Queen Angelfish - Belize

The Belize Barrier Reef is a 190 kilometer long coral reef and part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System. This series of coral reefs begins off the coast of the Yucatan Peninsula and winds its way to Honduras. It is the second largest coral reef system in the world; Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is the largest.

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Holacanthus ciliaris - The queen angelfish inhabits the coral reefs growing in shallow waters. The adults prefer feeding on sponges, algae, and tunicates; the juveniles serve a useful role as cleaners by feeding on the parasites found on larger fish. The body of the queen angelfish is extremely flat and grows to lengths of about 45 centimeters; males are slightly larger than females. Adults usually travel in pairs, suggesting monogamous bonding, but there is also evidence of male angelfish collecting harems of 4 to 5 females.

Bullhorn Acacia - Belize

Vachellia cornigera - The name for the bullhorn acacia tree is derived from the bull shaped hollow thorns at the base of the leaves. The plant has a symbiotic relationship with the pseudomyrmex ant. The bullhorn lacks the bitter alkaloid found in most acacia trees to deter insects and grazers. The ants harvest the leaf tips and eat the nectar flowing from the base of the leaf petioles. The plant is protected from other insects and animals by the ants residing in the hollow thorns.

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Following the decline and fall of the Maya civilization, Belize, along with most of the Americas, fell to Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century. British settlers, many being active or former pirates, were granted permission by the Spanish Crown to settle and log Belize, having agreed to forsake piracy. With the end of Spanish rule in Central America, the colony was formally ceded to Britain in 1836 and became British Honduras. In 1981, the colony was granted independence and renamed Belize.

Harlequin Beetle - Costa Rica

Pre-Columbia spheres dated to 600 AD were discovered near the Diquis River of Southern Costa Rica. The diameter of these stones vary from a few centimeters to several meters, with the largest weighing several tons. The maximum circumference error of a typical 2 meter sphere was only 1.25 centimeters or 2%.

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Acrocinus longimanus - The harlequin beetle is a large tropical insect native to the Americas. An average adult is 7.5 centimeters in length; the males have forelegs as long as their entire body. These legs are used primarily during courtship and mating. Both sexes have pseudoscorpions, tiny insects resembling scorpions, but without the stingers, living under their wings. This benign relationship is referred as phoresy, a relationship between organisms with one relying on the host primarily for transportational purposes.

Papaya - Costa Rica

Carica papaya - Papayas are the fruit of the carica papaya plant, a tree native to Mexico and Central America. It was first cultivated in Mexico long before the rise of the classic Mesoamerican period. Papaya plants consist of three sexes: male, female, and hermaphrodite. The male can only produce pollen, but no fruit. The female can only produce small and inedible fruit. Most of the cultivated papaya are of the hermaphrodite variety since it has the ability to self pollinate and produce edible fruit.

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There are several countries in the world without an army. Costa Rica was the first nation in the world to abolish its army. The constitution of 1949 provided an article forbidding the country to have a military. It does maintain a police force to handle internal defense and law enforcement. Costa Rica and the other Central American states did not actively fight against Spain to achieve independence. Losing control of Mexico in 1821, Spain also divested itself of the Central American colonies without a struggle.

Custard Apple - El Salvador

Joya de Cerén was thriving agricultural village in the Zapotitan Valley. The site was threatened by an eruption of the Ilopango volcano in 200 AD and buried in 590 AD by the eruption of Loma Caldera. The pristine archaeological conditions of this site has earned it the title of being the “Pompeii” of the New World.

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Annona reticulata - The custard apple tree is native to the Caribbean and Central American regions. The flesh of the custard apple has a creamy white texture and is used as an flavoring ingredient in beverages and ice cream. It belongs to the Annonaceae family and includes soursop, sweetsop, and cherimoya. The custard apple is not as desirable as the other Annonaceae species because of the inconsistency of taste and texture. Having a low seed count is one popular feature of the custard apple; some trees produce seedless fruit.

