Costa Rica is a mountainous country with broad coastal plains in
the east and west. The Caribbean coastal plain receives heavy
rainfall (3,048 mm/120 in) during most of the year. Less rain
falls on the Pacific plain, which annually averages 1,905 mm (75
in). Temperatures average 15 deg C (59 deg F) in the highlands to
about 27 deg C (80 deg F) in the plains. About 25% of the land,
mostly tropical dry forests, is under government protection