Giant ceiba tree in Panamanian rainforest. Photo by: Rhett A. Butler. A dispute over the implementation of REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) in Panama has pitted the United…
The three-toed pygmy sloth. Photo © Craig Turner/ZSL. The pygmy three-toed sloth (Bradypus pygmaeus) is one of the world's most endangered mammals, according to a detailed survey of the population,…
The yellow dyer rain frog (Diasporus citrinobapheus) is a new species of frog discovered in Panama. Photo by: Andreas Hertz. A beautiful, yellow frog species has been discovered in western…
An as yet unidentified white-and-black moth in Panama. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. This moth species from Panama has not yet been identified by mongabay.com. Moths makes up the bulk…
Rainforest in the Panama Canal Zone. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. As demonstrated by growing enthusiasm for conserving forests and the rise of the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation…
Basilisk Lizard (Basiliscus basiliscus) on Barro Colorado Island in Panama. Photo by Rhett A. Butler. The basilisk lizard walks on water. To escape danger the lizard will race across a…
Hyloscirtus colymba tree frog being fed after being treated for Chytridiomycosis. Photo taken by Rhett A. Butler at Summit Park. In forests, ponds, swamps, and other ecosystems around the world,…
Golden snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana) in China caught by camera trap. This species is listed as Endangered by the IUCN Red List. Photo credit: Smithsonian. Photos taken by camera traps…
On Wednesday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) issued its biennial report identifying six countries whose fisheries have been engaged in illegal, unreported, or unregulated (IUU) fishing during the…
With advanced genetic techniques, researchers have drawn a picture of just how devastating the currently extinction crisis for the world's amphibians has become in a new study published in the…
Researchers working to save Panama's frogs from a fatal disease have stumbled on two species unknown to science. In Omar Torrijos National Park they found a bigger version of a…
Everyone knows the tiger, the panda, the blue whale, but what about the other five to thirty million species estimated to inhabit our Earth? Many of these marvelous, stunning, and…
On Tuesday, November 3rd, while Panamanians celebrated Independence Day Holidays, heavy machinery unexpectedly entered and began cutting down tropical forest and mangroves near Galeta outside of Colon, Panama, report local…
A doctoral student with the Max Planck Institute, Bryson Voirin studies sloths and other species at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. Mongabay.com's sixth in a series of interviews with 'Young…
As the world's biggest cattle producer, Brazil braces for change While you're browsing the mall for running shoes, the Amazon rainforest is probably the farthest thing from your mind. Perhaps…
Stephen P. Hubbell has won the 2009 Eminent Ecologist Award. Hubbell is a staff scientist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) and professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at…
Extinction can be set in motion millions of years before a species' actual demise, suggesting that present-day drivers of habitat destruction and degradation may have already doomed many species to…
The World Bank's Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) has approved REDD readiness plans (R-Plans) for Panama and Guyana, and rejected a plan for Indonesia, reports the U.N. and the Bank…
Researchers have captured the first-ever photo of a jaguar on Barro Colorado Island, a key tropical forest research site in Panama, reports the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI). The picture…
An interview with Sasha Wright, a graduate student studying plant ecology at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Mongabay.com's third in a new series of interviews with 'Young Scientists'.
Mass amphibian die-offs affect ecosystems Mass amphibian die-offs affect ecosystems mongabay.com October 18, 2008
Armageddon for amphibians? Frog-killing disease jumps Panama Canal Armageddon for amphibians? Frog-killing disease jumps Panama Canal Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com October 12, 2008
Carbon market may fund dam in Panama that threatens natural reserve Carbon market may fund dam in Panama that threatens natural reserve Jeremy Hance, mongabay.com September 1, 2008 The UN's…
STRI goes carbon neutral as Panama indigenous community to see carbon payments from forest conservation Indigenous community in Panama to see carbon payments from forest conservation mongabay.com August 21, 2008…
Researchers discover cannibalistic moth in Panama Researchers discover "artistic" moth in Panama mongabay.com July 29, 2008 Researchers have discovered a new species of Bagworm Moth that wraps its eggs individually…
More bad news for coral reefs: climate change will increase chance of erosion Climate change will increase the erosion of coral reefs Jeremy Hance, mongabay.com July 28, 2008 Coral reefs…
14 countries win first REDD funding from the World Bank to protect forests 14 countries win REDD funding to protect tropical forests mongabay.com July 24, 2008 Related: 1/3 of corals…
Frog chooses whether to lay eggs on land or in water Frog chooses whether to lay eggs on land or in water mongabay.com May 19, 2008 Researchers in Panama have…
Wild sloths sleep considerably less than captive sloths New research shows wild sloths sleep less than captive sloths mongabay.com May 14, 2008 Wild sloths are considerably more active than their…