Vulture, Samasati Nature Reserve

Flowers in the Jungle, Samasati Nature Reserve

White-faced Monkey, Cahuita

Howler Monkey, Cahuita

With all the luscious life, tropical fruit, and gorgeous vistas of the jungle come the scary things like bigger bugs than I ever imagined.  Beatles and roaches are the size of bats.  Giant bullet ants are to be avoided at all cost.; when they bite it feels like being shot.  Morpho butterflies, their wingspan about a foot, look like a computer graphics special effect.  They are electric, foil blue on one side and buff gray on the other, so when they fly they seem to appear and disappear.

Deadly snakes like bushmasters, Fer-de-Lance, and varieties of vipers slither on the sly.  There are also noisy monkeys that play tricks on you and throw coconuts and branches out of the trees all night. Some roar like far larger beasts than they are. 

Three-toed Sloth, Cahuita