It’s that time of the year when radio stations and entertainment journalists in Costa Rica begin releasing their “Best Of” music lists. Judging by the lists compiled thus far, the discerning musical tastes of Ticos are as diverse as the many animal species roaming around the country.

British female contralto singers dominated business news daily La República’s top ten albums of the year. The number one honor when to Adele’s haunting “21” album, while the number 4 spot went to the sadly departed Amy Winehouse and her posthumous “Lioness: Hidden Treasures.” Most albums chosen by La República feature English lyrics, with the exception of Maná’s excellent “Drama y Luz”, and “O que você quer saber de verdade” from Brazilian chanteuse Marisa Montes.

La Nación commissioned radio marketing firm Monitec to conduct an inquiry into the hits with the most radio play in 2011. Monitec’s report has been published as a series of Top Ten of 2011 lists. Reggaetón star Don Omar took the number one position with “Danza Kuduro”, a dance single which played ad nauseam throughout the year, followed by “A Partir de Hoy”, a duet sung by two Mexican soap opera stars.

English-language songs which dominated Tico radios during 2011 include “The Time” by the Black-Eyed Peas, and LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem” and “Sexy And I Know It.” Local musicians did not enjoy too much airplay; only about 6 percent of the songs played by national radio DJ’s were by Tico artists. Jazz trio Escats took the top spot with “Recomenzar”, while the raucous ska band Percance snagged the number 2 and 3 positions with “Gira el Mundo” and “El Tiempo.” 2011 has been an incredible year for Percance, a band that’s a strong candidate to play at next year’s Festival Imperial.

Modern rock station 104.7 HIT has not yet compiled its Best of 2011 list, but judging by their playlists this year, Foster the People and The Black Keys are likely candidates to take top honors. One of their shows, Young Blood Independent Music, has already chosen their best songs of the year. Since the folks at Young Blood put Pitchfork Media to shame in terms of hipster acumen, their top picks will probably be unknown to most radio listeners; they are, nonetheless, great choices: Bon Iver’s “Holocene”, and Florence+the Machine’s “What the Water Gave Me.”