We got a couple of emails this week on US residents who own property in Costa Rica and suddenly were informed that their property was claimed by squatters rights. Well, we do not give out legal advice, nor do we get involved in stuff like this - all we could do is refer them to several Costa Rica attorneys who might help them. However, we did some online searching from several government … [Read more...]
Costa Rican Blockade in Limon on July 1st
06/26/2009 by 1 Comment
Having recently met with community and labor organizations in the Caribbean region of Costa Rica, we want to alert media about an upcoming standoff that has potential for violence on the one hand, and profound political change on the other. Organizations including ASADA and SITRAP are planning a blockade of access to and from the Caribbean ports on Wednesday, July 1. The pineapple plantations … [Read more...]
Arenal Volcano Smoking Vapor – Level 3 Alert
06/15/2009 by Leave a Comment
Scientists from the University of Costa Rica (UCR) and the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) raised the volcanic alert of the Arenal Volcano in the north-central region of La Fortuna from 2b to 3 on a 4-level scale, according to a UCR press release on Friday. Level 3, or “yellow alert,” means a probable eruption or strong changes in the eruption patterns in the next 10 days, upcoming … [Read more...]
WHO Declares Swine Flu A Pandemic
06/11/2009 by Leave a Comment
The World Health Organization declared the swine flu a pandemic today (Thursday) — the first global flu epidemic in 41 years — as infections climbed in the United States, Europe, Australia, South America and elsewhere. Tico Times editors note: As of this writing there have been ONLY a couple of new reported cases of swine flu in Costa Rica and no reported new deaths. Costa Rica is still a safe … [Read more...]
New Species of Lion Fish and Dink Frog Discovered in Costa Rica
06/05/2009 by Leave a Comment
Scientists from the University of Costa Rica's Science and Limnology Center (CIMAR) on Tuesday announced the discovery of two species of lion fish present off Punta Uva on the southern Caribbean coast. After an analysis of a school of the fish in the zone, researchers discovered two different types of lion fish: Pterois volitans (Red lionfish) and Pterois miles (Devil firefish), according to … [Read more...]
Gillnets and Shrimp Trawlers Rape of Golfo Dulce
06/02/2009 by Leave a Comment
It is common knowledge that Shrimp Fishing and Gill-Netters in the Golfo Dulce area are depleting and raping the natural habitat of the endangered and protected sea turtles and other marine life, like dolphins, Dorado, Wahoo, and shark. Even with years of outcry from ecology conservation groups, little has been done about it until now ... well, let hope! The main problem with shrimp trawlers … [Read more...]
Monkey Population Declines In Costa Rica
04/14/2009 by 2 Comments
A few days ago I wrote about how over feeding monkeys can kill them. The other day I read a recent report of, how Costa Rica has lost over half of its monkey population since 2000. What these eco- gurus are saying, "There are three reasons why the population is dwindling. 1) Developers are the main cause by expanding their developments into the monkeys habitat, thus it isolate them in small … [Read more...]
Feeding and Killing Costa Rica Monkeys
04/10/2009 by Leave a Comment
Someone told me or I read, how humans discovered chocolate was monkey’s eating the beans. So, the old story that monkeys mimic humans, isn’t it the other way around? In reality, there is nothing more thrilling to feed a wild animal, and in Costa Rica, monkeys are no exception. However, there is harm when over-feeding monkeys as there is with any wildlife. Monkeys are highly susceptible to … [Read more...]
Ecotourism, Corporate Greed, and Development
03/10/2009 by 3 Comments
Today the Osa Peninsula's most beautiful beach, full of turtle nests, has been destroyed by bulldozer and backhoes. The municipalidad in Golfito is tearing apart everything beautiful about the OSA. HELP! Back in September, 2008 the Tico Times Directory started to receive emails like the one above. Now the questions, has the peaceful Central American nation tourist reputation on protecting … [Read more...]
Comments