Biodiversity is the variety of life in a particular habitat or ecosystem. Costa Rica is in the tropical rainforest biome, which is home to more species of organisms than any other biome on Earth. There are several theories as to why it has such a large biodiversity. Some say it is because tropical rainforests provide a large number of habitats and niches. Another hypothesis is that because of Costa Rica’s close proximity to the equator, it didn’t freeze over; giving communities of species more time to evolve.
Having a particularly large biodiversity provides a wide variety of benefits to Costa Rica. Ecotourism is extremely popular in Costa Rica. The majority of people that visit Costa Rica do so to see the beautiful wildlife. In fact, ecotourism brings in over two billion dollars each year to Costa Rica. So, it is apparent that the economy benefits from the diversity of species of plants and animals that inhabit Costa Rica. Businesses in Costa Rica profit from biodiversity because it brings tourism, which in turn bring them in additional profit. Because ecotourism is built off biodiversity, and biodiversity depends on plants and animals maintaining life, businesses are convinced to capitalize on natural resources rather than consume them.
Protection of biodiversity is very important in Costa Rica because of the extent of its benefits. Fortunately, this motivates the government, businesses, and citizens to pitch in to protect it. Over twenty seven percent of all the land in Costa Rica is national parks, wildlife refuges, or forest preserves. This means that it is illegal for the land, vegetation, or animals in these areas to be harmed or disturbed in any way that alters the natural habitat they live in. In Costa Rica, there is a five percent tax on gas, which generates revenue that is then used to pay landowners to refrain from clear cutting their land, and to instead create tree plantations. The high number of tree plantations helps to build the biodiversity because it provides habitats for wildlife to live and grow.
Although measures are being taken to protect the biodiversity, there are still some things that threaten to harm the variety of wildlife that Costa Rica is so proud of. The population in Costa Rica is rapidly growing, which poses some threats to the biodiversity. The more people that inhabit the country, the more space that has to be urbanized, the more trees have to be cut down, and the more habitats are destroyed.
This aspect is “The Double-edged Sword of Ecotourism.” In this chapter, Stanford expresses the positives and negatives of ecotourism. Ecotourism is a form of tourism which involves visiting fragile and undisturbed natural areas and in this case, the main reason is to see gorillas. Ecotourism has its good and bad. It is good because those poor communities that live close to the habitats of the apes can have a source of revenue. Those areas are really poor, and with ecotourism, they can earn about $9000 dollars a month. However, those areas may not exactly be the safest. Stanford cites a 1999 cross border attack by rebel groups in Rwanda in which 8 ecotourists were murdered and this attack deterred tourist from going there for many months. Another negative aspect of ecotourism is how it affects the apes. Although, many apes who do live in these areas of habituation and have tourists coming in and out, the apes develop really high stress levels. When humans move too quickly or make loud noises, the apes are stressed out and can flee. Not only that, but increased stress levels lowers their immune systems making them more susceptible to disease. Stanford ends this chapter saying that ecotourism is bound to happen if the countries are too poor to provide for their people and that “the apes will have to live with the results” (190). In
Among the multitude of American corporations, few stand out like the United Fruit Company. Reviled the world over, United Fruit was one of America’s most notable early multinational corporations. Operating all over Latin America and peddling their produce across the globe, United Fruit would get its start in Costa Rica, a small Central American country nestled between Nicaragua and Panama. The decision to attempt to modernize Costa Rica by General Tomás Guardia would prove to be a fateful one that forever altered the course of Central America.
Biodiversity is the variation and amount of species across the globe, or within in a specific geographical habitat. There are three different areas of study within biodiversity; ecological diversity, species diversity and, genetic diversity. Science Book Species diversity is the variety of different organisms and relationships within a specific species, this essay will discuss the declining of species diversity among sea turtles and the implications it has on the worldwide seas. I have chosen to research about the topic because, sea turtles are believed to have been alive during the Jurassic period. However, now all seven sea turtle species are critically endangered or vulnerable, due to human activities such as; commercial fishing, bycatch and, climate change. (WWF, OCEANA, ACTIONBIOSCI)
Costa Rica, meaning “rich coast” in Spanish, was given its name for the wealth of gold found when it was first discovered in 1502 (Costa Rica, 1892). What the Spaniards may not have realized, is that indigenous communities even richer in culture had been occupying the land for thousands of years. To this day, Costa Rica is the home of eight separate indigenous groups, whose people make up 1,7 % of the country's population (Sévenier, 2003). The Bribri, the second largest tribe and the focus of this paper, have a reserve population of about 11,500. However, due to often isolated villages which make calculations difficult, some estimate their true numbers are closer to 35,000 (Bribri, n.d.). This paper will begin by exploring the traditional beliefs, food systems and way of life of the Bribri people. Next, it will focus on the ancestral lands of the Bribri and how they have been impacted by land appropriation, exploitation and deforestation. Following, we will examine ways to address these issues. Perhaps, in considering projects from the past, we can find promising solutions for the future.
While researching the beautiful country of Costa Rica, I found many sources. These sources discussed every aspect of Costa Rica. For example, they explained the country’s historical background, common foods, clothing styles, geography, and government. This being said, I have organized this paper into five sections: overview, historical background, cultural aspects, geography and climate, and government. My goal in this paper is to show the many aspects of Costa Rica.
