Panama, a natural land bridge connecting two continents, is striving to be a world leader in ecotourism. Inspired by its neighbor to the north, Costa Rica, the country of Panama has gone to great efforts in recent years to improve the ecology of the land and promote “nature friendly” tourism in the area.
Because of its unique geographical position, Panama harbors one of the greatest diversities of plant and wildlife in Mesoamerica. The country is home to many South American species as well as North and Central American wildlife. There are said to be over 10,000 varieties of plants, 1,500 species of trees and more than 1,000 species of birds inhabited in Panama. This is more than can be found in North America and Europe combined, and includes some of the most rare on Earth.
Currently, Panama is home to 14 national parks, more than a dozen forest reserves and 10 wildlife refuges. All together these landmarks cover 29 percent of the total area of the country. 220 mammals and 354 reptiles and amphibians also call Panama home. This country also has hundreds of islands and kilometers of protected coral reef, which shelter a wide diversity of marine life. It is also home to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, where scientists from around the world study Panama’s unique ecological heritage.
Panama offers visitors an excellent choice of destinations, from the remote rainforests of Darien National Park to Metropolitan Park, virtually within the capitol’s city limits. Birdwatchers, who should come prepared with Ridgely’s “Birds of Panama,” head out to a number of world-renowned birding sites, including Cana in the Darien, the rugged Cerro Azul mountain range with stunted forest sheltering unique species like the Tacarcuna Bush Tanager, the Nusagandi wildlife refuge in San Blas, the cloud forest habitats of Baru Volcano and Cerro La Vieja, and, of course, the famed Pipeline Road at Lake Gatun, where records are consistently set in the Audubon Society’s Christmas bird count. One of Panama’s most popular ecotourism destinations is the Barro Colorado wildlife refuge at Lake Gatun, a site of ongoing research by Smithsonian scientists.
Aside from visiting the vast national parks of Panama, there are also ecological adventures, which can include trips on foot and by canoe to visit indigenous tribal lands, whitewater rafting trips beginning in the mountains and traveling through the Chagres River, horseback travels down the Caribbean coast, or zip line rides through the Panama forest canopy.
Panama, the crossroads of the world and natural land bridge of the Americas, guarantees an out-of-this-world ecotourism experience, with an abundance of plants, animals and wildlife at your fingertips.
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