Written by Nicholas Hellmuth
On October 29, 2026
In early 2026 the INAB administrators of Parque Nacional Laguna Lachuá asked if the FLAAR Mesoamerica team could come to the park and help document the remarkable trees, palms, orchids and wildlife (especially birds). We now have “a dozen” FLAAR Reports to show the many different size and shape of palms and trees and other plants that you can experience when you come to Laguna Lachuá. There is a place to pitch your tents and if you prefer a hostel, the park provides rooms in their hostel at reasonable price. The sun setting over Laguna Lachuá is comparable to the view of the sun setting over Lago Yaxha, Parque Nacional Yaxha, Nakum and Naranjo (PNYNN), Reserva de la Biosfera Maya (RBM), Peten, Guatemala.
These FLAAR Reports include aerial photos by photographer and drone pilot Javier Archila and photographs by Nicholas Hellmuth and Norma Cho Cu. Karla Cho Cu prepared the GPS maps to show where we hiked each day and where we found each plant and each bird.
FLAAR Reports from Parque Nacional Laguna Lachuá
On the afternoon of April 19 we found and photographed dozens of interesting Neotropical trees, palms and other plants at Parque Nacional Laguna Lachuá, Alta Verapaz.
During the entire day of April 20th we hiked many kilometers finding-and-photographing lots of palms, trees, orchids, mushrooms and birds.
During the morning of April 21st we hiked back to the highway and photographed Heliconia and other plants. Then we drove to Finca Ana Maria, Aldea Saholom, Coban to study a plantation of Theobroma cacao. We have been studying Maya cacao for many decades, including Theobroma bicolor, balamte, pataxte (common name varies depending on what part of Guatemala you are in).
We sincerely thank the INAB and CONAP co-administrators for providing guides, boat and lanchero, and a place to stay several nights in the hostel. When you are doing field work you need to charge the batteries of the drone, camera, and cell phones, so it helps not to be stuck in tents. You also need tables with chairs to work on your computer to organize the photos into folders-by-plant each evening.
