Abstract
Globally, most active tropical glacial landscapes are found at elevations above 4000 m. Nonetheless, the presence of paleoglacial landforms in low latitudes, especially those formed during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), persists in different tropical regions. Chirripó National Park, in central-south Costa Rica, is one of these particular examples. The glacial and periglacial landscape in the park are located over 3000 m, with landforms such as arêtes, glacial cirques, moraines, till deposits, and glacial lakes. We performed an integrated approach for the geoheritage inventory and geotourism management, crossing geomorphological and cultural information. A total of 14 geomorphosites were assessed and their management discussed. These geomorphosites achieved scientific scores between 0.5 (Valle Talari, Cerro Urán, and Cerro Terbi) and 0.88 (Cerro Chirripó and Los Crestones). The average scientific value of the geomorphosites is 0.75, since they are well preserved (0.75), rare (0.57) and representative (0.84) of the region’s geomorphology. They also play an important role in the geographical history (0.62), as well as the significant use and management characteristics (0.8). Chirripó National Park has key importance both naturally and culturally for Costa Rica. Its geomorphosites assessment is of critical value for the Costa Rican Conservation Areas System in order to promote improved geotourism. Geoheritage mapping can offer more opportunities of transferring geoscience knowledge to a larger public and policy makers. Our study aims to improve and further the state of the art of tropical glacial geoheritage.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alfaro A, Denyer P, Alvarado G, Gazel E, Chamorro C (2018) Estratigrafía y petrografía de las rocas ígneas en la Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Revista Geológica de América Central 58:7–36. https://doi.org/10.15517/rgac.v58i0.32669
Alvarado G (2011) Los volcanes de Costa Rica: geología, historia, riqueza natural y su gente. EUNED, San José
Alvarado G, Benito B, Staller A, Climent A, Camacho E, Rojas W, Marroquín G, Molina E, Talavera E, Martínez-Cuevas S, Lindholm C (2017) The new Central American seismic hazard zonation: mutual consensus based on up to day seismotectonic framework. Tectonophysics 721:462–476. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2017.10.013
Asamblea Legislativa (2011) Ley N°8943 Declaración de Los Crestones del Parque Nacional Chirripó como símbolo patrio. Sistema Nacional de Legislación Vigente
Asrat A (2018) Potential geoheritage sites in Ethiopia: challenges of their promotion and conservation. In Geoheritage (pp. 339-353). Elsevier
Barquero J, Ellenberg L (1983) Geomorfología del piso alpino del Chirripó en la Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Revista Geográfica deb América Central 17-18:293–299
Benado J, Hervé F, Schilling M, Brilha J (2019) Geoconservation in Chile: state of the art and analysis. Geoheritage 11(3):793–807
Bergoeing JP (1977) Modelado glaciar en la Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Instituto Geográfico Nacional. Informe Semestral. Julio-Diciembre: 33-44
Boukhchim N, Fraj T, Reynard E (2018) Lateral and “vertico-lateral” cave dwellings in Haddej and Guermessa: characteristic geocultural heritage of southeast Tunisia. Geoheritage 10(4):575–590
Bouzekraoui H, Barakat A, Touhami F, Mouaddine A, El Youssi M (2018) Inventory and assessment of geomorphosites for geotourism development: a case study of Aït Bou Oulli valley (Central High-Atlas, Morocco). Area 50(3):331–343
Brilha J (2018) Geoheritage and geoparks. In Geoheritage. Netherlands, Elsevier, pp. 323–335
