Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve is situated next to the popular Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve. The cloud forest habitat and spectacular birdlife are very similar to that of its neighbouring reserve, which includes the iridescent Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno). One possibility at the Santa Elena Reserve, if the clouds permit, is to view Arenal Volcano. The volcano is still an impressive spectacle at 20km distant.

Hiking through Santa Elena’s well maintained trails with an expert guide is the best way to see and learn about this rich cloud forest ecosystem. Beginning at the visitor’s center, several trails lead you through mostly primary growth forest which covers 80% of the reserve. Everywhere you look moss, lichens, bromeliads and tree-dwelling orchids cover almost every surface.

Santa Elena Cloud Forest Reserve has more than 400 bird species, 121 mammal species, 140 reptile and amphibian species, 800 tree species and 3000 vascular plant species. Examples of the exotic species found here are mantled howler monkeys (Alouatta palliata), the three-wattled bell bird (Procnias tricarunculata) and the elusive jaguar (Panthera onca). Birdwatching is one of the reserve’s most popular activities, and the Santa Elena Reserve is well known for its 30 hummingbird species, toucans, great green macaws, black-faced solitaires and other hard-to-spot bird species.

Creation and Community Based Conservation

The reserve was created in 1992 in response to the growing numbers of visitors to the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, just a few kilometres to the northwest along the same mountain chain. Uniquely the reserve straddles the Costa Rican continental divide having forest on both Caribbean and Pacific facing slope. Santa Elena was one of the first community managed reserves in the country in cooperation with Youth Challenge International (a Canadian Non-Profit Organisation) and the Costa Rican government.

The Reserve philosophy is unique in that long term sustainability is not only a concern of the Reserve, but of the community as a whole. Revenue from guided tours, entrance fees and the souvenir shop are either reinvested in the management of the reserve or are channelled to local high schools to help upgrade technology, and fund courses in environmental education, biology, agriculture, languages and tourism. In using the Reserve as a natural classroom, students and teachers exploit a fantastic educational resource that can be used for anything from studying tropical plant ecology to leading tours.

Future plans are to purchase and restore bordering farmlands for future inclusion into the Santa Elena Reserve. Wildlife conservation efforts in the area are concentrating on establishing forest corridors expanding from the central conservation area down to lower altitudes as many of the forest fauna, such as the Resplendent Quetzal, Jaguars, Ocelots, and Red Brocket Deer require large territories in which to forage and breed.