Tropical Dry Forest

Almendro de Rio

Purple flower clusters stand out against a dense green crown.

Other Plants

Bejuco Cucharilla

A woody climbing vine that connects Costa Rican forests with the craft of basket weaving.

Black Spiny-tailed Iguana

This sturdy lizard has a tail ringed with spiny scales.

Butterflies & Moths

Blue Morpho

Brilliant blue upper wings with broad dark margins.

Buttercup Tree

Poro poro bears large open yellow flowers with many stamens.

Ceiba Kapok Tree

Huge buttress roots help make a mature ceiba unforgettable.

Cenizaro Rain Tree

An umbrella-shaped crown shelters a world beneath its branches.

Central American Agouti

A quick forest-floor rodent that stores seeds for later.

Central American Banded Gecko

A ground-dwelling gecko carries dark bands across a warm yellow-tan body.

Central American Indigo Snake

A powerful-looking snake may darken from a lighter front to a black tail.

Central American Rattlesnake

A segmented tail rattle is a distinctive feature of this dry-forest snake.

Collared Peccary

A hoofed forest mammal with a pale collar across dark bristly fur.

Common Basilisk

A long-tailed lizard associated with Pacific-slope waterways.

Common Opossum

The common opossum is a marsupial: its young complete an important part of their development attached to their mother's teats, protected in her pouch.

Common Squirrel-Cuckoo

A rusty forest cuckoo with an exceptionally long tail.

Copper Anole

A familiar brown anole watches from low perches in Pacific-slope landscapes.

Cortez Amarillo

Golden trumpet flowers can brighten the branches of an almost leafless tree.

Frangipani

Frangipani is a flowering tree with thick branches and clusters of five-lobed blossoms.

Geoffroy’s Spider Monkey

Long limbs and a grasping tail help this monkey move through the canopy.

Gray Fox

A small gray-and-russet canid that can climb trees.

Great Curassow

A large forest bird with a curled crest and contrasting male and female plumage.

Green Ratsnake

This long forest snake changes its appearance as it grows.

Green Vine Snake

An exceptionally slender snake resembles a living green vine.

Guacimo

Bumpy dark fruits and toothed leaves offer clues to a familiar Pacific-slope tree.

Guanacaste Tree

Look for tiny leaflets and curved pods on this dry-forest tree.

Guapinol

Paired leaflets and hard brown pods identify a forest tree with an important wildlife role.

Hoffmann's Woodpecker

A black-and-white woodpecker with a yellow nape.

Indio Desnudo

A tree whose warm-colored bark invites a closer look.

Laughing Falcon

A masked falcon named for its far-carrying call.

Lemonwood

Madrono has a smooth-looking trunk that sheds thin flakes of reddish bark.

Lesson's Motmot

A colorful forest bird with a blue crown and long tail.

Long-tailed Manakin

A small forest bird famous for coordinated courtship displays.

Managua Skink

A smooth-bodied skink slips between fallen leaves in northwestern Costa Rica.

Mantled Howler Monkey

A mostly dark coat with a lighter mantle along the sides.

Mexican Burrowing Python

A strong-bodied burrowing snake explores the dry forests of northwestern Costa Rica.

Mexican Hairy Porcupine

This tree-dwelling porcupine has dark coarse hair that can hide many of its protective quills.

Mexican Long-nosed Armadillo

This armadillo wears a covering of bony plates, with flexible bands across its middle so it can bend while walking.

Neotropical Whipsnake

A very long tail follows this slender snake through open woodland.

Northern Naked-tailed Armadillo

The northern naked-tailed armadillo is a digging specialist.

Northern Tamandua

A climbing anteater with a dark vest pattern and a long sticky tongue.

Orange-fronted Parakeet

An agile green parakeet with an orange forehead and long pointed tail.

Butterflies & Moths

Owl Butterfly

Large brown wings.

Painted Wood Turtle

A wood turtle with colorful head and limb markings.

Pink Shower Tree

Carao has pink flower clusters and unusually long, thick brown seed pods.

Puffing Snake

A large forest snake shows how much color and pattern can vary within one species.

Puma

A long-tailed, unspotted wild cat that uses many forest types.

Red-legged Honeycreeper

A small bird with red feet and a slender curved bill.

Rhombic Cat-eyed Snake

Dark saddle-shaped blotches cross the back of a large-eyed snake.

Roble de Sabana

A native tree whose pink trumpet flowers brighten forest edges and open landscapes.

Salmon-bellied Racer

A slender racer carries a hint of pink beneath its brown-and-olive camouflage.

Scarlet Macaw

Red, yellow and blue wings brighten Costa Rica’s Pacific forests.

Southern Spotted Skunk

This small skunk has a dark coat patterned with broken pale stripes and patches.

Speckled Racer

Small yellow-green speckles brighten a dark snake moving through low vegetation.

Striped Hog-nosed Skunk

The striped hog-nosed skunk has a broad bare nose that helps distinguish it from other skunks.

Summer Tanager

A seasonal tanager whose adult male is red all over.

Turkey Vulture

A soaring scavenger with a red adult head.

Turquoise-browed Motmot

A turquoise eyebrow and racket-shaped tail make this bird memorable.

Two-banded False Coral Snake

Paired dark bands make an eye-catching pattern on a slender forest snake.

Variegated Squirrel

A daytime tree-dweller whose colors vary across its range.

Virginia Opossum

Despite its name, the Virginia opossum's native range reaches Costa Rica.

White-faced Capuchin

A social monkey with a pale face, shoulders and chest.

White-nosed Coati

A long-snouted forest forager often seen with its tail held upright.

White-tailed Deer

A browsing mammal whose raised tail reveals a white underside.

White-throated Magpie-Jay

A sociable jay with a sweeping blue tail and curled crest.

Yellow-bellied Leaf-toed Gecko

A native gecko with expanded toe tips and small raised scales on its back.

Yellow-headed Gecko

Adult males wear a golden-orange head above a darker body.