SAVING EARTH Magazine, Winter 2020, is now available, with an article by Nicholas Hellmuth, FLAAR Mesoamerica, on TREE TRUNK ECOSYSTEMS
pp. 58-62, with one additional page (page 63) on FLAAR (USA) and FLAAR Mesoamerica (Guatemala).
Posted November 30, 2020
In the virtual course "Native plants of Guatemala" (Plantas Nativas de Guatemala, in Spanish, -PNG) you can learn generalities of plants and their different uses, both in the Mayan culture and today.
It is divided into 5 modules every Saturday from October 24th to November 21th of this year, from 10:00AM to 11:30AM (Guatemala schedule) and it's completely FREE. We are having special guests and learning activities. Do not miss it!
You can find more information by entering here:
Also you can find the whole virtual course here:
Posted October 28, 2020
Find it in Livingston: Water Lilies Paradise
First virtual presentation of FLAAR Mesoamerica Photo Essays. The actual sacred water lily flowers (depicted in classical Mayan art) can be photographed on both sides of El Golfete, on both sides of the boat, on the tour by the inlets along the El Golfete, portion of Río Dulce, inlet to Lago Izabal and the Atlantic Ocean, Izabal in Guatemala. Nymphaea ampla and Nymphoides indica along the fresh waters from El Golfete.
On September 22, 2020, during the virtual launch of our three Photo Essays, we chatted with professionals and the audience interested in nature, specially interested about this peculiar lily and the experience in the expedition in Livignston, Izabal. This event is thanks to the support of the Municipality of Livingston and the FLAAR Mesoamerica team.
Or also you can watch it here:
Posted October 28, 2020
Peten and Alta Verapaz are palm paradise areas of Guatemala, but it turns out that there is a popular palm species, Manicaria saccifera, confra palm, that is found in Guatemala ONLY in salt water and brackish water coastal areas of the Municipio de Livingston and adjacent parts of coastal Izabal, Guatemala.
More info on our Manicaria saccifera, confra palm web page.
Posted October 23, 2020
Guatemala is a living botanical garden of every habitat you can imagine from cloud forests to seasonal rain forests to the totally different dry cactus-covered hills along Rio Motagua and Rio Sacapulas. Plus the Pacific Ocean water lily lagoons of Monterrico and of Arroyo Pucté in Sayaxché. And the photogenic heliconia-filled fields of the Caribbean areas of Rio Dulce.
If you like tropical flowers, a location I recommend visiting is Parque Nacional Yaxha Nakum Naranjo. We (FLAAR Mesoamerica research teams in Guatemala) found different sizes, shapes, and floors of passionflower vines in the remarkable biodiverse ecosystems of the park. So we now have a new web page to show you samples.
Local registered guides in Peten can explain which flowers are blooming in which months (since every month is different, and every ecosystem has different flowers: savanna, riverside, lakeside, hilltop, tintal, etc.).
I have traveled to all the main popular destinations around the world, but my heart and soul are in the Peten, Alta Verapaz, and Izabal areas of Guatemala. As soon as the airports are open, I will be flying back south to explore and find more plants. We thank Passiflora botanist Dr John MacDougal for helping us identify the species of passionflower vines.
Posted September 3, 2020
Nymphaea ampla is a water lily I have been studying throughout Guatemala in rivers and lakesides since the 1970’s. But Nymphoides indica is a tiny flowered water lily that I have not previously noticed. We found thousands of this Nymphoides indica along the sides of lagoons and inlets of El Golfete part of Rio Dulce, Municipio de Livingston, Izabal, Guatemala during our field trip in mid-March 2020.
So we are now presenting one photo album on Nymphaea ampla and two photo albums and bibliography on Nymphoides indica of the same area.
Further research is needed: where else is Nymphoides indica found in Guatemala, Belize, Quintana Roo, Campeche, Tabasco, and Chiapas? Does Nymphoides indica prefer brackish water? A bit of salt water from the Caribbean flows into El Golfete, as do Bull Sharks and other creatures from the Caribbean Sea. But if Nymphoides indica is found in Peten, this means it can grow readily without brackish water.
Is a part of Nymphoides indica edible? And how can we find documentation from Aztec, Mixtec, Zapotec, Maya or other ethnohistorical or ethnobotanical studies that Nymphoides indica is or was indeed consumed by people of Mesoamerica. So far there is no evidence (that I yet know of) that this miniature-flowered water lily is a narcotic as is the larger Nymphaea ampla.
Equally crucial, is Nymphoides indica a plant that was present in Mesoamerica before the arrival of the Spaniards? Or, like many plants in wetlands, did it escape from gardens and spread into streams and lakes?
Posted August 6, 2020
