The Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica
Covering just 0.03% of the worlds landmass, Costa Rica harbours 5% of the world species, with 50% of that being in a tiny corner of the south pacific, known as the Osa Peninsula.
The wildlife in this tiny corner of the world is like nothing else on earth!
The Osa peninsula is a biodiversity hotspot, with 60 species of mammal including: four species of monkey, five species of cat, such as the jaguar and puma, tapirs and many more! 120 species of amphibians and reptiles call this place home, including the colourful red eyed tree frog and the endangered and endemic golfo dulce anole. The peninsula is also home to almost 400 species of bird, including the iconic scarlet macaw and toucan. Finally, let’s not forget the little things that run the world - the insects - with a documented 6000 species, although that number is likely 10 times more!
The images below, taken on the peninsula, all start at 05:00, where you can see the intense activity of the “dawn chorus”. They then quieten down as the temperature increases and the animals rest. We see another peak in activity later in the afternoon, known as the “dusk chorus”, where the animals are active once again as the temperature cools. During the day you can see lots of reds, pinks and purples between 6000-7000 Hz (frequency); these are the sounds of stridulating insects such as cicadas. These insects increase the frequency of their calls with rising temperature. So in the morning, when it’s colder, you can see they call at a lower frequency. At night we see a complete shift in activity. Other species of insects start calling at a similar frequency, but with a simpler call pattern, indicated by the blue colours. At night, between 2000-5000 Hz, we can also see the chorus of the frogs, with many species calling at the same time but across different frequencies.
Jenna has spent over five years in this tiny corner of the world studying its fascinating biodiversity and meeting locals, business owners and fellow scientists that are all working to protect this natural wonderland. The Acoustic Fingerprints below represent some of the most biodiverse and interesting corners of this peninsula and the stories of the amazing people trying to protect them.
Corcovado National Park
Corcovado National Park is named by National Geograpnic as “the most biologically intense place on Earth" due to its extraordinary biodiversity. Encompassing an expansive 424 km², this park is the crowning jewel of Costa Rica’s national park system. Within its borders, a mosaic of diverse ecosystems exists, ranging from montane forests covered in epiphytes and low lying wet forests to thriving mangrove wetlands. A visit to this national park is truly impressive!
The sounds for the Acoustic Fingerprint below were taken deep within the borders of Corcovado National Park, 45 minutes north of Sirena Research Station. In the first image you will see the print itself, and in the second you will see a labelled image where we identify the calls of specific animals as they make their mark through their sounds. We can see howler monkeys calling at dawn and dusk at a low frequency. Cicadas call throughout the day and crickets at night at higher frequencies. Birds, such as macaws and toucans call in the day with tinamous at night, while frogs begin to sing at night.
Rio Nuevo Nature Reserve
Rio Nuevo Nature Reserve contains 135 acres / 55 hectares of critical riparian rainforest adjacent to the Golfo Dulce Forest Reserve in the important buffer zone of Corcovado National Park.
This reserve protects an area of primary rainforest inhabited by highly threatened wildlife endemic to the Golfo Dulce. Fieldwork has confirmed the presence of iconic wildlife such as tapirs, five species of wildcats, four species of monkeys, two species of anteaters, two species of sloths as well as armadillos, otters, tyras, coatis, deer, peccaries. There are also approximately 200 bird species, 20 species of amphibians, and 450 species of diurnal butterflies.
This reserve was put into protection by BioSur Foundation, a Costa Rican non-profit that promotes rainforest conservation, scientific research, and environmental education in the southern Pacific tip of Costa Rica’s Osa Peninsula. BioSur Foundation is committed to protecting the rainforests of Costa Rica.
The sounds for the Acoustic Fingerprint below were taken in the forests of Rio Nuevo Nature reserve. In the first image you will see the print itself and in the second you will see a labelled image where we can identify the calls of specific animals as they make their mark through their sounds. We can see howler monkeys calling at dawn and dusk at a low frequency. Cicadas call throughout the day and crickets at night at higher frequencies. Birds, such as scarlet macaws and toucans call in the day. Frogs begin to sing at night at lower frequencies and bats at higher frequencies.
Botanika Ecolodge
Botánika, on the Osa Peninsula, is part of Curio Collection by Hilton™. This ecolodge promotes the preservation and protection of biodiversity within the Osa Peninsula and itself protects several acres of native forest and mangroves.
The sounds for the Acoustic Fingerprint below were taken in the mangroves within the grounds of Botánika. This print looks quite different to the others due to the difference in biodiversity between terrestrial and aquatic forests. In the first image you will see the print itself and in the second you will see a labelled image where we can identify the calls of specific animals as they make their mark through their sounds. We can see howler monkeys calling at dawn and dusk at a low frequency. Cicadas call throughout the day and crickets at night at higher frequencies. Birds, such as scarlet macaws, tiger herons and toucans call throughout the day and frogs begin to sing at night.
Luna Lodge
Luna Lodge, on the Osa Peninsula, is an Ecolodge located at the end of the road, overlooking the stunning Corcovado National Park.
Owned and operated by Lana Wedmore, Lana also started the White Hawk Foundation, a non-profit foundation dedicated to the protection of the ecosystems and biodiversity on Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula. The foundation protects almost 500 hectares of rainforest on the peninsula and works with the local and international community, to encourage preservation of this tiny corner of the world.
The sounds for the Acoustic Fingerprint below were taken along one of the trails in the forests above Luna Lodge. In the first image you will see the print itself and in the second you will see a labelled image where we can identify the calls of specific animals as they make their mark through their sounds. We can see howler monkeys calling at dawn and dusk at a low frequency. Cicadas call throughout the day and crickets at night at higher frequencies. Birds, such as scarlet macaws and toucans call throughout the day and frogs begin to sing at night.
A reminder of what the colours mean:
Red Species that call continuously with a complex call pattern that contains different levels of energy and decibel levels, such as some birds and crickets.
Green Species that call in short bursts with a high amplitude; a strong, concentrated and sharp sound.
Blue Species that call continuously, but unlike with red colours, the calls are much less complex.
Pink and Purple Both complex (red) and basic (blue) continuous calls are occurring at the same time.
Cyan Short and strong calls (green) and continuous basic sounds (blue) occurring at the same time.
Orange , Yellow and White These colours indicate sounds from all types of call together.