Manual de Plantas de Costa Rica 195 
other sources). Of course, in these particular cases it is also likely that the relatively 
drier and less mountainous terrain to the north of Costa Rica is directly related to the 
lower endemism there. In this regard, the levels of endemism registered for Ecuador 
and Peru, countries that are even more mountainous and wetter to (in certain places) 
very much drier than Costa Rica, are 27% (for vascular plants) and 31% (for seed 
plants), respectively (Jorgensen & Le6on-Yanez, 1999; Brako & Zarucchi, 1993). In- 
clude in the formulae that the total land area of Ecuador is five times, and of Peru 25 
times, that of Costa Rica. 
It should also be noted that continued study and exploration can lead to decreased 
estimates of endemism. The currently accepted percentage of endemism for the Costa 
Rican flora (see above) is less than a third of Standley’s (1938b: 1571) estimate of 37%. 
A substantial portion of this reduction can be attributed to more inclusive species con- 
cepts for the genus Piper (see Analysis, below). Furthermore, many species formerly 
believed endemic to Costa Rica have been found in the course of recent botanical field 
work in remote portions of westernmost Panama (particularly in the region of Cerro 
Fabrega). But if endemism estimates for Costa Rica have been depressed by exploration 
in other countries, the reverse is also true; some examples are recent discoveries in Costa 
Rica of former Mexican (Chiangiodendron mexicanum and Recchia simplicifolia) and 
Ecuadorian (Acanthosyris annonagustata and Miconia sparrei) endemics. 
In Costa Rica, areas of high endemism are concentrated mostly along the main cor- 
dilleras, a fine example being the Cordillera de Tilaran, with close to 10% (Haber, 
2000a); nevertheless, other sites at middle and lower elevations and with irregular to- 
pography, such as the coastal ranges of the central Pacific region and the Osa Penin- 
sula, also stand out in this regard. A few families with important percentages of en- 
demism are: Acanthaceae (23%, mostly in the genus Justicia, with 47%); Bromeliaceae 
(20.2%, mostly in the genus Werauhia, with 46.5%); Lauraceae (18.9%); Marantaceae 
(22%, mostly in the genus Calathea, with 27%); and Orchidaceae (26%, mostly in the 
genera Epidendrum, Lepanthes, and Pleurothallis, with 41%, 90%, and 24%, respec- 
tively). Endemism in the tree genus /nga (Fabaceae) is also notably high (21%; Zamora 
V. & Pennington, 2001). 
Analysis 
Costa Rica is famous for having set aside a large percentage of its territory in national 
parks and other protected areas where logging is not permitted (at least 16%; cf. Boza 
& Cevo, 2001), and for its conservation-minded and well-educated populace. At the 
same time, it is infamous for ranking high among the top ten nations in the world in rate 
of deforestation (ca. 3.9% of the remaining forest per year). One-third of Costa Rica’s 
forest cover was lost between 1950 and 1985 (Beletsky, 1998). This is nowhere more 
evident than in the Caribbean lowlands. In Standley’s time, only a very small portion 
of that area had been planted with bananas, and the vast Llanuras de San Carlos and 
