Wildlife in Guatemala is unique, as in few places in the world. To better understand this, it is worth understanding the natural history of this country: Phallus indusiatus at Paso Caballos, PNLT. Photo by: Boris Llamas. August 2021. Guatemala is located in between two broad continental masses that support almost every kind of ecosystem…
International Bird Day
Birds are one of the most widely distributed biological groups, with species present on all continents where they can live, reproduce and feed in different ecosystems. It is estimated that there are currently 11,362 bird species on the entire planet! That is almost a quarter of all animals in the whole world. These amazing creatures…
Guatemalan Squirrels
Squirrels are a group of arboreal rodents belonging to the suborder Sciuromorpha, where groundhogs and prairie dogs are also found (Wilson & Reeder, 2005). They belong to a group of Eurasian origin (Laurasiatheria) that through different dispersal events have been able to colonize all continents, except Antarctica and Oceania (Mercer & Roth, 2003). Squirrels can…
Snakes from the lowlands of northern Guatemala
Snakes are a group of reptiles belonging to the order Squamata, including lizards. Guatemala has more than 273 species of reptiles. Of which 133 species are snakes. The lowlands of northern Guatemala is the area with the most species with around 73 species, being more than half of the species present in the country. In…
The Wonders of Cetaceans
Cetaceans are divided into two groups: Mysticeti (Mysticeti), which have baleen to filter their food, like the humpback whale and the blue whale; and the Odontocetes (Odontoceti), known as the toothed cetaceans, among them are the dolphins, killer whales and sperm whales. Characteristics and adaptations of cetaceans Cetaceans evolved fifty million years ago from…
What are the so called in Guatemala “zompopos de Mayo”?
The well-known zompopo de mayo in Guatemala is an ant species that belongs to the leafcutter and fungi cultivator ant group in the Atta genus. In that sense, these are the ants that can be frequently seen forming rows and carrying leaf trimmings. The colonies of these ants are conformed by worker ants of different…
Introduction to Mammals and the 5 Felines of Guatemala
Do you want to know more about the mammals and the five felines of Guatemala? These conferences are what you were looking for. Sign up here to receive the ZOOM link: Sign up We are waiting for you on Wednesday May 25th and Thursday May 26th via Facebook Live or ZOOM at 6:00 pm (Guatemala…
World Tapir Day
In Guatemala, the Central American tapir is known as danto or danta in Spanish, tixl in Q’eqchi’, tucumbalan in K’iche’, tix in Poqomchi and tzimin in Jakalteko. The Mayan cosmogony tells that the gods created humans from the mixture of corn dough with snake and tapir blood, so these animals were sacred in such a…
Discovering “El Zotz”: Bats and Mayan culture
In February of this year, we had the opportunity to visit the Biotopo Protegido San Miguel La Palotada El Zotz as part of our ongoing Biodiversity Documentation project in La Reserva de la Biósfera Maya. The Biotope is located in the municipality of San José, Petén, 584 km from Guatemala City and 65 km from…
Migratory birds: A special dynamic in the world
On October 12, World Migratory Bird Day was commemorated. This is a very important annual campaign to promote global awareness and conservation of migratory birds and their habitats. Migratory birds play an important role in the ecological dynamics of the sites they visit, as they are important predators of insects and vertebrates, dispersers of seeds,…