This environmental problem of the Dominican Republic will deal with those challenges that are considered of highest importance for the Caribbean country, challenges that require immediate attention from the Dominican people in order to secure a future that is environmentally, socially just and economically a future here the island's population can continue to benefit from the many goods and services that natural resources have to offer. There for one of the most important focal points of biodiversity in the world is located in the Caribbean region, and in this region The Hispaniola Island is the most diverse of all the West Indies that are being the most focal point that other places. However,climate change has invasion of non-native aggressive species, the overexploitation of forest and marine resources and the pollution of water, air and soil, are threatening the planet's biodiversity, thereby endangering its long-term existence. That’s why it is so much of a big deal because there is a lot in consequence more than just environmental. To be able to face the increasing losses caused by humans. It is hoped that this agreement can promote the conservation of biodiversity, the sustainable use of its components and the fair and equitable distribution of benefits arising from such use in the Dominican
The animals in Costa Rica live in a hot place so they can stay warm sense reptiles need to stay warm because reptiles and cold blooded. Most of the animals that living in Washington are warm blooded for the cold winters and falls so they don't die from lack of heat. But, those that are cold go underground into hibernation because of the heat and the lack of food. The animals of Costa Rica don't have to do that because it is always warm out. Most animals live close to some source of water because if some animal is not hydrated they become weak and get killed or die. The food for most animals are by the water or in the water so, the predators become the hunted by larger and more dangerous. Most of the animals in Washington don't all stay by the closest water source, some get their water from underground, others get the water they need from plants. Each and every animal is different in its own
Costa Rica is covered in huge jungles. Reminding me of the movie Tarzan, the jungles are full of monkeys, macaws, and many other curious creatures. Another interesting thing about Costa Rica was the beach. On the pacific side of the country, the sand is muddy and black. Even though the dark sand made the ocean look dirty, it made the white sea shells shine exceedingly bright. One of the scariest parts about Costa Rica was the reptiles. It seems that every river was full of enormous crocodiles. Although the lush, green jungle was a beautiful sight to see, Bonaire had even prettier views. Since it is located in the Caribbean, the island of Bonaire is surrounded by the most gorgeous turquoise water. The ocean was definitely the prettiest part of the island. The main terrain of Bonaire is desert. Unlike Costa Rica, there are hardly any trees. The island is covered in rocks and cactus. Because of the lack of vegetation, there were very few animals that thrive. For example, donkeys and finches were some of the only animals I saw on the island. Just like Costa Rica, Bonaire has a reptile problem. Thankfully, the reptiles in Bonaire were much nicer. Iguanas ruled the island. They were everywhere. After vacationing in Costa Rica and Bonaire, I realized that both have extraordinary
To begin, In the early 16th century the Spanish explored Costa Rica, tried to colonize but were unsuccessful because they faced several issues, such as swampy landforms, disease from mosquitos, extreme heat, rebellious natives and pirates. These problems did not stop the Spaniards, in 1563 the settlement of Cartago was established in the central highlands. Then, in 1838 Costa Rica gain independence from the Spaniards and in 1949 Costa Rica established its own armed forces. Most of the people in Costa Rica are white or mestizo, mestizo mixed race of a Spaniard and an American Indian. Native language in Costa Rica is Spanish and they also speak English. As for their religious belief the most prompted, Roman catholic 76.3% and Evangelical 13.7%.
Nature Tourism and Enterprise Development in Ecuador. (1988, November). World Leisure & Recreation, 29(1), 22-27. Retrieved from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/10261133.1988.10558980#.UtrAZ9jTksY
Costa Rica has a brief but strong history on how the Spanish came to Costa Rica and tried to take it over, however the geography and the wildlife had a play in how it was not so successful for them at first but how they eventually adapted to it. Now as far as geography in Costa Rica goes it has two different climates, tropical and subtropical which can be broken down into dry and rainy season, the terrain is a little different there are coastal plains and rugged mountains which volcanos are actually located in and some are major ones that are still active. Next we have political system and what that is like, they are a democratic republic party that keeps a very strict hand on the balance of their country and how it is run.... ... middle of paper ...
Biodiversity conservation is about saving life on Earth in all its forms and keeping natural ecosystems functioning and healthy. Biodiversity is being depleted by the loss of habitat, fragmentation of habitat, over exploitation of resources, human sponsored ecosystems, climatic changes, pollution invasive exotic species, diseases, shifting cultivation, poaching of wild life etc. Since the human beings are enjoying all the benefits from biodiversity, they should take proper care for the preservation of biodiversity in all its form and should prevent the degradation as well as the destruction of the habitats thereby maintaining the biodiversity at its optimum level which will ultimately conserve the biodiversity for the future generation.
The rainforests are the world’s oldest ecosystems dating back to almost 100 million years. The largest rainforests are located around the Amazon in South America, around the Equator in Africa, and in South Asia. Smaller rainforests thrive in Central America, Islands on the Pacific and Caribbean, and Mexico. Rainforests maintain a temperature of 50 degrees Fahrenheit and get between 160 to 400 inches of rain per year. The conditions that the Rainforests have are exemplary for life to grow and flourish. The area where the rainforests are located saves them from natural disasters and saved them from the loss of life during the ice ages. Due to these conditions the Rainforest is home to 50-70 million species (Facts about Rainforests). The rainforest’s resources began to be favored by the economy in the early 1990’s.
Nature is a balancing act. When a certain balance of a simple, natural ecosystem is disrupted, it becomes dangerously unstable. This is exactly what happened, and is currently happening, to the island of Guam. This two hundred and nine square mile island has a very simple ecosystem. The only native mammal here is the Mariana fruit bat (Miller). Consequently, when human development started on Guam its animal kingdom started to become quite unstable. For example, the brown tree snake has wiped out half of the bird population and is currently downsizing the population of rats. With no birds to eat the fruits of the trees, the forests’ seeds do not get distributed through their waste as they fly around, therefore hurting the growth of Guam’s forests (Miller). Guam’s biggest insect influence to date is the Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle.
Borges-Mendez, Ramon. "Sustainable Development and Participatory Practices in Community Forestry: the Case of FUNDECOR in Costa Rica." Local Environment 13.4 (2008): 367-383. Print.