La Selva Protected Zone

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La Selva Biological Station
Location:	Costa Rica
Nearest city:	Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí
Area:	15 km²
Established:	25 January 1971
Governing body:	National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC)

La Selva Biological Station is a nature reserve located in Costa Rica, part of the Central Volcanic Conservation Area. The reserve is about 15 square kilometres (1600 hectares) and is owned by the Organization for Tropical Studies.

The reserve is about 2 hours' drive north of San José, and about 5 minutes south of Puerto Viejo de Sarapiquí. It is close to the huge Braulio Carrillo National Park, which provides some continuity of habitat. A biological corridor composed of old-growth forest fragments and regenerating forests, purchased in the 1980s, now connects La Selva to Braulio Carillo.

The reserve is located at the confluence of two rivers, the Río Puerto Viejo and the Río Sarapiquí. The area receives 4000 mm of precipitation in a year, with more than 100 mm each month. Temperatures range from 20-32 degrees Celsius, with much more day-to-night variation than seasonal variation. The elevation in the reserve ranges from about 30 meters above sea level at the rivers to nearly 150 meters at the southwest edge of the station.

The habitat is Caribbean lowland wet forest and marshland, and it is extremely rich in flora and fauna. There are nearly 2000 species of vascular plants. Large animals include the jaguar, collared peccary, howler monkey and bushmaster. Around 400 species of birds have been recorded, and the area is very rich in arthropods.

La Selva Biological Station is a hub for research and education in tropical ecology. Nearly 250 scientific papers are published each year from research conducted at the station. There are facilities for about 100 researchers at the station. The reserve is unusual in that many of the forest trails are paved with concrete, as can be seen in the second image below. Trails farther from the edge of the station are generally mud.