La Selva Biological Station

La Selva has been a research station since the 1960s and is run by a consortium of universities, and the volume of science done here is exceptional: several thousand published papers, making this among the best-studied areas of tropical rainforest anywhere. It covers about sixteen square kilometres of Caribbean lowland forest connected to Braulio Carrillo, with an extensive trail network including paved paths and a long suspension bridge over the Puerto Viejo river. More than half the bird species in Costa Rica have been recorded here. Visitors can take guided walks with resident naturalists or stay in the station accommodation alongside researchers.

History

The American botanist and climatologist Leslie Holdridge, known for his life zones system, founded La Selva in 1953, buying the land as a farm to test mixed agriculture and tree crops that could be grown without clearing all the forest; at first it was reached by a long, rough dirt road and a four-kilometre dugout canoe trip. In 1968 the Organization for Tropical Studies, then five years old, bought it for fifty thousand US dollars as a private reserve and biological station, and Holdridge supported research here until his death in 1999. Since then the reserve has tripled in size, gained buildings and easy access, and become one of the most important sites for tropical research in the world (Wikipedia, La Selva Biological Station).

What's there

• The trail network - paved and dirt paths through primary lowland forest.
• The suspension bridge - over the Puerto Viejo river at the entrance.
• The bird list - over half the country's species recorded here.
• The station itself - working researchers and long-term plots.

When to go

December to April is drier, though this is a wet slope and rain is likely in any month. Guided walks run in the morning and afternoon and must be booked; independent walking is limited. Early morning is best for birds.

Good to know

Access is controlled because it is a working research station, so walking here means a booked guided tour rather than wandering. Accommodation is dormitory-style and functional. It rains a great deal. Insects are heavy. It is not set up as a tourist attraction and the experience is closer to visiting a laboratory that happens to be a forest.

Nearby

Sarapiquí is ten minutes; Braulio Carrillo adjoins the reserve to the south.

Key facts