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Fire-maintained grassland in La Amistad International Park, Costa Rica/Panama
© Ron Myers
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Located in south-central Costa Rica and northern Panama, La Amistad International Park encompasses approximately 667,000 acres (269,900 ha) along the Talamanca Montane. The park is the core of the much larger Amistad Biosphere Reserve. La Amistad is characterized by its high levels of endemism (it harbors an estimated 4 percent of all terrestrial species on Earth), and includes ten of the 13 life zones of both countries, including cloud forest, tropical humid and wet forests. Traditional agricultural fires pose a threat, especially on the Pacific side. In 2004, more than 7,000 ha burned during the dry season.
Current efforts focus in implementing prevention and control practices, establishing volunteer programs with local communities, and fostering alliances with other Biosphere Reserves that are addressing fire issues (i.e. Montseny Biosphere Reserve).
La Amistad is a bi-national Parks in Peril site.
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