Caminatas al Chirripó (2018) Historia y atractivos del Chirripó. Camintas al Chirripó. http://www.caminatasalchirripo.com/historia-y-atractivos.html. Accessed 12 Sept 2019
Campos-Durán D, Quesada-Román A (2017) Impacto de los eventos hidrometeorológicos en Costa Rica, periodo 2000–2015. Revista Geo UERJ 30:440–465. https://doi.org/10.12957/geouerj.2017.26116
Chaverrí A (2008) Historia natural del Parque Nacional Chirripó – Costa Rica. Editorial INBio, Santo Domingo de Heredia
Clark PU, Dyke AS, Shakun JD, Carlson AE, Clark J, Wohlfarth B, Mitrovica JX, Hostetler SW, McCabe AM (2009) The last glacial maximum. Science 325:710–714. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1172873
Clivaz M, Reynard E (2018) How to integrate invisible geomorphosites in an inventory: a case study in the Rhone River valley (Switzerland). Geoheritage 10:527–541
Comanescu A, Nedelea A (2010) Analysis of some representative geomorphosites in the Bucegi Mountains: between scientific evaluation and tourist perception. Area 42:406–416. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4762.2010.00937.x
Consorcio Aguas Eternas (2016a) Laguna Ditkevi. Chirripó. https://www.chirripo.org/info/laguna-ditkevi/. Accessed 12 Sept 2019
Consorcio Aguas Eternas (2016b) Sabana de los Leones. Chirripó. https://www.chirripo.org/info/sabana-los-leones/. Accessed 12 Sept 2019
Cunningham M, Stark C, Kaplan M, Schaefer (2019) Glacial limitation of tropical mountain height. Earth Surface Dynamics 7:147–169. https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-7-147-2019
DeMets C, Gordon R, Argus D (2010) Geologically current plate motions. Geophys J Int 181:1–80. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2009.04491.x
Denyer P, Alvarado GE (2007) Mapa geológico de Costa Rica. Escala 1:400 000. Librería Francesa. San José, Costa Rica
Diolaiuti G, Smiraglia C (2010) Changing glaciers in a changing climate: how vanishing geomorphosites have been driving deep changes in mountain landscapes and environments. Géomorphologie 16:131–152
Esquivel-Hernández G, Sánchez-Murillo R, Quesada-Román A, Mosquera G, Birkel C, Boll J (2018) Insight into the stable isotopic composition of glacial lakes in a tropical alpine ecosystem: Chirripó, Costa Rica. Hydrol Process 32:3588–3603. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.13286
Esquivel-Hernández G, Mosquera G, Sánchez-Murillo R, Quesada-Román A, Birkel C, Crespo P, Célleri R, Windhorst D, Breuer L, Boll J (2019) Moisture transport and seasonal variations in the stable isotopic composition of rainfall in Central American and Andean Páramo during El Niño conditions (2015-2016). Hydrol Process 33(13):1802–1817. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.13438
Gałaś A, Paulo A, Gaidzik K, Zavala B, Kalicki T, Churata D, Gałaś S (2018) Geosites and geotouristic attractions proposed for the Project Geopark Colca and Volcanoes of Andagua, Peru. Geoheritage 10:707–729
Gardner T, Fisher D, Morell K, Cupper M (2013) Upper-plate deformation in response to flat slab subduction inboard of the aseismic Cocos Ridge, Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica. Lithosphere 5:247–264. https://doi.org/10.1130/L251.1
Gómez L (2005) La exploración científica de los páramos costarricenses. In Páramos de Costa Rica. Editorial INBio, Santo Domingo de Heredia, pp 101–110
Gordon J, Crofts R, Díaz-Martínez E, Woo K (2018) Enhancing the role of geoconservation in protected area management and nature conservation. Geoheritage 10:191–203
Hastenrath S (1973) On the Pleistocene glaciation of the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Zeitschrift für Gletscherkunde und Glazialgeologie 9(1-2):105–121
Horn SP (1990) Timing of deglaciation in the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Climate Research 1:81–83. https://doi.org/10.3354/cr001081
