A Bug´s Life

Panama is one of those truly condensed countries. Much as Great Britain punches above its weight in the artistic and cultural stakes, so Panama does for the natural world. In an area roughly the size of Scotland live 125 uniquely Panamanian animals, 226 different types of reptile including some extremely venemous snakes, and more bird types (approx 940) than anywhere else in Central America.

To try and get closer to this outrageously abundant wildlife, we headed for the National Park La Armistad, near the border with Costa Rica, to a recently opened backpacker eco-lodge called "Lost and Found". Andrew, the young Canadian owner, and his Panamanian wife, Steph, have sunk all their hard earned cash into an extraordinary concrete structure clinging to the side of a hill in the Cloudforest, with views across the valley that reach all the way to the Pacific.




At night, we were visited by various creatures we´d never heard of: the `kinkajou´ (Jonny´s favourite) a racoon like animal with a prehensile tail, the `cacomissel´ and the`olingo´ to name but a few.


But it was the insects that I found truly amazing. Not normally being a lover of things with six legs, I was enthralled by the size and beauty of the bugs that landed from the night sky. Out of various fireflies and giant grasshoppers, the winner of this entomological beauty contest was, hands down, the Gold Jewel Beetle. Described by Andrew as the most expensive bug in the rainforest (they sell on ebay for $160) this completely golden beetle - gold legs, antlers, wings, body, everything - landed on the dinner table to the awe of everyone present.

After a couple of days of Spanish practise and animal spotting, we said goodbye and good luck to Andrew and Steph and travelled in the direction of Isla de Coiba on the Pacific Coast.

Coiba is Part IV in our world tour of former prisons; Robben Island (Capetown), Port Blair (Andaman Islands), Oxford Castle (England - now a very nice Malmaison!) ... all we need now are Alcatraz and St Helena (where Napoleon was imprisoned) and we´ll have a complete set. We had been inspired to come to Panama in the first place by pictures and articles of Coiba´s pristine wilderness in the British Press. As the largest island off Central America, its surrounding waters form part of the same submarine mountain chain as the Galapagos Islands, and are teeming with marine life of all descriptions. On the way to and from the island, we saw Humpback Whales breaching at 30m distance, dolphins and, unbelievably, dozens of Manta Rays jumping out of the water 10 feet into the air.

Diving here is quite unlike Caribbean or Asian waters. Visibility was poor, and the rocky sea bed wasn´t exactly pretty, but with dozens of White Tip Sharks and odd unusual find such as the ´guitar fish´ (like a cross between a Shark and a Stingray) it was still fun. But the real beauty of Coiba is arriving on the beach to hundreds of butterflies and, despite being confined by dense jungle to a small promontory where the Ranger´s station is situated, within ten minutes seeing a snake, an Iguana, a flock of vultures and several of Coiba´s unique rodents (like giant squirrels), not to mention ´Tito´ the huge crocodile who had famously robbed a Park Ranger of one of his legs.


Coiba feels like the Garden of Eden (or, as we like to think of it, an episode of "Lost"). It is remarkably unscathed by man, and gave us an insight into how the pirates and conquistadors must have seen the Americas before the wholesale destruction of the indigenous tribespeople and their environment. Although the authorities have so far resisted attempts to place a tourist infrastructure on Coiba (although we stayed for one night at the Ranger´s Station in basic huts) and it has now been declared a UNESCO world heritage site , without the dangerous prisoners and fear of Sharks to keep the Punters away, who knows how long it will remain the untamed beauty spot it is today.