Cocos Island

Cocos Island
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Cocos Island National Park covers primarily a marine ecosystem, globally significant for sharks.

The park consists of Cocos Island and its surrounding marine zone. It is located in the Pacific Ocean 550km off the coast of Costa Rica. It is the point of land nearest to the Galapagos Islands, which lie 630km to the south-west.

The marine area is considered a safe haven because commercial fishing is not allowed. 300 species of fish are found, including large species such as sharks, rays, tuna and dolphins. This also makes it one of the best scuba diving spots in the world.

Cocos Island is uninhabited except for park rangers. It differs from neighbouring islands because it is not dry and barren, but covered with a humid tropical forest. It is also mountainous and there are many waterfalls. Although its ecosystem has been severely damaged by introduced species like pigs and rats, it still contains many endemic species (for example three species of endemic land birds).

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Timothy C Easton

USA - 05-May-19 -

Cocos is a difficult place to reach. It took us over 36 hours of cruising on a live aboard dive boat to reach. The island itself is I believe the “real life” inspiration for Jurassic park. Other than a couple of rangers who live on the shore the island is totally uninhabited....by humans. It is very mountainous and is covered in thick rain forest jungle with beautiful streams flowing into the ocean. Supposedly buried pirate treasure is to be found....forget about it as the jungle is for all practical purposes impenetrable. The real reason to come here is if you are an experienced diver. The waters around the island are filled with sea life including sharks, mantas, pilot whales, dolphins, tuna, etc.  because of the lack of a human population. But if you want to see this life go soon because the Japanese, Chinese and other  fishing fleets have been illegally raping the seas around the island. For example, for the sake of shark fin soup the shark population has been greatly diminished...the sharks are caught, the fin is cut off and the animal is thrown back to suffer and die. UNESCO designation means nothing to these modern day pirates.

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Site Info

Full Name
Cocos Island National Park
Unesco ID
820
Country
Costa Rica
Inscribed
1997
Type
Natural
Criteria
9 10
Categories
Natural landscape - Marine and Coastal
Link
By ID

Site History

2002 Extended

Extension of marine zone

1997 Inscribed

1986 Rejected

Does not meet criteria

Site Links

Unesco Website
Cocos Island National Park
Official Website

Área de Conservación Marina Isla del Coco

In the News

Tourist dies after being attacked by shark that also bit guide as they emerged from dive (05.12.17)

Jaeger-LeCoultre helps Cocos Island National Park fight poaching (22.09.15)

Illegal fishing continues unabated in Isla del Coco NP (20.03.14)

Locations

The site has 1 locations

Cocos Island

Connections

The site has

Constructions
Prison: AB: "The human historical record includes ... use of the island (1872-1874) as a prison"
Tunnels: Over the years Gissler dug a complex system of underground tunnels there in his treasure hunting, some of which can still be entered even today.
Notable Bridges: Pancho Bridge
Ecology
Turtles and tortoises: Habitat of Hawksbill turtle, Green turtle and Olive Ridley turtle
Rainforests
Coral: "The rich coral reef, volcanic tunnels, caves, massifs and deeper waters surrounding Cocos Island are home to more than 30 species of coral" (wiki)
Critically endangered fauna species: Hawksbill turtle - declining
Endemic Bird Species: Cocos Island EBA: Cocos Cuckoo (Coccyzus ferrugineus), Cocos Flycatcher (Nesotriccus ridgwayi), Cocos Finch (Pinaroloxias inornata)
Sharks
Orchids: "Five species of orchids have been recorded. Three of them are endemic, all belonging to the genus Epidendrum."
Sea Stacks: Cocos island is surrounded by several islets, some of them like Manuelita island, isla Pájara and "the moais" rise quite abruptly from the sea.
Geography
Pacific Ocean
Uninhabited islands: Only park rangers
Marine sites: 977 sq kms M, 24 sq kms T
Formerly inhabited islands: August Gissler a German adventurer and treasure hunter was made "Governor" of Cocos Island by the Costa Rican government in 1897. Backed by Financiers who set up the "Cocos Plantation Company" he established a colony there together with "several settler families who also grew tobacco" (Wiki). Unsuccessful he eventually left the island in 1908.
History
Buried treasures: The Treasure of Lima, en route by ship to Mexico in 1820, was stolen by the captain and his crew and was supposedly buried there. Since then, many searches have failed to discover it!
Human Activity
Piracy: AB: "The human historical record includes pirates..."
Tobacco: Several settler families who grew tobacco also lived with Gissler on the island.
Individual People
Cousteau: "oceanographer Jacques Cousteau visited the island several times and in 1994 called it "the most beautiful island in the world"" (wiki)
Timeline
Pliocene: An Argon-Potassium radiometric determination established the age of the oldest rocks between 1.91 and 2.44 million years (Late Pliocene). Wiki
Trivia
Built or owned by Germans: August Gissler was allowed by the Costa Rican government to establish a colony there in 1897.
WHS on Other Lists
Ramsar Wetlands: Isla del Coco, 1998
World Heritage Forest Programme
World Heritage Process
Rejected, and then inscribed
Ten years or more to inscribe: 1986-1997
Marine extension: There was already a smaller marine area included in the original nomination, but it was extended in 2002 to 12 nautical miles

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