What kinds of plants and animals live in Panama?
Panama’s Darién jungle is the largest tropical rain forest in the Western Hemisphere outside the Amazon Basin. The entire north coast of Panama is densely forested and contains more than 2,000 species of tropical plants. This habitat also supports a wide array of animals common to Central and South America, including ocelots, sloths, armadillos, pumas, anteaters, spider and howler monkeys, deer, caimans, crocodiles, and many snakes. It has one of the most diverse populations of birds in the world, ranging from colorful tropical species to long-distance migrating birds. Due to its unique location, Panama has several animal species found nowhere else, such as the golden tree frog and giant tree sloth. In populated areas, however, most of the native animals have been hunted or driven.
