RESERVA LAPA VERDE

Reserva Lapa Verde is named after the Great Soldier Macaw

With a size of up to 85 cm, the Great Soldier Macaw (Ara ambiguus) is one of the largest parrot species. Due to its green color, it is called “Lapa Verde” in Costa Rica. Great Soldier Macaws prefer to live in dense tropical lowland rainforests, and the “almendro” (forest almond tree, Dipteryx panamensis) in particular plays a vital role in their diet and reproduction. Around 90 % of the nests of soldier macaws are found in Almendro trees. However, the mighty giant trees only provide sufficiently large nesting cavities after around 60 years. Just as important for the breeding season are the hard-shelled, almond-shaped nuts of the Almendros, which the Lapa Verde, unlike most other animal species, can easily break open with their powerful beaks. The seasonal migration of the birds depends on the regional fruit supply of these and other important food trees that are protected on the Tropica Verde areas.

Threats to
the Lapa Verde population

Due to the ongoing destruction of their habitat, the survival of these magnificent birds is highly endangered. The former range of the soldier macaw between Honduras and Colombia has already shrunk by more than 90 %. Deforestation of the rainforest is continuing. In the remaining forest areas, poaching and illegal trade also threaten the survival of this species.

Current surveys at 16 locations showed that the number of greater soldier macaws in Costa Rica in 2019 was at least 169 individuals. The Ara ambiguus is on the Red List of Threatened Species and is considered critically endangered according to the IUCN classification. To ensure the long-term survival of the Lapa Verde in Costa Rica, the last, previously unprotected breeding areas in northern Costa Rica must be saved from destruction.

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