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Costa Rica Wildlife Encounters at Home

One of Costa Rica’s main attractions is our plentiful wildlife. Tourists come to see monkeys, sloths, toucans and more in their natural habitats. But it is called wildlife for a reason — it sometimes strays from its natural habitat. Live here long enough and you may encounter our animal friends in untypical places. Here are a few examples compiled from myself and my family: The Bats in the Roof I lived for several years in a house in a rural area of Costa Rica. Not long after it was built, we observed bats entering a tiny opening in the roof each morning at dawn. As we had no problems with mosquitos I guessed these were the insect-eating variety. I wanted to keep them close by — just not in the ceiling. We built a bat box, tried to seal the small holes (bats can squeeze through dime-sized apertures), climbed a ladder and banged on the roof. Nothing worked. When it came time to sell the house, I opened my wallet and paid a specialist to come in and relocate them. The Snake under the ...
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Scientists Confirm Critical Migratory Corridor Between Cocos Island and Osa Peninsula

In a major advancement for marine conservation, the One Ocean Worldwide Coalition (OOWC), in collaboration with Costa Rica’s National System of Conservation Areas ( SINAC ) and national park rangers, has successfully completed Phase 1 of a comprehensive scientific project that definitively maps a vital underwater migratory highway linking Cocos Island National Park with nursery and feeding habitats along the Osa Peninsula on Costa Rica’s southern Pacific coast. The study, conducted from March 2025 to March 2026 across Cocos Island, Isla del Caño, and coastal waters of the Osa Peninsula, used advanced non-invasive technologies including acoustic tagging, 30 BRUVS (baited remote underwater video stations) deployments, photo-identification, and genetic sampling. Preliminary results confirm the existence of a biologically critical Cocos–Osa Swimway that follows the underwater seamounts and ridges of the Cocos Ridge, connecting the remote oceanic sanctuary of Cocos Island with important m...
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Costa Rica Accuses China-Linked Group of Cyber Espionage Attack on ICE

The Government of Costa Rica announced today that the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) suffered a security attack linked to cyber espionage. Officials revealed the breach during an emergency press conference at Casa Presidencial . They said a threat actor with possible ties to China infiltrated ICE systems and extracted data. The attack came to light after the Ministry of Science, Innovation, Technology and Telecommunications received an alert in February from Mandiant, a Google cybersecurity firm. The company flagged a breach in ICE infrastructure. Forensic analysis later confirmed the presence of the actor, who targets the telecom sector for espionage purposes. Minister Paula Bogantes described the group as one that focuses on cyber espionage in telecommunications. She noted it has appeared in 42 countries and is already known internationally. ICE President Marco Acuña said the hackers pulled 9 gigabytes of internal emails from a server located in Costa Rica, not in the clou...
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Costa Rican Kombucha Culture Hits U.S. West Coast Stores

Kombucha Culture, the top kombucha producer in Costa Rica and Central America, now sells its canned drinks at select stores in Southern California and the Pacific Northwest. The company brews and packages every batch on its certified organic farm in Santa Elena de Pérez Zeledón. It combines imported tea with fruits, roots and plants grown on site to make the products. All cans carry USDA organic certification, along with vegan and gluten-free labels. Retailers in Southern California, including Erewhon, Bristol Farms, Jimbo’s Naturally and Lassen’s, stock the drinks through UNFI distribution. In the Pacific Northwest, Town & Country Markets carry them via Crown Pacific Fine Foods. The lineup includes five flavors: Boho with ginger, pineapple and hibiscus; Island Roots with turmeric, ginger, lemon and black pepper; Purple Rain with chamomile, lavender and butterfly pea flowers; Golden Hour with ginger and passion fruit; and Dragon Rose with dragon fruit and rose water. Each can con...
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Costa Rica Dollar Hits Two Decade Low Amid Debate Over External Debt

Costa Rica’s dollar exchange rate has fallen to levels not seen in about two decades, and economists Fernando Naranjo and Norberto Zúñiga say one of the main reasons is the government’s heavy use of external debt since 2023. The two argued that foreign borrowing has pumped more dollars into the local market, adding to the pressure that has pushed the U.S. currency lower against the colón. The dollar has already fallen by about ₡22 since the start of the new year alone, with much of that drop concentrated in February. The broader market data backs up the idea that Costa Rica is dealing with an unusually large supply of dollars. In its January monetary policy report, the Central Bank said the abundance of foreign currency helped drive down the nominal exchange rate. It reported that the accumulated surplus from the public’s foreign exchange operations with intermediaries reached $6.65 billion in 2025, slightly below 2024 but still far above the average of recent prior years. That is w...
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Costa Rica Investigates More TikTok Creators After PANI Grooming Reports

Costa Rica’s National Children’s Trust, known as PANI , reported two more TikTok creators to prosecutors yesterday over alleged grooming cases, widening a fast-moving investigation that has put several Costa Rican digital personalities under scrutiny in the span of a week. The latest complaints bring the total to four cases involving content creators referred by PANI to the Public Prosecutor’s Office in recent days. The two newest cases involve men identified by the surnames Álvarez and Ocón. It was reported that one of them has about 290,000 followers and the other about 955,000. Authorities said the reports include conversations of a sexual nature with minors and, in at least one case, an alleged request that the underage person not tell anyone about the communication because she was a minor. The new complaints follow two earlier cases filed against influencers identified by the surnames Blanco and Gómez. One of those cases involved content creator Esteban Gómez, known online as St...
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Andreeva’s Indian Wells Defense Ends in Dramatic Loss

Mirra Andreeva’s title defense at Indian Wells ended in frustration during the third round on Monday. Katerina Siniakova defeated the Russian 4-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in a match filled with tension. The 18-year-old Andreeva started her campaign with a 6-0, 6-0 win over Solana Sierra. Against Siniakova, ranked 44th, she struggled through a back-and-forth battle. The deciding point came when Siniakova’s shot clipped the net and dropped over, prompting Andreeva to throw her racket and make a gesture toward the crowd as she left the court. Andreeva later said she regretted her reaction. “I let out anger and emotions,” she explained. “It was not aimed at anyone specific.” Siniakova, once the top doubles player, called the finish tricky but welcomed the outcome. The match saw seven breaks of serve each and 43 break opportunities total. Wind on the stadium court added to the challenges for both. Andreeva showed irritation earlier, missing a volley to lose the second set. She argued with the umpir...
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