Tortuguero National Park
Tortuguero National Park (turtle village) is located in northeastern Costa Rica on the Caribbean coast and can only be reached by plane or boat. The park has a huge biodiversity which it owes to the presence of eleven habitats including rainforest, green marshes, refining woodlands and freshwater lagoons. You can see otters, caimans, sloths, spider, roar and capuchin monkeys and many birds such as oropendulas, toucans and various waterfowl. The lagoons and canals also provide a shelter for the manatee that is regularly observed.
Protection of sea turtles
The park was established to protect the nesting area of the sea turtles,who bury their eggs on the beaches. The beaches of Tortuguero are the main nesting sites for three endangered sea turtles. These are the LeatherBack Turtle, the Green Sea Turtle and the Hawksbill Turtle, respectively. Only with a licensed guide can the beaches be visited late at night. The female turtles find a place on the beach and with their hind legs they dig a round hole, the nest. At a time, they lay about 100 eggs. They cover the nest and then disappear back into the sea.
