© Charlene de Jori
Wildlife at Bosque del Cabo
I always recommend Bosque del Cabo as the place to go in Central America if you want to watch wildlife. Where else can you sit on your cliff side porch looking out over the Pacific while monkeys and scarlet macaws cavort right in front of you? The animals at Bosque are relatively unafraid of human observers, making observation an easy and non-disruptive activity.
There are plenty of rainforest lodges in Costa Rica but very few of them are set in such a spectacular setting where the forest primeval descends right to a wilderness coast. This coastal strip is a virtual highway for wildlife and there is a heavy traffic of scarlet macaws feeding on the Terminalia (Almendro) trees, coatimundi catching beach crabs, and spider monkeys drinking nectar out of the balsa tree flowers.
Dr. Adrian Forsyth - Research Associate,
Department of Entomology, Smithsonian Institution
Dr Alwyn Gentry (the late, world-renowned botanist and conservationist) described the Osa Peninsula as "…outstanding in the context of the Neotropics (or the world, in general for that matter) in how closely it approximates the classical cathedral-like rainforests with very large trees and a very open understory." The tranquil forests of the Osa support a rich array of wildlife.
Bosque del Cabo is a superb spot for monkey watching, perhaps the best in Central America. There are four different species of non-human primates, or monkeys, that live in the Osa's forests, they are the white-faced capuchin (Cebus capucinus), mantled howler (Alouatta palliata), central american spider (Ateles geoffroyi), and squirrel (Saimiri oerstedii). Generally, you will find howler, squirrel and capuchin monkeys in primary and secondary forests while the largest Osa monkeys, the spider monkeys spend most of their time in primary forest. All four species are abundant at Bosque and relatively habituated to human observers. You can often sit on the porch of your cabin and watch monkeys behaving in a completely natural manner.
Many other large, spectacular mammals can also be spotted on the Bosque del Cabo property and surrounding areas. These include the tayra, (Eira barbara) a very large bi-colored weasel, neotropical otter (Lontra longicaudis), white-nosed coati (Nasua narica), collard ant-eater (Tamandua mexicana), collared peccary, agoutis and pacas. Pumas have been seen from time to time within a short walk of Bosque, as have jaguars. Three-toed sloths are quite common around Bosque; however, sighting this visually elusive, strikingly slow-moving and muscular animal is often difficult. If you are intent on seeing a sloth, our best recommendation is that you scour the upper sections of trees, especially Cecropia trees along the road.
Hikers, biologists, and locals find that each experience in the forest is unique and always educational. One day a discovery could be an infant spider monkey with its mother, learning how to pluck fruits from a tree, or an ant-eater moving through the forest canopy, branch to branch, 100 feet above the forest floor, in search of a termite nest.
Nicole Gibson - Naturalist, Bosque del Cabo,
Research
Collaborator, Department of Entomology, Smithsonian Institution