Tent Olive - El Salvador

Oliva porphyria - The tent olive is one of about 10 mollusk species within the Olividae family. The tent olive remains buried beneath a shallow layer of sand or mud during the day and emerges at night to begin the search for food. They use their powerful foot, an appendage large and strong enough to seize and drag their food source underneath the sand where it is then consumed. The tent olive ranges from 30 to 135 millimeters in length and is found from the Gulf of California to Peru.

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El Salvador is the smallest and most densely populated country in Central America. The first people to settle the region were the Pipils, also known as Cuzcatlecs. They established a loosely defined state known as Cuzcatlán, a confederation subdivided into city states and small chiefdoms. The Pipils were skilled in weaving cotton textiles and cultivated cacao, a commodity traded as far north as Teotihuacan. The Cuzcatlán state fell with the arrival of the Spanish conquistadores in the early 16th century.

Bell Pepper - Guatemala

The Maya used two calendars; the 260 day sacred round and the 365 day vague calendar. The first was for tracking social, cultural, celestial, and religious events. The second, a solar calendar, was used for plotting agricultural planting and harvesting schedules. The Maya calendar is the most complex of the ancient calendars.

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Capsicum annuum - Bell peppers are produced in a variety of colors including red, green, yellow, orange, white, brown, and purple. Peppers were first cultivated in Mexico and Central America. Despite the name, there is no relationship between bell peppers and the black or white pepper used for flavoring foods. Cristóbal Colón brought dried bell peppers back to Europe and the name “pepper” was attached to the plant because it had a spicy taste similar to the crushed seeds of Piper nigrum, common table pepper.

Resplendent Quetzal - Guatemala

Pharomachrus mocino - Quetzal is the common name of several large birds inhabiting Central America and the northern regions of South America. The resplendent quetzal is known for the iridescent feathers and long tail coverts of the male. Aside from the breeding season, they are solitary birds. Both parents tend to the task of incubating and feeding the young but the female usually abandons the nest before the chicks can fend for themselves; the male remains to complete the job.

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Guatemala served as both an Audiencia and a Captaincy General while under Spanish rule. An Audiencia was a judicial district with the powers of an appellate court. The Audiencia of Guatemala had jurisdiction over Central America. A Captaincy General was usually a region seen as susceptible to enemy intrusion and was therefore set-up under the administration of the military. Guatemala became an Audience in 1543, and was elevated to a Captaincy General in 1609.

Chigoe Flea - Honduras

An unfulfilled dream of a unified Central America is expressed in the Honduran flag. Each star represents a member of the now defunct Federal Republic of Central America. This union was formed in 1823, following independence from Spain, but was dissolved in 1838, as each entity declared its own independence.

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Tunga penetran - Over 2,000 species of fleas have been identified worldwide; the chigoe flea is considered the smallest. Fleas are external parasites living off their hosts by sucking blood from mammals and birds. Some species of flea have adapted themselves to rely on certain types of animals for their blood meal. Fleas do not have wings, but their long and powerful hind legs can propel them forward at impressive rates. Fleas are laterally compressed to allow passage through fur, hair, and dense clothing.

Yellow-headed Parrot - Honduras

Amazona oratris - Yellow-headed parrots are found in low thickly wooded areas and they occasionally gather in large noisy flocks. It measures 35 to 40 centimeters in length. Males and females closely resembling each other; stout bills, plump bodies, and short necks. When excited, the feathers on the crown and neck are raised to make the head appear double in size. Their numbers have suffered a sharp decline, a result of habitat loss and the capturing of individuals for the pet trade.

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Copán, located in the extreme western department of modern day Honduras, was an important Mayan city flourishing from the 5th to 9th century. At the height of power, the Copán Valley had an estimated population of over 20,000 people. The city suffered a devastating defeat to Quiriguá, a rival Maya city, in 738 AD, resulting in the slow decline of Copán. When the Spanish arrived in the 16th century, they found a few scattered farming hamlets and an abandoned ceremonial center.