Horn S, Orvis K, Haberyan K (2005) Limnología de las lagunas glaciales en el páramo del Chirripó, Costa Rica. In Páramos de Costa Rica. Editorial INBio, Santo Domingo de Heredia, pp 161–181
Hussain Z, Zakaria M, Leman M (2008) Geoheritage of Malaysia. In Geoheritage of East and Southeast Asia. Ampang Press. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, pp. 151–184
Kappelle M, Horn S (2016) The Páramo ecosystem of Costa Rica’s highlands. In Costa Rican Ecosystems, p 744
Kaser G, Osmaston H (2002) Tropical glaciers. Cambridge University Press
Kubalíková L (2019) Assessing geotourism resources on a local level: a case study from southern Moravia (Czech Republic). Resources 8(3):150. https://doi.org/10.3390/resources8030150
Kusumahbrata Y (2008) Geoheritage of Indonesia. In Geoheritage of East and Southeast Asia. Ampang Press. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, pp 59–92
Lachniet M, Seltzer G (2002) Late Quaternary glaciation of Costa Rica. Geol Soc Am Bull 114:547–558
Lachniet M, Seltzer G, Solís L (2005a) Geología, geomorfología y depósitos glaciaresen los páramos de Costa Rica. In: Kappelle M, Horn S (eds) Páramos de Costa Rica. Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad (INBio), Santo Domingo de Heredia, Costa Rica, 767 pp
Lachniet M, Vázquez-Selem L (2005b) Last glacial maximum equilibrium line altitudes in the circum-Caribbean (Mexico, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Colombia, and Venezuela). Quat Int 138-139:129–144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2005.02.010
Li Y, Tieche T, Horn S, Li Y, Chen R, Orvis K (2019) Mapping glacial landforms on the Chirripó massif, Costa Rica, based on Google Earth, a digital elevation model, and field observations. Revista Geológica de América Central 60:109–121. https://doi.org/10.15517/rgac.v2019i60.36465
Maldonado T, Alfaro E, Hidalgo H (2018) A review of the main drivers and variability of Central America’s climate and seasonal forecast systems. Rev Biol Trop 66(1-1):S153–S175. https://doi.org/10.15517/rbt.v66i1.33294
Mark B, Harrison S, Spessa A, New M, Evans D, Helmens K (2005) Tropical snowline changes at the last glacial maximum: a global assessment. Quat Int 138-139:168–201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2005.02.012
Marshall J (2007) The Geomorphology and Physiographic Provinces of Central America. In Central America: Geology, Resources and Hazards. Taylor & Francis, London. pp. 1–51
Mauerhofer L, Reynard E, Asrat A, Hurni H (2018) Contribution of a geomorphosite inventory to the geoheritage knowledge in developing countries: the case of the simien mountains national park, Ethiopia. Geoheritage 10:559–574
MEP (2017) Minienciclopedias de los pueblos indígenas de Costa Rica. Ministerio de Educación Pública. https://www.mep.go.cr/educatico/minienciclopedias-pueblos-indigenas
Migoń P (2018) Geoheritage and World Heritage Sites. In Geoheritage. Netherlands, Elsevier, pp. 237–249
Morell K, Kirby E, Fisher D, Soest M (2012) Geomorphic and exhumational response of the Central American Volcanic Arc to Cocos Ridge subduction. J Geophys Res Solid Earth 117:1–23. https://doi.org/10.1029/2011JB008969
Mucivuna V, Reynard E, Garcia M (2019) Geomorphosites assessment methods: comparative analysis and typology. Geoheritage 11:1–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-019-00394-x
Newsome D, Dowling R (2018) Geoheritage and geotourism. In Geoheritage. Netherlands, Elsevier, pp 305–321
Orvis K, Horn S (2000) Quaternary glaciers and climate on Cerro Chirripó, Costa Rica. Quat Res 54:24–37. https://doi.org/10.1006/qres.2000.2142
