The Green Turtles of Costa Rica
A Green Sea Turtle in shallow, crystal clear water
When you travel to Costa Rica, you may hear the green turtle species referred to by one of two names, the Pacific the green turtle and the black sea turtle. Measuring up to four feet and several hundred pounds at adulthood, it is one of the largest of the sea turtle species. Unlike the other species of marine turtles, the green turtle is mostly vegetarian, subsisting mainly on a diet of sea grass. It derives its name from the plant pigmentation it absorbs that gives various parts of its body a greenish hue.
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The Green Turtles of Costa Rica
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On the verge of extinction a half century ago, green turtles are once again abundant at certain locations in Costa Rica, though the species remains endangered. Besides the usual turtle threats, green turtles appear susceptible to certain kinds of tumors.
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More green turtles inhabit the waters and beaches of Costa Rica’s Caribbean coast than anywhere else in the Western Hemisphere, making Costa Rica tours a perfect time to see the species. Divers who travel to Costa Rica will see them foraging at Cocos Island National Park and nesting in several locations. Nesting every two to five years, the green turtle’s most important nesting sites in Costa Rica are on the Caribbean coast. Visitors on Costa Rica tours may want to include Tortuguero National Park in their itinerary since 20,000 or more green turtle eggs hatch here each year. Nesting season is from July to October, some years a bit earlier and some later. Working from the John H. Phipps Biological Station just north of the park since 1994, volunteers have been tagging and monitoring the turtles under the auspices of the Sea Turtle Conservancy, an organization founded to save the green turtle. Green turtles also nest in Gandoca-Manzanillo National Wildlife Refuge further south on the Caribbean coast near the Panama border.
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On the Pacific side, green turtles come to nest in some of the locations where other turtle species do the same. These include Junquillal Bay National Wildlife Refuge in the Santa Elena Gulf near the northwestern border with Nicaragua and nearby coastal Santa Rosa National Park. Between July and September, green turtles nest in Manuel Antonio National Park, a destination on the itinerary of five of Southern Explorations’ Costa Rica tours, ranging from seven days to ten days. Our seven-day Coast to Coast trip visits Tortuguero National Park as well as Manuel Antonio Manuel National Park.