The Maya

 

 

Mayan Glyphs - The classic period of Maya history was a period of spectacular achievements in the fields of astronomy, mathematics, architectural design, agricultural planning, and urban development. The Maya built cities larger than those of Europe and elegant pyramids rivaling those of Egypt. The Maya codices were folding books inscribed with colorful glyphs. The books, made from the bark of fig trees, recorded various aspects important to Maya civilization: astronomical tables, divination, almanacs, and other issues. In an attempt to subdue the Maya culture, the Spanish suppressed or destroyed the books; a few have survived. Maya writing is based on logograms, a written character is used to represent a word or morpheme. There are other Mesoamerican scripts, but the Mayan style, dating from 2,200 years ago, is the most highly developed.

Northern Naked-tailed Armadillo - Nicargua

Lake Nicaragua is located in Southwestern Nicaragua. It covers an area of over 8,200 square kilometers, making it is the largest lake in Central America and 19th largest in the world. The lake contains several islands as well as sharks, swordfish, and tarpons; fish normally found in saltwater environments.

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Cabassous centralis -  The northern naked-tailed armadillo is one of two armadillo species found in Central or North America; armadillos originated in South America. The upper and sides of the body are covered in the protective scutes found on armadillos. Scutes are dermal bone structures covered with horn. The scutes are small in design to allow the armadillo maximum flexibility. The underside of the naked-tailed armadillo lacks these protective plates. When the animal is threatened, it rolls into a tight ball until the danger passes.

Atlantic Tarpon - Nicaragua

Megalops atlanticus - The Atlantic tarpon is a strong and hardy giant growing to 2.5 meters in length and weighing up to 161 kilos. It can survive in a variety of habitats and salinities. The tarpon can even gulp air for extended periods of time when not enough oxygen is available in the water to sustain itself. Tarpons primarily inhabit coastal waters and feed on schooling fish or crabs. Although a migratory fish, there is a resident community in Nicaragua’s San Juan River and Lake Nicaragua.

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The Federal Republic of Central America had picked Nicaragua as the more suitable location for building a shipping canal to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Efforts to enlist the United States for technical and financial support failed. With shipping volume increasing in the Panama Canal, a renewed interest has been redirected to the construction of a second trans-ocean canal along a path cutting across Nicaragua and using the San Juan River and Lake Nicaragua as the main route.

Red-eyed Tree Frog - Panama

The proposal to construct a Pan-American highway was first made in 1889, but has not been officially completed. Panama’s Darién Gap, a mere 100 kilometers of dense rainforest, separates Panama and Columbia. Destruction of the pristine area has stopped any further efforts to pave over this missing connection.

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Agalychnis callidryas - The red-eyed tree frog is a colorful frog. It has black vertical pupils set into bright red corneas. The upper body is a vivid green, the sides consist of blue and yellow vertical stripes, the toes are bright orange or red, and the underside is white. Despite these bright colors, the red-eyed tree frog relies on camouflage to evade predators; it is not a poisonous frog. During daylight, they tuck themselves into a small lump and with eyes closed, remain motionless to blend in with the green canopy of the trees.

Dove Orchid - Panama

Peristeria elata - The dove orchid is native to Central America and Northwestern South America. The inner petals of the white flower are loosely speckled with pink or purple spots and resembles a dove in flight when in full bloom. It thrives as a terrestrial plant in lower elevations, but attaches itself to the trunks of hardwood trees as an epiphytic plant in higher and more humid settings. Illegal harvesting has placed the dove orchid on the critically endangered species list.

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The Panama Canal cuts a length of 77.1 kilometers across the isthmus of Panama in connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Depending on traffic, it can take from 8 to 10 hours to pass through the canal. France began excavations in 1881, but stopped in 1884 because of financial loss, construction delays, and health issues; the harsh conditions of the mosquito infested jungles claimed thousands of lives. The United States took over the project in 1904 and completed the Panama Canal in 1914.