The Camaronal Wildlife Refuge is a Wildlife refuge

Wildlife refuge

A wildlife refuge, also called a wildlife sanctuary, may be a naturally occurring sanctuary, such as an island, that provides protection for species from hunting, predation or competition, or it may refer to a protected area, a geographic territory within which wildlife is protected...

 of Costa Rica

Costa Rica

Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....

, part of the Tempisque Conservation Area

Tempisque Conservation Area

Tempisque Conservation Area is an administrative area which is managed by SINAC for the purposes of conservation in the western part of Costa Rica, including the Tempisque River valley and the Nicoya Peninsula...

, on the Pacific Coast of the Nicoya Peninsula

Nicoya Peninsula

The Nicoya Peninsula is a peninsula on the Pacific coast of Costa Rica and lies in the Guanacaste Province in the north, and the Puntarenas Province in the south. It is located at . It varies from 19 to wide and is approximately long, and forms the largest peninsula in the country. It is known...

.

The refuge was created for the protection of sea turtles nesting sites for Leatherback, Olive Ridley

Olive Ridley

The olive ridley sea turtle , also known as the Pacific ridley, is a species of sea turtle.- Description :The olive ridley is a small extant sea turtle, with an adult carapace length averaging 60 to 70 cm 1...

 and Hawksbill

Hawksbill turtle

The hawksbill sea turtle is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in its genus. The species has a worldwide distribution, with Atlantic and Pacific subspecies. E. imbricata imbricata is the Atlantic subspecies, while E...

turtles. The success of the program was evidenced by the November 2006 mass arrival of egg-laying turtles (the first registered in 15 years). Unfortunately, proposed massive and unregulated real-estate developments constitute a grave threat to the Camaronal Wildlife Refuge. Although there is a groundswell of activism opposing said development, the Camaronal Wildlife Refuge's future remains uncertain.

External links

• Camaronal Wildlife Refuge at Costa Rica National Parks