Flora and Fauna

The island of Ometepe has a tropical dry climate with two distinct seasons. One is the rainy season which the locals call winter which lasts from June until the end of November. The other is the dry season known locally as summer, which lasts from December until the end of May. For this reason the appearance of the Farm changes enormously with the seasons. During the rainy season all is green and lush, the trees are full of leaves and there is an abundance of tropical flowers. In the dry season many trees lose their leaves, the green turns into yellow, the grass disappears and the magnificent views over the lake and volcano are revealed to be admired in all their glory.

The seasonal changes, especially from the dry season to the wet one are incredibly quick. The flora of the Farm is made up of tropical plants which can survive with hardly any water. We have many species of palm trees, Mangoes, tropical trees for timber, Avocados, Bamboo, Lemons, Oranges, Vanilla and Grapefruits. Back in 2002 when we first bought the land most of it was used for growing rice. Most of the large variety of plants and trees that we now have was planted by us. As far as the fauna is concerned, to our great pleasure we have discovered that thanks to our hard work in recreating forests and green areas many animals have returned to live amongst us. We now enjoy the presence of monkeys, squirrels, many reptiles including iguanas, birds of all kinds including the characteristic Uraca with its blue feathers and black crest. Beautiful humming birds fly and hover everywhere. We also have many vultures known as “Zopilote” locally, which inspired us to name our farm after them because of their importance in the natural circle of life.