It is very likely that during a walk through the forest you have heard the sound of thousands of cycads singing. Although they are rarely observed because they are mainly found in the treetops (or because some manage to camouflage themselves very well with the color of the barks from the trees) we can hear…
Guatemala is a megadiverse country
Biodiversity, or biological diversity, is defined as the diversity of species of plants, animals, fungi and microorganisms that live in a given space. This also includes their genetic variability, the ecosystems of which these species are part, the landscapes or regions where they occur or locate, the ecosystems, and the ecological and evolutionary processes that…
Breve Historia del Planeta Tierra
El 22 de abril conmemoramos el Día de la Tierra con la finalidad de reflexionar sobre el cuidado de nuestro planeta y cómo podemos aprovecharlo responsablemente. Es un día importante para recordar las acciones que necesitamos implementar en nuestras vidas o las que necesitamos cambiar para ayudar a disminuir la contaminación y la destrucción de…
Sacred Flowers Of The Maya
For many years, flowers have been used to represent different meanings. One of the most common traditions that you still observe today is giving flowers as a symbol of affection and romance, especially now that Valentine’s Day is coming… but culturally, flowers have tended a much broader symbolism. In the Mayan culture, for example, the…
“Manzanote” a special cacti from the dry forest
Cacti are perennial plants, very attractive for their strange shapes and spines. Its stems are green, fleshy, simple or branched, with cylindrical, globose, or flattened shapes. They are, generally, terrestrial plants adapted to extreme climates where they can survive long periods without water. They can be herbs, shrubby or arborescent, fleshy or even hard and…
It’s time to celebrate! But always loving and caring for our planet
Christmas is the most important time of the year for many families. It is celebrated in the whole world with unique traditions in each country and culture. But something that we agree on is the Christmas tree, which became an icon of the Christmas season a long time ago. In Guatemala, many people love the…
Celebrate the biggest feline of America
The Jaguar (Panthera onca) is one of the most frequently encountered images in Mesoamerican art and iconography, in either naturalistic, stylized, or anthropomorphic form. Art is one of the ways in which people represent how they conceive of themselves, and their place in the world The appearance and frequency of jaguar motifs, as with any…
World Animal Day: Threatened Animals in Central America
The Census of Marine Life scientists estimated the total number of species on Earth (the most precise calculation ever offered), announcing 6.5 million species found on land and 2.2 million (about 25 percent of the total) dwelling in the ocean depths, that means about 8.7 million. Can you imagine how many exotic animals you don’t…
Biodiversity in the Popol Vuh
The Popol Vuh, also known as the Book of Counsels or the “Bible” of the Maya K’iche’. The Maya word “Pop” means power or sacred and “wuj” paper or book, so literally means Sacred Book. This book was perhaps written in hieroglyphic characters but the Mayan culture was attacked during the Spanish conquest and most…
A Place Called Mesoamerica
Do you ever wonder, what does Mesoamerica mean? This name appears in the history books we read at school, but the discussion and research about the breadth of its territory and culture needs to be explored even more. The word “Mesoamerica” has a Greek origin for the prefix “meso” which means “between something” or in…