Background

Southern Costa Rica hosts two of the most important sites for conservation in Central America: the Osa Peninsula and La Amistad National Park (“About the Osa”, 2017). The Osa Peninsula houses an estimated 2.5% of the planet’s biodiversity and National Geographic named it “The most biologically intense place on Earth” (“About the Osa”, 2017). The small, but highly diverse peninsula is home to approximately half of the country’s 500,000 species in its rainforests, coastal landscapes, and tropical waters (Sánchez-Azofeifa et al., 2002).  La Amistad National Park, the largest remaining intact forest in Central America, includes much of the Talamanca mountain range. The Talamancas encompass important ecosystems ranging from premontane forest to alpine paramo. Along with the high levels of endemism found in the Osa Peninsula and La Amistad, the area between them represents a critical biological corridor. 

Currently, there are no clear enforcement mechanisms in place for protecting wildlife within the corridor. Practices such as industrial monoculture for crops like palm oil, pineapple, and teak drive deforestation (Sánchez-Azofeifa et al., 2003). Deforestation and additional land-use change for agriculture continue to fragment the remaining habitat. This poses a particular threat to species that require large territories for survival such as the jaguar (School of Life Sciences ASU, n.d.). 

Increasing urgency to align on-the-ground conservation efforts with the projected impacts of climate change further complicates the region’s challenges. Much of the flora and fauna that comprise the biodiversity in the region have limited temperature tolerances, making them particularly vulnerable to climate change (Senior et al., 2019).