Caño Negro
Wildlife Refuge

This wilderness area includes a lake and marshlands formed by alluvial sediments. Lake Caño Negro is a seasonal spill-off site of Rio Frio. It covers an area of approximately 800 hectares and it is 3 meters deep. During the dry season, which lasts from February to May, the lake almost dries up completely, leaving behind only a few small pools, secondary channels and an arm of the river itself. The refuge once formed part of Lake Nicaragua.

There are 5 habitats in the refuge: primary swamp, holillo forest, lakeside vegetation, Santa María Forest and copaiba forest.. The vegetation that grows along the lake shore and channels is mainly herbaceous; there are also several species of small trees, which are very abundant. The primary swamp forest grows in places that are flooded all year round or almost all year round, the copaiba forest is very similar but with smaller variety of species, predominantly the copaiba tree and tamarind. The Santa Maria forest its a very uniform vegetation composed mainly of Santa Maria and royal palm. The holillo forest is basically composed of holillo, corozo and coquillo palm.

The variety and wealth of birdlife in this area justifies setting it aside as a wildlife refuge. Hundreds of birds can be seen during the dry season lining the sandbanks and perching in some of the trees. Some of the most prevalent species of waterfowl are anhinga, roseate spoonbill, white ibis, Northen jacana ( this is a rare species because the nest and the chicks are looked after by the male rather than the female), woodstork, jaribu which is the largest bird in the area and seriously endangered, black-bellied tree duck, cattle egret, and the Neotropical cormorant , which is the most abundant species at Caño Negro and the largest colony in Costa Rica.

Some of the endangered mammals and reptiles that live in the refuge are pumas, jaguares, ocelot, tapirs and caymans. Other resident mammals are howler monkeys, spider monkeys, white-faced capuchin monkeys, collared peccaries, racoons, Neotropical river otters, two-toed sloths and white-tailed deer. The river and the channels team with turtles, bull sharks, Caribbean snooks and gar fish, which is considered a living fossil.

The Malekus indian settlement lies close to the refuge. These people are direct descendants of the Guatuso Indians who once lived in the area.

Previous - Next - Search