Coastal hiking routes and inland trails of Corcovado bring tourists into several tropical ecosystems where spectacular wildlife roams free in lowland, montane and highland cloud rainforests, palm grove, mangrove swamps and on Pacific beaches. Corcovado National Park has been ranked worldwide as one of the best national parks for its unrivaled biodiversity. Exuberant and unexpected new species are discovered all the time, making Corcovado a biological playground for National Geographic scientists among others.

With more than 45 thousand hectares of land bordered of several miles of large sandy and rocky beaches of the Pacific Ocean and protected wilderness areas, Corcovado National Park is the paradise of animal lovers, nature enthusiast and avid photographers. With its iconic animals in an incredibly thick rain forest, this preserved hot spot crawling with both day and night life utterly amazed by the wealth of its wildlife.

The weather

Hot and humid all along the year, trails are well marked, but rugged and wet in the rainy season. At night, the temperature may drop of a couple degrees, but it is normally always over 20º Celsius.

Visit duration

Depending on expectations, one day is usually not be enough. Families and older people, might opt for a two-day excursion around Sirena Biological Station starting their trip with a boat ride from Drake Bay. If you have only one day to spend in the park, either Sirena or La Leona sector are good options to see wildlife. Keen adventurers and experienced hikers can choose between several hiking and trekking options that are usually defined by the interests, location, difficulty level and budget. This remote area might be farther than expected, but visiting Corcovado National park is definitively worth seeing.

About the biodiversity

Diverse animals are commonly seen in Corcovado National Park indicating the wealth of wildlife.

are the four species of monkeys. The smallest one is the squirrel monkey. They travel in groups up to 500 members size. One of the unusual names they are called is “death’s head” monkeys due to the black and white face. White-faced capuchin monkeys are the second large and second most common monkey in Corcovado. The name came from the dark robes and hoods of Capuchin monks (Italy). Despite the cute appearance, capuchin monkeys clean the forest from almost everything they can eat – flowers, herbs, birds, baby coatis. Spider monkeys are a bit shyer, however quite common in the park too. Their hands are significantly larger than other species have, and their tail is used as an essential additional “hand”, leaving to the “spider” name. The howler monkey is one of the largest monkeys; every morning and a couple of minutes before the rain, they scream a loud roar in the jungle, leaving an unbelievable experience of wild nature.

Monkeys are not the only mammals who occupy trees. You can always find sloths looking for some fruits, flowers and tree leaves. Day time groups of coatis move to pick up fallen leaves and small lizards. Night time kinkajou cleans up the fruits and flowers.

On the ground, there are tapirs, large animals with horse-look-like legs, peccaries (wild pigs), armadillos with large armor plating’s and opossums, who looks more like a rat, but genetically way closer to kangaroo. All of them feed on small insects, reptiles, fruits, and leaves.

Bats are the most varied mammals in Corcovado national park. There are 200 mammals in Costa Rica, and 105 of them are bats! They can be found in shady parts of trees and caves. At night they mostly feed on insects and fruits, they are great pollinators (like bees). Bats usually recognize white flowers, which are opened night time.

There are two main mammal predators in the park: jaguar and ocelot. The main difference in between the two species is the size: ocelot is way smaller and reminds a very large “small cat” (1-meter-long, 10-15kg), while Jaguar is a definite large cat (2-meters-long and about 100kg). Jaguars hunt on about 80 different mammal species in the park including all the mammals above. Ocelot prefers smaller prey like small monkeys, reptiles.

The variety of birds and their coloration In Corcovado national park is amazing. Great Blue Heron comes to Corcovado National Park every September to May, roseate spoonbill is the only pink bird in the area. Wattled Jacana with a black back and red frontal shield is a rare bird in Costa Rica, the area around Golfito (wet pastures, lowland, marshes) is the only place where you can see it. Multiple species of vultures keep the park clean from recently died animals. There are hawks looking for small birds and mammals. Endangered Harpy Eagle can only be found in the Osa Peninsula nowadays. 18 different species of hummingbirds are attracted to tropical flowers in the park. Scarlet macaws can only be found in Corcovado and Carara park. Amazing Motmots with a special double-end tail and different colors screams their “hoop-hoop” song over the trees. Kingfisher is a beloved fish hunter by all photographers, the large, stout and pointed bills and high-contrast coloration makes them extraordinary pleasing on photos. The other bird with such high contrast colors and large bill is toucan, which can be found feeding on fruit trees.