Note from Paso Pacífico: In late 2023, for the first time in several years, we were able to host a group of friends in Central America and show them some of the impact of their support! Andrew Seligman helped plan and then attended the donor trip. We are deeply grateful for Andrew’s help. Thank you also to everyone who participated in this trip and has supported any part of our...
In May of 2023, a Taiwanese man was arrested at Miami International Airport after officers heard a chirping sound coming from his hand luggage. Inside were 28 parrot eggs, some already hatched! All were endangered species—yellow-naped and red-lored Amazon parrots. The man had been paid to fly from Central America to another country in a transit route that would take the birds around the world and to buyers in China....
When El Salvador’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (MARN) contacted us in 2022 and asked for help in caring for captive spider monkeys, we knew right away we would call on the experienced animal keepers at Zoo Boise. El Salvador has a big problem with animal smuggling. Poachers will target any exotic animal to sell as a pet to the overseas illegal trade in endangered species. Often, they will...
On a recent trip to El Salvador with Paso Pacífico, I listened to a local farmer proudly naming the jaguar as a local species. I didn’t like to contradict him, but the outside world says that nobody has seen one in decades, and jaguars are now officially extinct in El Salvador. Still, there are many cases where locally extinct species reappear after decades of being absent. Though nature is resilient, at...
If you are a supporter of Paso Pacífico, you are already aware of the vital importance of healthy forests to the environment of our whole planet. A large part of our work involves protection of forest habitats and re-forestation projects. So we were pleased when at the 2021 COP26 climate summit in Scotland, 145 countries pledged to halt and reverse land degradation and forest loss by 2030. (Glasgow Leader’s Declaration). ...
The world is full of wonderful animals you’ve likely never heard of. The yawaum'di, gato colorado, gato moro, león breñero, leoncillo, tigrillo. The eyra, gato-mourisco, gato-preto, gato-vermelho and maracajá-preto. Actually, all those are the same thing — known to English speakers as the jaguarundi. Read on to learn more, such as what it has in common with ocelots, weasels, and tayras. Jaguarundi kitten photo by MARN Distinctive Characteristics of the...
Well, the superhero in the movies probably isn’t. But black panthers are real. Some jaguars and leopards have a black pigmentation, but if you look closely, you can see spots and patterns which identify them as jaguars or leopards. Let's delve into the fascinating reality behind these mysterious creatures. Jaguars and Leopards: The Real Black Panthers Contrary to common belief, black panthers are not a distinct species. Instead, they are...
Guest post Managua, 1988. We didn’t quite know what to expect. We flew in on the now defunct Aero Nica, known to Nicaraguans as Aero Nunca. Many NGOs had started development projects to help the people in one of the poorest countries in the world. The overthrow of the Somoza dictatorship by the Sandinistas in 1979 had created a world of possibilities and opportunities. NGO workers and volunteers were warmly...
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