When time and funding permit, each flower (each plant species) will have its own page, and its own PDF, and eventually its own PPT so that professors and students have plenty of material on Guatemala (and Honduras, etc) to study.

Heliconia adflexa, Coban, Guatemala, Hotel Monja Blanca, FLAAR, by Nicholas Hellmuth

This space is for flowers
we have recently found and photographed.

Reports by FLAAR Mesoamerica
on Flora & Fauna of Parque Nacional Yaxha Nakum Naranjo
Peten, Guatemala, Central America

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Where is this blood coming from? A Bleeding Tree?

Posted February 03, 2021

This photo is a teaser, to raise curiosity of “what is out there in the jungles of Central America?” We all know the jaguars, monkeys, crocodiles, snakes, scorpions. What about the marvels of unexpected plants?

Why is the back of this sapling sticky BLOOD RED?

What is the fuzzy furry stuff on the other side? Is this a giant larva of a giant moth or butterfly crawling up the sapling?

I photographed this with my iPhone 12 Pro Max because it was pouring rain, so was not good idea to pull out a sophisticated Nikon, Canon, or Sony camera that we have lots of. But with an umbrella over my head I was able to capture this “bloody encounter.”

More next week. We are curious if anyone recognizes that is the monster generating the BLOOD.

With the cooperation of the Municipio de Livingston, and the team of FUNDAECO, we of FLAAR (USA) and FLAAR Mesoamerica (Guatemala) spent several days exploring the rain forests of Cerro San Gil, Municipio de Livingston, Izabal, Guatemala, Central America.

Medicinal plants of the Mayan people can be found in rain forests and swamps

Posted January 21, 2021

On 22 January we will be headed to the Municipio de Livingston to continue our long range project to find, photograph, document, and publish flora and fauna which has not been fully discussed for this Caribbean part of Guatemala.

We will spend four days in swamps, marshes, rivers, and creeks (parallel to El Golfete part of Rio Dulce), to study lots of the water-related trees and plants. Many of these wild native plants have edible fruits, nuts, seeds, stems, roots, and other parts. Lots of these plants provide medicinal components help to local Mayan people.

Then we will spend four days in the hillsides and hilltops of the rather high Cerro San Gil nature reserve. Nine of our team will work together on all this field work. So lots of flora and fauna to be reported in the coming weeks.

Flowering water vine, Parque Nacional Yaxha, Nakum, and Naranjo (PNYNN)

Posted January 19, 2021

Park ranger Teco (Moises Daniel Perez Diaz) kindly sent us this photo of the buds of a vine named bejuco lambedor. It has this name because if you are on a motorcycle and driving through the rain forest and your head brushes against this vine, it leaves burning mark on your skin; leaves a wound.

The vine produces drinkable water (evidently no wounds on your throat or lips). Literally; local people out in the rain forests of Peten (chicleros, xateros, etc.) routinely drink water from four plants:

Bejuco lambedor
Bejuco de Estrella
Bejuco de uva
Raiz del palo de copo

We see these leaves everywhere, but this is the first time we have seen the flower buds. We hope in the future to be able to receive photos from Teco of the actual flowers. We (FLAAR Mesoamerica) provide mobile phone cameras and Internet to plant scouts so they can find awesome plants in the areas where they live and work.

Flower buds of vine bejuco lambedor. It looks like a shrub but evidently is a vine since it’s local name is “bejuco.”

Photograph by Moises Daniel Perez Diaz, road from Yaxha to Nakum (PNYNN), Peten, Guatemala. January 14, 2021, 12:37 pm.

I estimate this may be a species of genus Cissus, but I will need to see the flowers when they open.

Trees in Guatemala that flower and fruit from the trunk

Posted January 12, 2021

Cauliflorous flowers of the trunk of Zygia gigantifloliola, paterna de montaña, Reserva Natural Tapon Creek.

This photograph was taken today by Lucas Cuz, Q’eqchi’ Mayan park ranger of the FUNDAECO managed Reserva Natural Tapon Creek (several kilometers south of the Rio Sarstun-Rio Sarstoon parks of Izabal and Belize on the north side of the border).

Lucas Cuz is a plant scout for FLAAR; this means he searches for plants of interest, takes photos and sends them via Skype or comparable. We provide the special Google telephone camera, Internet, and expenses to our plant scouts in several areas of Izabal, Peten, and Alta Verapaz.

FLAAR Mesoamerica team at Lagunita Creek Nature Reserve

Posted December 23, 2020

Here is the FLAAR Mesoamerica team at Lagunita Creek Nature Reserve, nicely managed by FUNDAECO. The boat owner and operator are in the boat. Haniel (in red shirt) is piloting the registered drone that took this photo. The rest of the team is having lunch break.

At each nature reserve we make notes of which edible, usable, or curious plants we find (especially those flowering this week). We then extensively photograph each flower, fruit, etc. There are five photographers in this team.

Happy Holidays from FLAAR Mesoamerica Team

Posted December, 2020

Happy Holidays! Our very best wishes to you this festive season. May 2021 bring you peace, joy and prosperity. From all staff members of FLAAR Mesoamerica.

Seed pods (capsules, beans) of wild vanilla orchid vines

Posted December 2, 2020

The Municipio de Livingston, Izabal, has lots of wild vanilla orchid vines growing in many areas. We find these vines in swamps at sea level (south inlet of east end of El Golfete portion of Rio Dulce); we find wild vanilla orchid vines on karst hills elsewhere in Izabal. And now a helpful park ranger of Tapon Creek nature reserve, managed by FUNDAECO, has sent us photos of the seed pods, the capsules or beans of these wild vanilla orchid vines.

econferencias-Biodiversidad-de-Livingston-Izabal-FLAAR-Mesoamerica-2020

Photograph by Lucas Cuz, park ranger, FUNDAECO, Tapon Creek nature reserve, using Google Pixel telephone camera provided by FLAAR (USA) and FLAAR Mesoamerica (Guatemala).

We are rushing out to the Caribbean today since this is a remarkable opportunity to learn from the local Q’eqchi’ Mayan park rangers. We need to learn in how many different months do these vines bloom? In how many different months can you see the seed pods.

You can also find lots of wild vanilla orchid vines in many areas of Parque Nacional Yaxha Nakum Naranjo, (PNYNN), Peten. The family of Senaida Ba Mucu, has found wild vanilla orchids in the mountains of Alta Verapaz near Chipemech (between Senahu and Cahabon). We of FLAAR have photographed these vines here and in the many areas of PNYNN and all around the Municipio de Livingston, Izabal. But never have we seen them flowering in the wild.

So clearly the Classic Maya of thousands of years ago had plenty of vanilla for flavoring their cacao beverages.

We show the photos of the flower buds on home page of www.maya-archaeology.org.

Tree Trunks of the Neotropical Rainforest

Posted November 30, 2020

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).

First Virtual Course: Native Plants of Guatemala

Posted October 28, 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:

Photo Essays "Encuéntralo en Livingston"

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.