The quetzal is the national bird of Guatemala and lends its name to that country's currency. In fact, the quetzal has long been revered for its beautiful feathers. In ancient times, the Mayan people used quetzal feathers as money. Your fascinated readers will find out more about this resplendent bird and some of its neighbors, such as the toucan and the macaw.
Llamas are camel cousins. It is true! Llamas are also a vital part of some South American economies. Readers will also find out about some of the other camelids that call Latin America home, vicunas, guanacos, and alpacas.
Jaguars are the largest wild cats of Latin America. Jaguars have been an important cultural symbol dating back to the Mayans and the Aztecs. They continue to be a symbol of Mexico today. Readers will be fascinated to learn about where these big cats live, what they eat, and how they hunt. Other wild cats in Latin America, including the ocelot and the puma are also presented.
Coqui frogs are the unofficial symbol of Puerto Rico. Readers will learn about their habitat and diet. Students will also learn about some other Latin American frogs, such as the poison dart frog and the red-eyed tree frog, too.
The amazing howl of the howler monkey has made this monkey a legend of the rain forest. Readers will be fascinated by the full-color photos and the informative text. The common wooly monkey, which features prominently in its local economy, is also discussed in this book, along with the tamarind.
Who isn't fascinated by piranhas? Here readers will learn about these hungry fish with razor sharp teeth. They will also find out about the Peruvian legend of the Amazon River dolphin and what other creatures live in and around the Amazon River.
This final volume in the The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests covers the Americas. It provides an up-to-date overview of the status of rain forests in South America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Following the format of the two previous volumes The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: Asia and the Pacific (1991) and The Conservation Atlas of Tropical Forests: Africa (1992), the atlas is divided into two parts. Part I introduces and discusses the complex interrelated issues in the regions that are involved in both deforestation as well as conservation of the tropical forests. Included are discussions on the history of the forests, agricultural colonization policies and deforestation, conservation polices for plants and wildlife, protected areas, and the future of the tropical forests. Part II is a detailed and well referenced country-by-country analysis of conservation status and trends. Four-colour maps have been compiled from satellite and radar imagery, aerial photography, and the latest information provided by forestry departments and development agencies.
This collection is the first concerted attempt to explore the significance of classical legacies for Latin American history – from the uses of antiquarian learning in colonial institutions to the currents of Romantic Hellenism which inspired liberators and nation-builders in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Discusses how the model of Roman imperialism, challenges to Aristotle’s theories of geography and natural slavery, and Cicero’s notion of the patria have had a pervasive influence on thought and politics throughout the Latin American region Brings together essays by specialists in art history, cultural anthropology and literary studies, as well as Americanists and scholars of the classical tradition Shows that appropriations of the Greco-Roman past are a recurrent catalyst for change in the Americas Calls attention to ideas and developments which have been overlooked in standard narratives of intellectual history
In 2007, the United Nations adopted the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People, a landmark political recognition of indigenous rights. A decade later, this book looks at the status of those rights internationally. Written jointly by indigenous and non-indigenous scholars, the chapters feature case studies from four continents that explore the issues faced by Indigenous Peoples through three themes: land, spirituality, and self-determination.
