Pacuare Reserve

Pacuare Reserve is a project which the team at Aqua-Firma has been active in the management and fundraising for since 2000. This combined Rainforest and Turtle Conservation Project is owned and managed by the Endangered Wildlife Trust, in partnership with Rainforest Concern. Visiting Pacuare with Aqua-Firma not only gives the chance to see marine turtles and some excellent wildlife, but a behind the scenes view of a research and conservation project in action.  It also enables us to make donations to the conservation of highly endangered turtles and one of the world’s stressed habitats: litoral rainforest.

This long and narrow 2,000 acre preserve is bounded on the west by the Tortuguero Canal and on its eastern flank by the Caribbean Sea. In April and May in particular this is one of the best places in Costa Rica to see Giant Leatherback Turtles as they come to lay their eggs on 6km of protected beaches. Whilst they can move freely in water, their quest to lay eggs is a monumental struggle. A pregnant female must first locate a beach and then drag her huge body five or more metres out of the sea using fins designed for water. These same fins then need to dig a metre deep hole in which she lays her eggs before covering them back over with sand. You can’t help but feel the strain of her quest and gain a sense of her vulnerability out of the water. Giant Leatherbacks are the largest of the marine turtles, with the biggest measured specimen some 2.4 metres in length and weighing as much as a mini car.

Fortunately, nesting leatherbacks are protected by law in Costa Rica and projects like Pacuare help to protect leatherback eggs from poachers and dogs. You will be asked to take great care in watching this process. Once a female has begun laying her eggs it is unlikely she will stop, but it is important to avoid upsetting her with torches or camera flashes.

Of the reserve’s rainforests, pathways lead to some of the lagoons, inlets and beaches found here. The resident howler and capuchin monkeys are very easy to see here, as are the many poison arrow frogs. There are over 200 species of birds recorded here of which the Boat Billed and Agami Herons are rarely seen anywhere else in Costa Rica.

During visits to Pacuare with us, you will be able to join night time turtle patrols and local project staff will be able to introduce you to the reserve’s wonderful rainforests. At certain times of the year, you will have the added option to join a primatologist who is conducting research into Latin America’s most intelligent monkeys, the white faced capuchin, which are widespread in the reserve.

  • Agami Heron in Pacuare Reserve
  • Newly Hatching Turtles in Pacuare Reserve
  • Sloth in Pacuare Reserve
  • Leatherback Turtle in Pacuare Reserve

Costa Rica National Park & Reserve Guides

  • Frog in Pacuare Reserve
  • Pacuare Reserve in Tortuguero National Park
  • Boat Billed Heron in Costa Rica

 

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