The most popular of mammals of Costa Rica is assuredly the monkeys and sloths that are found in the tropical forests, but there are still many more mammals than those few.
The Two-toed and Three-toed Sloths have garnered a lot of attention over the years for their lackadaisical manner, and Howler Monkeys are known for their method of communication in the high tree top canopy of the tropical forests of Costa Rica. Then there’s the less known mammals of the jungles, swamps, savannahs and cloud forests that make up the varied topography of this land. Tapirs, tayras, coatis, collared peccary and pacas are a few of the mammals that don’t claim as much attention.
The graceful felids of Costa Rica get a bit more recognition, and they are of importance for their conservation status among other reasons. Jaguars, Margays, Ocelots, Pumas and Jaguarondis are in the number of larger and smaller cats that use the forest floors and treetops as hunting grounds. They were once highly sought after for their pelts, and the fur trade that had large roots in Panama used to be the major source of income for many in what are now the National parks of Costa Rica.
Some mammals are ground based like the pacas and the collared peccary. Others are either semi-arboreal or completely arboreal such as the felids, monkeys and sloths. It is a little more difficult to spot the arboreal animals, and sloths, for example, blend in with their environment. That is one of the reasons why there are such a large number of zip-line tours. Zip-line transportation was originally developed to study life in the high tree top canopy, and now its function has been adapted so that even layman can get a glimpse of the inner workings of the extraordinary areas of the forest.
When you feel that you want to glimpse an impressive array of wildlife, head to Costa Rica where the sloths, monkeys and other mammals lie in wait.