Otto JC, Smith MJ (2013) Geomorphological mapping. In: Clarke L, Nield J (eds) Geomorphological Techniques, Chap. 2, Sec. 6. British Society for Geomorphology, London
Otto JC, Prasicek G, Blöthe J, Schrott L (2018) GIS Applications in geomorphology. In: Comprehensive Geographic Information Systems. Elsevier, pp 81–111
Ovreiu A, Comănescu BI, Nedelea A (2019) Evaluating Geomorphosites and the geomorphological hazards that impact them: case study—Cozia massif (Southern Carpathians, Romania). Geoheritage 11(3):1067–1087. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-019-00352-7
Panizza M (2001) Geomorphosites: concepts, methods and example of geomorphological survey. Chin Sci Bull 46:4–6
Panizza M, Piacente S (2003) Geomorfologia Culturale. Pitagora Editrice, Bologna, p 350
Pelfini M, Bollati I (2014) Landforms and geomorphosites ongoing changes: concepts and implications for geoheritage promotion. Quaestiones Geographicae 33:131–143
Pérez-Umaña D (2017) Evaluación del potencial turístico de geomorfositios del Parque Nacional Volcán Poás. Tesis para optar por el grado de Licenciatura en Ciencias Geográficas con énfasis en Ordenamiento del Territorio. Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica
Pérez-Umaña D, Quesada-Román A, De Jesús J, Zamorano-Orozco J, Dóniz-Páez J, Becerra-Ramírez R (2018) Comparative analysis of geomorphosites in volcanoes of Costa Rica, Mexico, and Spain. Geoheritage 11(2):545–559. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-018-0313-0
Pérez-Umaña D, Quesada-Román (2018a) Metodología para la valoración y evaluación de geomorfositios en Costa Rica. Revista Geográfica de América Central 60:117–135. https://doi.org/10.15359/rgac.60-1.4
Pérez-Umaña D, Quesada-Román A (2018b) Una propuesta para la valoración de Geoparques en Costa Rica. Anuário do Instituto de Geociências-UFRJ 3:382–394. https://doi.org/10.11137/2018_3_382_394
Pérez-Umaña D, Quesada-Román A, Zangmo-Tefogoum G (2019) Geomorphological heritage inventory and management of Irazú Volcano, Costa Rica. International Journal of Geoheritage and Parks 8:31–47. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijgeop.2019.12.001
Porter S (2001) Snowline depression in the tropics during the last glaciation. Quat Sci Rev 20:1067–1091. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-3791(00)00178-5
Potter R, Li Y, Horn S, Orvis K (2019) Cosmogenic Cl-36 surface exposure dating of late Quaternary glacial events in the Cordillera de Talamanca, Costa Rica. Quat Res 92(1):216–231. https://doi.org/10.1017/qua.2018.133
Quesada-Román A (2016) Peligros geomorfológicos: inundaciones y procesos de ladera en la cuenca alta del río General (Pérez Zeledón), Costa Rica. Tesis de Maestría en Geografía con énfasis en Geografía Ambiental. Posgrado en Geografía. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. 157 p. doi:https://doi.org/10.13140/RG.2.1.2731.6080
Quesada-Román A (2017) Geomorfología Fluvial e Inundaciones en la Cuenca Alta del Río General, Costa Rica. Anu Inst Geocienc 40:278–288. https://doi.org/10.11137/2017_2_278_288
Quesada-Román A, Moncada-López R, Paz-Tenorio JA, Espinoza-Jaime E, Castellón-Meyrat C, Acosta-Galeano N (2018) Las investigaciones sobre movimientos de laderas en Costa Rica, Honduras, México y Nicaragua: enseñanzas desde la academia, las agencias de cooperación y las instituciones públicas. Revista Geográfica de América Central 60, 17–59. https://doi.org/10.15359/rgac.60-1.1
Quesada-Román A, Stoffel M, Ballesteros-Cánovas J, Zamorano-Orozco J (2019) Glacial geomorphology of the Chirripó National Park, Costa Rica. J Maps 15(2):538–545. https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2019.1625822
