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Nature lovers from around the world come to Costa Rica for the sole purpose of wildlife viewing. Although Costa Rica  represents only .03% of the planet's surface, it is one of the most biologically diverse places in the world and has more than 4% of the total species found on earth.
The remarkable thing about this is how all these different species and ecosystems interweave together. Often you can travel two hours down the road and be in a completely different climate and terrain, thus enabling an incredibly wide variety of species with very different needs, to exist in close proximity to one another.
Roseate spoonbills, toucans, kingfishers, motmots, scarlet macaws, frigate birds, boobies, ibises, quetzals, sparrows, warblers, herons, hawks, kites and stilts: the list goes on and on. The bird population here is notable with more than 900 recorded species. Even in the cities, parrots squawk raucously overhead while the clay-colored robin, the national bird of Costa Rica, sings its sweet song in the tree tops.
Visitors to Turu Ba Ri Tropical Park in Turrubares (an hour and a half from San Jose) can glimpse over 150 bird species in the park's 600 acres of winding trails and botanical gardens. Turu Ba Ri also features an iguana farm and a crocodile pond, where 9-foot giants bask in the sun.
Four species of monkeys, including one sub-species endemic to Costa Rica’s Manuel Antonio National Park, two species of sloths, 103 species of bats, six species of cats, three species of anteaters, and at least 82 other species of mammals inhabit Costa Rica. Many of these species are endangered and hide themselves deep within the vast protected areas of parks, reserves and refuges. Corcovado National Park is one of these treasured places, among many other parks, refuges and preserves.
Turtle tours are a well-known activity in the northern Caribbean beaches of Tortuguero Park and other spots throughout Costa Rica.
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