Costa Rica
It's a Wild World...
The highlight of Costa Rica is the opportunity to see amazing bird and animal life in its natural element. The best places to do so are in Corcovado National Park on the Osa Peninsula; Manzanillo National Park, on the Caribbean coast; the Tortuguero Canals, also on the Caribbean coast. Here are some of the creatures spotted...
Osa Peninsula
A scarlet macaw takes flight.
Osa Peninsula
Blue-crowned mot-mot.
Osa Peninsula
A squirrel monkey peaks out from the trees. The squirrel monkey is the rarest of the four species of monkeys found in the New World.
Osa Peninsula
This is the backside of a tapir who came into the camp at Sirena Station (Corcovado National Park) for a late-night snack.
Tortuguero Canals
The highlight of six weeks in Costa Rica. A passenger in my boat spotted this three-toed sloth swimming - or rather riding the current - down the canal. Considering we had just motored past a hungry-looking crocodile downstream, we decided to give this guy a lift. The driver stuck out his oar and the sloth climbed aboard. We deposited him on a branch at the side of the canal.
San Gerardo de Dota, Southern Costa Rica
Costa Rica is home to an amazing 54 species of hummingbirds. These two were so busy fighting at the bird feeder that they were oblivious to the spectators around them.
Mara Vorhees is a writer and photographer who blogs about food, music and adventure around the world.She has written guidebooks about Belize, Brazil, Costa Rica, Morocco, New England and Russia for Lonely Planet. Click here to read more about Mara.