Costa Rica reserve revives Tapir population and rare tree

In 2004, Donald Varela purchased land in Bijagua, Costa Rica, and transformed a former cattle ranch and logging operation into the 104-hectare Tapir Valley reserve.

Varela, with the help of partners, established the private reserve to protect the local biodiversity after observing 150 bird species on the property. Securing funding proved difficult because the project did not involve traditional agriculture or livestock, but Varela eventually obtained a loan by mortgaging his home.

Tapir Valley now functions as a safe haven against poaching, illegal logging, and unregulated tourism, and it connects Volcán Tenorio National Park to Volcán Miravalles National Park within the 12,696-hectare Tenorio-Miravalles biological corridor. The reserve’s restoration strategy combines Varela’s agricultural knowledge with modern biological research, focusing on the recovery of the jícaro danto tree, a Costa Rican tree endangered due to deforestation and reliant on tapirs to spread its seeds.

Scientists at Tapir Valley discovered they could achieve up to 64% germination of jícaro danto seeds by using tapir excrement in the compost. They have since planted over 7,000 jícaro danto trees, with 623 growing within the reserve itself. The reserve also supports a diverse ecosystem, documenting 464 bird species, 61 reptiles, 40 amphibians, and 31 mammals, including the recently discovered arboreal frog Tlalocohyla celeste.

Today, at least 50 central American tapirs live in the Tenorio-Miravalles corridor, with 11 individuals residing within Tapir Valley, a significant increase from the rare sightings in 1999.