Costa Rica in Fall

With an area somewhat less than 20,000 square miles Costa Rica, is the third-smallest nation in Central America; yet in proportion to the country’s size its avifauna of nearly 900 species is among the richest in the world. It is a modern country, politically stable and generally considered the most democratic in Central America, and it is proud to be a nation without an army. For the visiting birdwatcher Costa Rica presents the obvious advantage of compactness combined with the variety resulting from the country’s division by major mountain ranges, or cordilleras: one can pass readily from San José on the Central Plateau to cloud forest, to subalpine páramo at nearly 11,000 feet, to the wet tropical forest of the Caribbean slope. Its well-studied biology also makes it an ideal destination—it was one of the first countries in the Neotropics to have its own field guide to the birds, and guides to the country’s butterflies, reptiles and amphibians, and mammals are also available, making possible a complete natural history experience.