats and have large feet which help them climb trees. Ocelots are hunted for their fur, which makes them a threatened species. However, another threat that concerns these cats is the loss of habitat.
6. Mexican Tree Frog
Mexican tree frogs are widely distributed in Costa Rica. It makes a unique sound that sounds like a honk.
7. Strawberry Poison Dart Frog
This frog, as you can guess from its name, is poisonous. It also gets its name from its colors. It has the ability to change color from a red body with blue legs to a green body with black spots and even navy blue.