Biomes / Ecosystems of Central America

The Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System is a marine region, underwater ecosystem and geological structure that stretches from the Yucatán Peninsula down to Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. This underwater wilderness of coral provides homes and food to hundreds of species.

The Petén Basin of northern Guatemala and southeastern Mexico is a geographical subregion of Mesoamerica and was a center of Maya civilizations. The Maya Forest, which includes Belize, is the second-largest remaining tropical rainforest in the Americas.

The Tumbes-Chocó-Magdalena hotspot includes the tropical forests of the Pacific coast of northwestern South America and the Galápagos Islands. Stretching from southern Panama to northern Peru, this biodiversity hotspot consists of many endemic species and habitats.