Isla del Caño

Island and biological reserve off the southwest coast of Costa Rica

Caño Island
Native name: Isla del Caño

Geography
Area	3.2 km² (1.2 sq mi)
Highest elevation	110 m (360 ft)
Administration
Costa Rica
Province	Puntarenas
Canton	Osa
District	Bahía Drake
Demographics
Population	0

Lighthouse

Isla del Caño Lighthouse
Tower


Location	Isla del Caño Osa Costa Rica
Coordinates	8°42′22.1″N 83°53′23.1″W / 8.706139°N 83.889750°W / 8.706139; -83.889750
Constructed	1940 (first)
Construction	steel skeletal tower
Height	22 metres (72 ft)
Shape	square pyramidal skeletal tower
Markings	red lantern
Power source	solar power
Operator	Reserva Biológica Isla del Caño^[1]^[2]

Light
Focal height	63 metres (207 ft)
Range	12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi)
Characteristic	Fl W 4s.

Caño Island (Spanish: Isla del Caño) is a small island and biological reserve in the Bahia de Corcovado (Corcovado Bay) in Osa, Costa Rica. It is on the Pacific Ocean side of Costa Rica, 10 miles (16 km) west of Punta Llorona on Península de Osa. It rises steeply to a flat top of 123 metres (404 ft) in height.

Biological reserve

Caño Island Biological Reserve (Spanish: Reserva Biológica Isla del Caño), is a protected area in Costa Rica, managed under the Osa Conservation Area, it was created in 1976 by decree 6385-A.^[3]^[4]

The island and surrounding marine area of 52.01 square kilometres (20.08 sq mi) has been established as a biological reserve, with a permanent ranger station on the island. It is a popular tourist destination for ecotourism such as whale watching, attracting visitors for its beaches, coral beds, and sea life. Researchers currently use the coral beds to study the factors surrounding coral death and recolonization. Marine life includes manta rays, dolphins, false killer whales,^[5] sea turtles, whales, a wide variety of fish, and possibly manatees as well. The nudibranch Mexichromis tica was described from here and Darwin Island on the Galápagos Islands in 2004. The limited diversity of terrestrial fauna, however, is noticeable, with the island having less than one percent of the insect diversity of the peninsula and an absence of numerous animals native to the nearby mainland.

Archaeology

Evidence of pre-Columbian human activity on the island is substantial, with some of the most interesting artifacts being stone spheres evidently carved by early civilizations.

References

^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Costa Rica". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 2016-09-07.
^ List of Lights, Buoys and Fog Signals Pacific Coast. Retrieved 7 September 2016
^ "Reserva Biológica Isla del Caño Map". SINAC. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^ "Reserva Biológica Isla del Caño". Protected Planet. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
^ ANNIE. 2012. False Killer Whales. Costa Rica Scuba.com. Retrieved on August 25, 2017