Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge

Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge is a Wildlife refuge, part of the Arenal Huetar Norte Conservation Area, in the northern part of Costa Rica twenty kilometers south of Los Chiles near the border with Nicaragua in the Alajuela province. The refuge is a wetlands site that is home to many migratory waterfowl during part of the year, centered on Lake Caño Negro which is fed by the Frío River during the rainy season.

Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge
IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area)
Frío River in Caño Negro Wildlife Reserve
Map showing the location of Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge
Map showing the location of Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge
Location within Costa Rica
LocationAlajuela Province, Costa Rica
Nearest cityUpala
Coordinates10°52′37″N 84°45′47″W / 10.877°N 84.763°W / 10.877; -84.763[1]
Area25,100 acres (102 km2)
Established1984
Governing bodyNational System of Conservation Areas (SINAC)
Official nameCaño Negro
Designated27 December 1991
Reference no.541[2]

Access

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Main access road is Route 138 which connects Route 4 and Route 35.

Facilities

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There are no public facilities at the refuge, and the area can be explored only by boat, for which there is a dock as well as tourist facilities at the town of Caño Negro.

Wildlife

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The forests, grasslands and marshes of the area provide shelter for various endangered species such as cougars, jaguars, tapirs, ocelots, peccary and several species of monkey (Panamanian white-faced capuchin, mantled howler and Geoffroy's spider monkey), as well as many others. In the dry season the river is reduced to little lagoons, channels and beaches which gives home to thousands of migratory birds of many species such as storks, spoonbills, ibis, anhingas, ducks and cormorants.

References

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  1. ^ "Caño Negro (Mixto) National Wildlife Refuge". protectedplanet.net.
  2. ^ "Caño Negro". Ramsar Sites Information Service. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
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