Costa Rica Facts
Here are a few helpful facts about Costa Rica
- Costa Rica's population: 4,133,884 (July 2007 estimate)
- Per Capita Income: $12,000
- Time Zone: UTC-6
- Official Language: Spanish
- Currency: Costa Rican col—n
- Major Religion: Catholic
- Area: 51,100 km2 (19,730 sq mi)
- Form of Government: Presidential Republic
- Current President: Oscar Arias
- Annual foreign visitors: 1.9 million (2007, USA 54%, EU 14%)
- Approximate expenditure per tourist: $1,000 ($1.9 billion per annum)
- About 23% of Costa Rica has been set aside as protected parks and reserves.
- Costa Rica contains 5% of the world's biodiversity (over 500,000 species), including:
- 894 recorded species of birds
- over 300,000 insects
- around 1,250 species of butterfly
- over 8,000 species of moth
- around 175 amphibians
