Eating Iguanas in Costa Rica 2025
What can be more bizarre than the ancient traditions? Only the ancient traditional cuisine choices
Best time: March–April
It is not only a matter of history and ancient gourmet cuisine that Costa Ricans involve in a green iguana hunt each spring. Every year pregnant female iguanas come down to the sandy beaches to lay the eggs. At this period, they are extremely slow and it is easy to catch them. However, with the climate change and increased interest in the hunt, the iguanas have become endangered.
As of today, it is illegal for anyone not local to hunt and kill iguanas. This tradition is reserved only for people tied to their roots and traditions, such as the Maleku tribe in Guatuso, so travellers are not really the ones participating in the process. Please, respect the rules, and don't try to hunt iguanas for the dinner.
The video below contains a bit of violence, please don't watch it in case you are too sensitive.
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