Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge
| Size: 9,969 hectares Distance from San José: 291 kilometers Trails: Limited. Dry Season: January through April. |
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This wilderness area of this park is made up of a big lake and the marshlands surrounding it, made by alluvial sediments. It covers an expanse of approximately 800 hectares and its 3 meters deep. During the dry season the lake almost dries up completely. |
| This refuge is gaining popularity amongst nature oriented tourists. The reason is that the lake fills at the beginning of the rainy season with the runoff from the river Frio. This natural phenomenon creates a perfect environment for birds to procreate, thus providing a bird-watcher's paradise. |  |
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The variety of birdlife is astounding, in this park the visitor can find spoonbills, white ibis, northern jacana, woodstork, jaribu (which is the largest bird, and seriously endangered), ducks, and cattle egret. The refuge also protects the only permanent population of Nicaraguan grackle, an endemic bird of the Lake Nicaragua Basin. |
| There are also many endangered animals being protected here like pumas, jaguars, ocelots and caymans , as well as some more common species such as monkeys, peccaries, raccoons, otters, sloths and deer. |
The refuge lies close to the settlement of the Malekus, direct descendants of the Guatuso Indians that once lived in the area. This reserve is located 165 kilometers straight north from San José, southeast of the town of Los Chiles, near the Nicaraguan border.
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