Costa Rica

Costa Rica has long been famous among bird watchers. With almost 850 species of birds, more than in all of North America, packed into an area half the size of the state of Kentucky in the United States, it's obvious why the country is so popular.

The Costa Rica's travel agencies provide experienced nature guides who make any bird watching expedition an educational experience. It's easy to move around from one habitat to the next. Visitors can go from rain forests, to mangrove swamps, beaches, cloud forest, or rivers. The best part is that many of the different environments are usually a very short distance apart.

The country's exemplary system of national parks and protected areas are the perfect places for birdwatching, but practically anywhere you look in Costa Rica, you can spot varied avian species. However, those interested in bird watching will be able to see the resplendent Quetzal, in the cloud forests of Monteverde, the Santos region and the Central Volcanic Mountain Range. The equally spectacular scarlet macaw, can be found on the Osa Peninsula or in the area around the Carara Biological Reserve.