Trees come in many sizes – but some tend to be very large indeed. This is a Ceiba (Bombacaceae) with a commanding presence on Barro Colorado Island. If I were in this picture, I would only reach two thirds the height of the main buttress. Large individuals like this one have a disproportionate impact on…

Panama – a narrow strip of land separating two oceans, until we were audacious enough to build a canal between them. The majority of this canal is Lake Gatún, which was formed by the damming of the Chagres river. What were once hills and valleys became islands and flat water. I’ll be spending two weeks…

Mt. Lemmon is the highest point of the Santa Catalina Mountains near Tucson. It is an excellent location for telescopes because of its high elevation (over 9100 feet), isolation from city lights, and consistently sunny weather. I recently had a chance to see through one of these instruments on a chilly evening spent with the…

Spring is here, and the herpetofauna are becoming active once again. Here is a Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum) in a defensive posture. These lizards are venomous via grooves in the teeth, so a close approach is unwise. They move surprisingly quickly!