First “Virtual Gigante”
is a success
After being taught annually for three decades, the Smithsonian Introductory Field Life Sciences Course was suspended due to the pandemic, but it made a digital comeback in 2021.
Text by Leila Nilipour
Translation by Sonia Tejada
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Sabrina AmadorHome
Science
Accidental tree wound reveals novel symbiotic behavior
A group of high school students describe how Azteca alfari ants respond to damage to their host plant
Text by Leila Nilipour
Animal Behavior Evolutionary Ecology Ecology Entomology Connections in nature: Plants, Animals, Microbes and Environments
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William WcisloFortuitous
discovery
A young biologist shares her love
for eight-legged creatures
Self-professed spider-fan and arachnid systematist Stephany Arizala would like more people to study this megadiverse group, so that we can do a better job of protecting them.
Text by Vanessa Crooks
Biodiversity Taxonomy Zoology Animal Behavior Entomology Evolutionary Biology Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet Barro Colorado
brownInto the
Spider-Verse
Recovery of the
Juan Diaz mangroves
Over the last 50 years, since 1972, Panama has lost almost 50% of its mangroves primarily due to urban expansion and the conversion of mangroves into agricultural land.
Conservation Biology Disease Ecology Ecology Biodiversity Botany Ecosystem Ecology Connections in nature: Plants, Animals, Microbes and Environments
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News!
Dramatic liana increases in old-growth tropical forests is linked to natural disturbance and climate change
The accelerated proliferation of these woody vines, due to natural disturbance, is altering forest structure, regeneration and functioning
Text by Leila Nilipour
Forest Ecology Canopy Biology Long-term monitoring Global Change Ecosystem Ecology Ecosystem Services Connections in nature: Plants, Animals, Microbes and Environments Barro Colorado
brownVine
takeover
Hearing sensitivity of bats may
explain their great diversity in
tropical forests
A mobile hearing test determined that the hearing sensitivity of Neotropical bats is associated with the sounds generated by their prey, demonstrating how hearing ability may relate directly to niche differentiation.
Cover photo: Christian Ziegler
Animal Behavior Zoology Taxonomy Natural History Biodiversity Origins of Species and Societies Gamboa Barro Colorado
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Rachel PageHearing test
for tropical bats
Understanding wildlife
vulnerability to road networks
During three years, local scientist Dumas Gálvez drove along a road parallel to a rainforest looking out for dead vertebrates.
Panama
Text by Leila Nilipour
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Sabrina Amador
How will the biggest tropical trees
respond to climate change?
Scientists think that climate change may have greater impact the largest trees in tropical forests, and the death of these giants has a major impact on the forest, but because these monumental trees are few and far between, almost nothing is known about what causes them to die.
Global Change Forest Ecology Long-term monitoring Disease Ecology Botany Biodiversity Connections in nature: Plants, Animals, Microbes and Environments Barro Colorado
brownMysterious
living monuments
The ecological effects of
lightning in a tropical forest
Lightning is common in the tropics, but its ecological effects in tropical forests are poorly understood. Steve Yanoviak, STRI research associate and professor at the University of Louisville, will summarize the basic physics of lightning, how we study lightning in Panama and the importance of lightning as an agent of tropical tree mortality.
Forest Ecology Physical Monitoring Global Change Canopy Biology Long-term monitoring Ecosystem Ecology Connections in nature: Plants, Animals, Microbes and Environments Barro Colorado
brownSteve
Yanoviak
Advances in scientific
research and conservation
of the jaguar in Panama
The seminar series via Zoom titled How did I get here? Scientific Stories is carried out thanks to the support of the Inter- American Development Bank (IDB). For the 6th seminar on January 2021, Smithsonian invited Ricardo Moreno, Director of the Yaguará Panama Foundation, STRI Associate Researcher and National Geographic Emerging Explorer with the talk entitled, Advances in scientific research and jaguar conservation in Panama.
Biodiversity Zoology Long-term monitoring Sustaining a Biodiverse Planet Punta Culebra
brownRicardo
Moreno
