Nicaragua

C

Climate

Nicaragua’s climate is tropical, with temperatures determined largely by elevation. The coastal regions, including the city of Managua, have a hot climate, with a mean average temperature of 27°C (81°F). In the central highlands the temperature ranges between 16° and 27°C (60° and 80°F). The rainy season occurs from May until early November. Annual rainfall in the Pacific lowlands and central highlands generally ranges from 1,000 mm (40 in) to 1,800 mm (70 in), while the Caribbean coast receives more than 2,500 mm (100 in). Near the Costa Rican border to the south, rain can total as much as 6,350 mm (250 in). The Mosquito Coast becomes swampy during the rainy season.

D

Plant and Animal Life

Vegetation in Nicaragua is largely tropical and subtropical. Broadleaf trees cover large areas, and major sections of the eastern lowlands are rain forest. Oak and cedar are common in the highlands, with stands of pine in the east. Most of the country’s mahogany and other valuable tropical hardwoods have been cut. Nicaragua has more than 50 varieties of fruit trees and a wide variety of orchids and other flowers.

Wild animals include pumas, small deer, several species of monkeys, sloths, and wild pigs. There are caimans and a wide variety of other reptiles, including venomous snakes. Many species of birds, including several varieties of parrots and hummingbirds, are native to Nicaragua, which is also the winter home for many North American birds. Freshwater sharks live in Lake Nicaragua. Along the Atlantic coast sea turtles are hunted for meat and eggs, a practice that has raised concerns about the species' survival.

E

Natural Resources

Nicaragua's major resources are its excellent soil and its potential as a canal route. In addition to gold and silver, Nicaragua has mineral resources, including copper, as yet untapped. Hydroelectric potential is limited, but volcanoes provide a potential source for generating more geothermal energy. Timber reserves are extensive but are being depleted rapidly to provide lumber and more land for agriculture. Today, 15.9 percent of the land is farmed, and 43 percent is forested.

---

---

F

Environmental Issues

Environmental issues received little attention in Nicaragua before the 1980s. Deforestation is the major concern, but soil erosion and water pollution also present serious problems. Pollution has destroyed the fishing industry in Lake Managua and elsewhere. Access to clean water is a notable problem in the Managua area, where many people lack sanitation facilities and sewage treatment is inadequate for the large population.

The Nicaraguan Institute for Natural Resources and Environment (IRENA) was created in the 1980s and established Bosawas, a nature preserve of about 14,000 sq km (about 5,400 sq mi) in northern Nicaragua. Species protected there include jaguars, tapirs, howler monkeys, and canopy orchids. In the 1990s another protected area was established in southeast Nicaragua. The Indio-Maíz biological reserve, between the San Juan and Punta Gorda rivers, covers about 4,500 sq km (about 1,700 sq mi) and is home to jaguars, ocelots, rare birds, and many types of frogs, butterflies, and orchids. Together, these areas give Nicaragua the largest forest reserves in Central America. Despite these efforts, Nicaraguan rain forests continued to be cut at an accelerating rate.

III

People

Nicaragua has a population of 5,675,356 (2007 estimate). It is among the poorest nations in Central America, a legacy of exploitation by dictators, of natural disasters, and of a devastating civil war. Most of its people are mestizos (of mixed European and Native American ancestry). Minority groups include people of African, Native American, and European descent. Traditionally, a small upper class has controlled most of the nation's land and its economic and political power.

Nicaragua has a young, rapidly growing population, with 40 percent (2007) of its people under the age of 15. The birth rate (24 per 1,000 people) greatly outpaces the death rate (4 per 1,000), contributing to a population growth rate of 1.9 percent. Population growth in Nicaragua slowed during the 1980s as hundreds of thousands of people fled the country to avoid the civil war, but it returned to higher levels in the 1990s as the conflicts ended and some refugees and exiles returned. An estimated 45 percent of the population survives on less than $1 a day, with poverty levels highest in rural areas.

Nicaragua has a population density of 47 persons per sq km (122 per sq mi), several times less than that of nearby El Salvador, the most densely settled nation on the mainland of the Americas. However, Nicaragua's Caribbean lowlands are very sparsely settled, while the population is quite dense in the Pacific coast region, where most of the cities are located.

An estimated 58 percent of Nicaragua's population lives in or around cities. Managua, the capital, had an estimated population of 1.1 million in 2003. It is by far the largest city and the center for government, communications, and industry. Managua is prone to earthquakes, which destroyed the city in 1931 and again in 1972.

Nicaragua's second-largest city is León, with a population of about 109,872 (2000). León is the home of the National University and the traditional center of the country’s Liberal Party, one of the major political forces. Granada, a commercial center on Lake Nicaragua and the nation's traditional Conservative Party stronghold, has a population of 88,636. Masaya, a market town south of Managua famous for its handicrafts, has a population of 74,946. Matagalpa, a coffee-producing center in the central highlands, has 36,983 inhabitants. Cities continue to grow as poor Nicaraguans pour in from rural areas, trying to escape violence and poverty in the countryside.

	More from Encarta
	•  Presidential Myths Quiz •  Coffee break: Recharge your brain