Christmas Bird Count Record Soars in Veragua Rainforest Research & Adventure for 2012

A  number of 417 different bird species, and 12,665 individual birds, were identified in a 24-hour period – the highest number registered in Central America for the annual bird count. Beginning at 12:00 a.m. on December 5 and finishing at midnight the same day, 67 ornithologists, naturalist guides, university students and bird enthusiasts covered 19 routes in the Central Caribbean rainforest sighting as many birds as they could find.

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Veragua Rainforest is a 1,300 hectare (3,212 acre) biology research center and adventure center, located about an hour inland from the historic Caribbean port town of Limón in Costa Rica. It is an area of breathtaking tropical rainforest in the foothills of the Talamanca Mountain Range bordering the La Amistad (“Friendship”) International Park, the country’s largest and most remote national park that is shared by both Costa Rica and Panama.
Every year at Christmastime, birding devotees throughout the Americas – both professional and amateur – outfit themselves with binoculars, bird guides and checklists, and brave snow, wind, rain or tropical sun (as in the case of Costa Rica) to count birds. The National Audubon Society of the USA leads the bird count; they and other organizations use the data collected to assess the health of bird populations and to help guide conservation action. The 113^th annual Christmas Bird Count in the United States is on from December 14, 2012 through January 5, 2013. Tens of thousands of volunteers participate in this longest-running wildlife census, making an “enormous contribution to conservation,” according to the National Audubon Society.

Veragua Rainforest Research & Adventure is a must-see attraction when visiting Costa Rica’s Caribbean area. There are walking trails through the rainforest, a river and waterfall, an aerial tram, a canopy zip line tour, a biology research station and fascinating wildlife habitats, plus a restaurant, café and souvenir shop. Veragua Rainforest Research & Adventure is open Tuesday to Sunday, from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm. Admission is $66 for adults and $55 for children/students; children under age 4 get in free. The admission price includes all activities and attractions, with the exception of the canopy tour – which is an additional fee. Veragua is located 40 minutes from Limon and 2 ½ hours from San José, in Brisas de Veragua, 12 km south from the Liverpool entrance on the highway to Limón.