 Location
Palo Verde National Park is situated on the Pacific slopes of
Guanacaste Province in northwestern Costa Rica. The 20,000-hectare
park is a perfect blend of seasonally dry forests on limestone
outcrops and extensive wetland vegetation bordering the Tempisque
River, along the Gulf of Nicoya.
Climate
Palo Verde National Park is situated amid hot and humid climate.
The temperature ranges between 8 degree Celsius to 35 degree
Celsius.
Topography
Palo Verde National Park houses approximately 15 habitats ranging
from the steep slopes of Limestone Mountains to the banks of rivers
Tempisque and Bebedero. The mountain belt includes freshwater
lagoons and marshes, mangrove swamps, swamp forests, evergreen
forests, deciduous savannah woodlands, hillside mixed forests,
besides grasslands of rough-leaf tree and riparian forests.Flora
and Fauna
Palo Verde National Park has a mix of moist forests and the
tropical dry forests. Tropical dry forests undergo a dramatic
seasonal transformation and include trees such as espavel, the
ciba, the pochote, the Ron Ron, the cibo barrigón, the
guayabón, the javillo, the cocobolo, the níspero and the
panamá. The mangrove swamps offer good sight to observe plants
species like the tifa, the trista, the zacate gamalote and
platanilla.The park houses somewhere around 250 species of moths,
bats, and wasps that pollinate the flowers. There are also various
species of monkeys, squirrels, peccaries, and other mammalian
frugivores.Palo Verde National Park is known as a bird-watchers'
paradise. You will be delighted to see more than 300 bird species
of yellow-naped parrot, king vultures, besides curassows; the only
permanent colony of scarlet macaws in the dry tropics. Besides the
locales of the park is a witness to quarter of a million wading
birds and waterfowls that gather here with the onset of
winters.Isla de Pájaros, in the middle of the Rio Tempisque,
abounds with water birds, including white ibis, roseate spoonbills,
anhinga, and wood storks, besides jabiru storks- the largest storks
in the world. The park is also a sanctuary to nation's largest
colony of black-crowned night herons. Swamp Vegetation
The predominating swamp vegetation includes Palo Verde or horse
bean, a shrub with green leaves and branches, besides spikes. The
name of the park has also been derived from this bean.Ideal
Time
The park is ideal to visit during dry seasons, though the Tempisque
basin is usually hot in this season. The season offers easy
accessibility and also deciduous trees lose their leaves, thereby
making bird-watching easier.
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