Photos From The 2021 SAVE THE FROGS! Costa Rica Ecotour
The 2021 SAVE THE FROGS! Costa Rica Ecotour was a blast! We found 36 amphibians species, visited beautiful waterfalls, hiked on the slopes of a volcano, took boat rides to see crocodiles and whales, swam in thermal pools, ate great food, made new friends and had an all-around amazing time! Enjoy these photos of the tour!
Amphibians We Found
- Bolitoglossa striatula – Striated webfoot salamander
- Incilius aucoinae – Southern CR toad
- Rhaebo haematiticus – River toad
- Rhinella marina – Cane toad
- Cochranella granulosa – Granular glass frog
- Espadarana prosoblepon – Emerald glass frog
- Hyalinobatrachium colymbiphyllum – Bare-hearted glass frog
- Hyalinobatrachium valerioi – Reticulated glass frog
- Sachatamia albomaculata – Cascade glass frog
- Sachatamia ilex – Ghost glass frog
- Teratohyla spinosa – Dwarf glass frog
- Craugastor fitzingeri – Common rain frog
- Craugastor megacephalus – Broad-headed litter frog
- Craugastor mimus – Masked litter frog
- Craugastor persimilis – Similar litter frog
- Craugastor stejnegerianus – Litter frog
- Dendrobates auratus – Green and black poison dart frog
- Oophaga granulifera – Granular poison dart frog
- Oophaga pumilio – Blue jeans poison dart frog
- Diasporus diastema – Dink frog
- Dendropsophus ebraccatus – Clown treefrog
- Duellmanohyla rufioculis – Red-eyed stream treefrog
- Scinax boulengeri – Boulenger’s long-snouted treefrog
- Scinax elaeochroa – Olive long-snouted treefrog
- Smilisca manisorum – Mexican treefrog
- Smilisca phaeota – Cow soul/ masked treefrog
- Smilisca puma – Tawny treefrog
- Smilisca sila – Granular streamside treefrog
- Smilisca sordida – Drab treefrog
- Leptodactylus savagei – Smoky jungle frog
- Lithobates taylor – Cartago True Frog
- Agalychnis annae – Blue-Sided Treefrog
- Agalychnis callidryas – Red-eyed treefrog
- Lithobates vaillanti – Vaillant’s frog
- Pristimantis cerasinus – Clay-colored rain frog
- Pristimantis ridens – Pigmy rain frog
Sarapiqui
The tour began in the hills above San Jose and then we headed through the cloud forest and down to the lowlands of Sarapiqui.
Reptiles We Found
- Caiman crocodilus – Caiman
- Crocodylus acutus – Crocodile
- Rhinoclemmys funerea – Black woodturtle
- Lepidochelys olivacea – Olive ridley sea turtle
- Ctenosaura similis – Black ctenosaur
- Iguana iguana – Iguana
- Basiliscus basiliscus – Common basilisk
- Basiliscus plumifrons – Plumed basilisk
- Basiliscus vittatus – Brown basilisk
- Anolis humilis – Humble anolis
- Anolis aquaticus – Water anole
- Anolis capito – Bighead anole
- Anolis lemurinus – Lemur anole
- Anolis limifrons – Slender anole
- Holcosus festivus – Central American whiptail
- Sceloporus malachiticus – Spiny lizard
- Gonatodes albogularis – Red-headed gecko
- Hemidactylus frenatus – House gecko
- Imantodes cenchoa – Blunthead vine snake
- Imantodes inornatus – Plain vine snake
- Leptodeira rhombifera – Northern cat-eye
- Sibon longifrenis – Lichen snail eater
Ecotour Favorites…
“My favorite things about our trip, in no specific order:
▪︎ Carlos’ guiding skill; encyclopedic knowledge of Costa Rican history & wildlife; quick wit & sense of humor; attentiveness & service.
▪︎ Kerry’s bus talks also with levity while still relaying frog facts. Your interactive & comedic style kept things light & fun while still being informative.
▪︎ Jose was marvelous & did a superb job of driving & tried really hard to integrate with the group & be interactive & engage with us. BRAVO!!
▪︎ The chocolate tour. The presenter was charming & energetic & made what could have been pretty dry material fun & enjoyable.
▪︎ The bat misting presentation & presenter who was charming & interesting & the excellent slides he had running in the background.
▪︎ Both river boat rides…the one where the caiman munched the unfortunate iguana & out on the Tarcoles. It’s exhilarating & exciting to skim by wildlife on the water.
▪︎ The visit to the Tarcoles bridge ~ nothing compares to seeing crocodilian dinosaurs from above & watching the giants glide through the water. Always thrilling!!
▪︎ All the accommodations were opulent & wonderful. I was delighted they were all so fancy as I had expected more rustic lodging but if STF! was able to secure such high-end properties for such a reasonable tour fee then kudos for applying to all those fine places!”
— Ronni Trankel, California
Fortuna & Arenal Volcano Area
We headed up to Fortuna and Arenal, Costa Rica’s most famous volcano…
“My favorite thing about our trip was our awesome guides! Carlos was amazing as head guide, and Hector was fantastic on frog nights as well as with wildlife in general. I appreciated not only their knowledge but also the light-hearted and fun attitude that they both had. I also really loved the way our group gelled together. Such interesting and passionate fellow travelers made the trip a joy. I really enjoyed each place we went. I can’t think of anything I would change. Thanks for the great trip and for the incredible work that STF! Is doing. I really enjoyed learning more about the details and extent of the work. I feel inspired!”
— Leslie Wood
Mammals We Found
- Alouatta paliatta – Mantled Howler Monkey – Mono Congo
- Cebus capuccinus – White-faced Capuchin Monkey – Mono Cariblanco
- Bradypus variegatus – Three-toed Sloth – Perezoso de tres Dedos
- Choloepus hoffmanii – Two-toed Sloth – Perezoso de dos Dedos
- Tamandua mexicana – Collared Anteater – Tamandua
- Lutra longicaudus – Neotropical River Otter – Perro de Agua
- Procyon concrivorus – Crab-eating Raccon – Mapache
- Nasua narica – White-nosed Coati – Coatimundi
- Micoureus mexicana – Mexican Mouse-Opossum – Zorricí Mexicano
- Dasyprocta punctata – Agouti – Guatusa
- Sciurus variegatoides – Variegated Squirrel – Ardilla
- Sciurus granatensis – Red-tailed Squirrel – Ardilla Colirroja
- Syntheosciorus brochus – Montane Squirrel – Ardilla de Montaña
- Stenella attenuata – Spotted Dolphin – Delfín Manchado
- Platyrhinus helleri – Hellers-broad Nose Bat
- Lophostoma brasiliense – Round-eared Bat
- Sturnira lilium – Little-yellow Shoulder Bat
- Rhynchonycteris naso – Long-nose Bat
- Ectophylla alba – Hondurian Tent Bat
- Phyllostomus discolor – Pale Spear-nosed Bat
- Artibeus jamaicensis – Jamaican Fruit-eating Bat
- Artibeus lituratus – Great Fruit-eating Bat
- Dermanoura watsonii – Thomas Fruit-eating Bat
- Saccopteryx billineat – Sac-winged Bat
Pacific Coast
We headed west to the coast, to see crocodiles, dolphins and of course more amphibians…
Cloud Forests
We headed into the mountains to Costa Rica’s remote cloud forests, and eventually back to the hills above San Jose.
Join SAVE THE FROGS! For An Upcoming Ecotour!
We invite you to come frogwatching with SAVE THE FROGS! on our next tour! Whether it is to Costa Rica or another amazing frog-filled ecotourist destination, we know you will have an amazing time.