Quesada-Román A, Zamorano-Orozco J (2019a) Geomorphology of the upper general river basin, Costa Rica. J Maps 15(2):95–101. https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2018.1548384
Quesada-Román A, Zamorano-Orozco J (2019b) Zonificación de procesos de ladera e inundaciones a partir de un análisis morfométrico en la cuenca alta del río General, Costa Rica. Inv. Geogr. 99:1–19. https://doi.org/10.14350/rig.59843
Quesada-Román A, Ballesteros-Cánovas JA, Granados-Bolaños S, Birkel C, Stoffel M (2020a) Dendrogeomorphic reconstruction of floods in a dynamic tropical river. Geomorphology 359:107133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2020.107133
Quesada-Román A, Cámpos N, Alcalá-Reygosa J, Granados-Bolaños S (2020b) Equilibrium-line altitude and temperature reconstructions during the Last Glacial Maximum in Chirripó National Park. Costa Rica, J South Am Earth Scie 100: 102576. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsames.2020.102576
Reynard E (2004) Geosites. In Encyclopedia of Geomorphology. Routledge, London, p 440
Reynard E, Bussard J, Grangier L, Martin S (2016) integrated approach for the inventory and management of geomorphological heritage at the regional scale. Geoheritage 8(1):43–60. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-015-0153-0
Reynard E, Brilha J (2018) Geoheritage: a multidisciplinary and applied research topic. In: Geoheritage. Elsevier, Netherlands, pp 3–9
Ross Y, Capelli L (2014) Costa Rica Parques Nacionales. Fronteras naturales. Producciones del Río Nevado, San José
Salinas E (2017) Orientaciones contextuales del pensamiento local en la formación del educando desde el Subsistema en Educación Indígena. Imprenta Nacional, San José
Seijmonsbergen A, Sevink J, Cammeraat L, Recharte J (2010) A potential geoconservation map of the Las Lagunas area, northern Peru. Environ Conserv 37:107–115
Solís A (2016) Las vidas remotas del otro Chirripó. https://www.nacion.com/revista-dominical/las-vidas-remotas-del-otro-chirripo/M5Y5QWPERBHABB3XZJ4A423KRU/story/. Accessed 15 Oct 2019
Tavera-Escobar M, Sierra N, Henao C, Arbaux M (2017) Georutas o itinerarios geológicos: un modelo de geoturismo en el Complejo Volcánico Glaciar Ruiz-Tolima, Cordillera Central de Colombia. Cuadernos de Geografía: Revista Colombiana de Geografía 26:219–240
UNESCO (2018) Evaluación Ambiental Estratégica en sitios Patrimonio Mundial naturales. http://wwwunescoorg/new/es/media-services/single-view/news/strategic_environmental_assessment_in_natural_world_heritage/ Accesed 27 Oct 2019
Vázquez-Selem L, Lachniet M (2017) The deglaciation of the mountains of Mexico and Central America. Cuadernos de Investigación Geográfica 43:553–570. https://doi.org/10.18172/cig.3238
Veas-Ayala N, Quesada-Román A, Hidalgo H, Alfaro E (2018) Humedales del Parque Nacional Chirripó, Costa Rica: características, relaciones geomorfológicas y escenarios de cambio climático. Rev Biol Trop 66:1436–1448. https://doi.org/10.15517/rbt.v66i4.31477
Weyl R (1955). Contribución a la geología de la Cordillera de Talamanca. Instituto Geográfico Nacional: San José, Costa Rica. p. 77.
Zwoliński Z, Najwer A, Giardino M (2018) Methods for assessing geodiversity in Geoheritage. Elsevier, Netherlands, pp 27–52
Acknowledgments
We greatly thank Junior Porras, Esteban Jiménez, Vanessa Mucivuna, Paula Saborío-Román, Gary Lynam and anonymous reviewers for their useful collaborations and suggestions that highly improved the analysis and final manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Quesada-Román, A., Pérez-Umaña, D. Tropical Paleoglacial Geoheritage Inventory for Geotourism Management of Chirripó National Park, Costa Rica. Geoheritage 12, 58 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-020-00485-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12371-020-00485-0