Costa Rican Fauna (Part 2) - Crocodile Bridge and Manuel Antonio Coast

The Costa Rican Fauna recap continues with the wildlife that we saw at Crocodile Bridge and along the Manuel Antonio Coast (Pacific side of Costa Rica).

Crocodile Bridge

On our drive from San Jose to Manuel Antonio, we passed through Jaco.  Under the Tarcoles River Bridge, numerous crocs can be found sun bathing in the Costa Rican heat.  These guys were a good 15 ft long - monstrous creatures!

That is one river I would not want to paddle/float down!

I'm pretty sure this beast was the head honcho.

Manuel Antonio Coast

One of our day excursions included taking a catamaran boat ride that included dolphin siting and snorkeling. While I there were numerous dolphins that swam along side our boat, and I would have loved to have a picture to commemorate the moment, I didn't capture any pictures because I was too enthralled with watching the amazing sea creatures.   Sometimes it is better to fully live in the moment then try to document it.  I did, however, get some pictures of our snorkeling adventure.

Sergeant Major Fish

Costa Rican Fauna (Part 1) - Villa Perezoso

My post today is a continuation from yesterday's post, Costa Rican Flora.  Probably my favorite aspect of visiting Manuel Antonio, Costa Rica was all of the wildlife.  This should come as no surprise to all you gardeners out there, who appreciate the great outdoors and the living things that fill it.  Everywhere we went, wildlife surrounded us.  From our house, Villa Perezoso, where the monkeys came to visit everyday at sunrise (5:30 a.m.) and sunset (5:30 p.m.), to the ocean where we saw dolphins swimming alongside our catamaran, to the national forest, where we saw numerous sloths hanging from the canopy.  It was a world of wonders.

These are the animals we saw from our Villa Perezoso (Sloth House)...

Red-Backed Squirrel Monkeys
These cute little stinkers were the first to greet us when we arrived at Villa Perezoso.  The villa staff had made us refreshing pineapple fruit drinks to cool us down after the long, 2.5 hour drive from San Jose.  The drinks were garnished with slices of fresh pineapple, which this troop of monkeys was on the hunt for.

 We later found out that it was very rare to see squirrel monkeys in this area, and didn't see our little friends for a few days.  But later in the week, they were on the hunt for some more treats, and returned to our villa, looking for a handout.

While we didn't feed these guys (strongly discouraged), this little guy found some fruit in a nearby tree to nibble on.

Just chillin'

This little guy is posing with some of the interesting looking fruit that his buddy was munching on in one of the other pictures.

Capuchin Monkeys

The capuchins were our most regular visitors at Villa Perezoso.  They arrived every morning at 5:30 a.m. (and most evenings around sunset) and tried to open our sliding glass doors on the balconies.  The first night, we forgot to lock the sliding doors to the kitchen, and the monkeys got in a stole a huge avocado. We made sure the doors were locked every night after, but that didn't stop them from visiting.  Of course, they still had their buffet of bugs sitting in the pool skimmer for them to munch on.

Piggy-backing

Grooming time

This guy started throwing a hissy-fit (knocking over bowls and candle holders on the deck, and throwing pillows around) because he couldn't get the sliding door open to steal delicious fruit.

But this guy was offered some leftover pineapple, which he happily accepted.

Tropical Kingbird

 Yellow-Throated Euphonia

Fiery-Billed Aracari

Unidentified frog hanging out on our bedroom window.

 Mariposa

Costa Rican Flora

A few weeks ago, I went on an amazing trip with my husband and 8 other people to Costa Rica.  We flew into San Jose and took a two and a half hour shuttle ride to Manuel Antonio where our private villa - Villa Perezoso (Sloth House), personal chef, bartender, concierge and house cleaners awaited us.  It was a spectacular vacation, filled with just the right balance of relaxation and adventure.  We spent time relaxing in our villa, looking at the amazing views from our balconies.  We got out and surfed, jet skied and snorkeled in the ocean.  We also got to go hiking and ziplining through the jungles.  There was also plenty of time to enjoy all of the plants and wildlife of the local area, which, as a plant enthusiast and animal lover, was definitely a highlight of the trip.

View from the main level of Villa Perezoso.  I never got sick of looking at this:

Jon enjoying the hike through Manuel Antonio National Park.

 

You certainly wouldn't want to touch this prickly tree - it had spikes like a porcupine!  The bamboo growing in the part is not native and can actually be pretty invasive with how quickly it grows.

 

Manuel Antonio National Park Beach - it ranked as one of the best beaches in the world.

Just walking the mile and a half from our villa to the beach, there were many wonderful flowers to see, including this Mexican Bird of Paradise, and countless bougainvilleas.

 

These hibiscus plants were probably the most common flower I saw, followed closely in second by the bougainvilleas.

More hibiscus plants lining the villa streets.

This makes me want to get a hibiscus for my Texas garden.  I'll just have to put it in a container so I can bring it inside during freezing temperatures.

Orchids were the third most prominent flower I saw in Manuel Antonio.  This purple one was my favorite.

I've seen passion flowers in shades of purple, magenta and even green, but this was the very first time I saw one in fire engine red.  Stunning.

 

Orange cosmos.  These guys do well in Central Texas.  I will definitely need to add some to my garden.

More bougainvillea in a light pink shade.

More orchids in white and yellow.

 

Just look at all that color!  And the size of those bougainvilleas!

Flying over the Costa Rican canopy.

We visited in mid-March, which was during the dry season.  This riverbed looks like something you might find in our drought-ridden Texas.

Dry riverbed and a wild cashew.  The top is the nut (inside a shell), which is attached to a fruit that looks like a mini apple.

 

Costa Rican farmland.

Quick drive-by shot of the palm tree plantation - used to make palm oil and various related products.  Also one of the most destructive crops to the environment.

Seriously, the views we kept seeing never ceased to amaze me.