Rain Forests

A journey into Brazil’s decimated Mata Atlantica in search of golden lion tamarins.

Vagabondjourney.com reported in August of 2010 that an international community of doners have agreed to pay Ecuador 3.6 billion dollars to not extract oil from the Yasuni Biosphere preserve that lies within their borders. This was at once a ground breaking initiative as well as a controversial one: some environmentalists think that this could be a new [...]

A recent study by researchers at UC Berkeley, shows that bushmeat — game — taken from forests in many locations around the world is an essential part of the diets of the people who live there, and even helps to prevent anemia in children. The study was conducted in the Makira Protected Area of Madagascar, which is a global hot spot for biodiversity, and the findings have created a ripple between conservation efforts and human health initiatives.

Tarantula Venom Not Deadly to Humans “Look up there,” my friend pointed up to a hole in the side of a tree. I looked through the dark of night, I saw the hole which sort of looked like a brown anus bored into the bark. “It is the nest of a tarantula.” “Are they dangerous?” [...]

Scorpions Eat Spiders in the Jungles of Guatemala FINCA TATIN, Guatemala- There are a lot of very large spiders that abound just about everywhere in the jungles of Guatemala — in the trees, on the ground, on the walls and ceilings of just about every human made structure. These large spiders tend to come out [...]

Coral snakes in Guatemala jungle FINCA TATIN, Guatemala- One bite from a coral snake and you are more or less dead meat. Huge doses of antivenin and artificial or mechanical respiration are needed to preserve life, and a single bite has been proven fatal within hours. The neurotoxin from a coral snake paralyzes the breathing [...]

Village Life is Humanity Through a Magnifying Glass There is a row in the hotel kitchen. Again. The Maya women who work there screwed something up and they are blaming it on anybody and everybody that is not them. They blame each other, they blame my wife, they try to place the blame onto anyone. [...]

Ecuador Sells No Oil for 3.6 Billion Dollars The government of Ecuador has been threatening to damage their Yasuni National Park — which, reputedly, houses the region of highest biodiversity in the entire Western Hemisphere — with oil drilling for many years. Former heads of states, famous biologists, environmentalists, and the usual legion of poster [...]

Anteater – Wildlife in Central America FINCA TATIN, Guatemala- Anteaters like to inhabit the banks of rivers, swampy savannas, and the dark depths of humid forests. One such anteater pushed the bounds of his habitat in the eastern jungles of Guatemala. He fell into the Rio Dulce. Apparently, anteaters float. Or at least they float [...]