Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Orchid
JONATHAN GREGSON / LONELY PLANET ©
Cloud Birds
Playing an important role in the pollination of orchids and other blooming plants,
hummingbirds are among the most visible of the cloud-forest creatures. Their unique
ability to fly in place, backwards and upside down allows them to drink on the fly, as
it were. There are some 30 species buzzing around; check them out at Cafe Colibri,
just outside the Monteverde reserve.
You'll hear the three-wattled bellbird long before you see him, as his distinctive
song is supposedly one of the loudest bird calls on earth. As you might guess, he has
three long wattles hanging from his beak.
The most famous cloud-forest resident is the resplendent quetzal. With long plumes
of jade green and electric blue, this exotic beauty lives up to his name. The quetzals
move seasonally between elevations, but if you're in the right place at the right time, a
good bird guide should be able to find one.
Quaker Connection
The Quakers were the original conservationists here. In the early 1950s, about a
dozen pacifist farming families decided to leave the United States so that they would
not be drafted to fight in the Korean War. They settled in this remote perch and called
it Monteverde (literally 'Green Mountain'). The Quakers have been actively involved
in protecting this unique environment ever since.
