Welcome to the Panama Weekly News Roundup! Here’s the latest.
Scientist accidentally discovers 20-million-year-old tusked sea cow in Panama.
A researcher inadvertently discovered the remains of Central America’s oldest marine mammal – a 20-million-year-old tusked sea cow.
Steven Manchester, a curator of paleobotany at the Florida Museum of Natural History, had been looking for fossil plants when he stumbled across bones during fieldwork close to the Panama Canal.
The researcher had split off from a group of vertebrate palaeontologists he was working with to inspect the shoreline for fossil leaves and petrified wood, when he saw parts of a skeleton sticking out of the bank.
Source: The Independent
Stop #2 on a Yearlong Journey, a Spot in Panama That Takes It Slow.
The 52 Places Traveler heads to the country’s Pacific Coast expecting breakneck development and instead finds a place that’s in no rush.
This is a place I could disappear into. And over the course of the five days I spent in the remote village of Santa Catalina on Panama’s Pacific Coast, I met many people who seemed to be doing just that. There was the Italian surfer who came many years ago and now returns again and again, for longer periods each time. Or the British dive master who thought she would spend a season here at Panama Dive Center, but just passed two years in town.
Source: The New York Times
This Is How Volcanic Fury Helped To Create Panama And Change The World.
The Isthmus of Panama, separating the Caribbean Sea from the Pacific Ocean, has historically been of enormous value to a wide range of communities. Arguably most famous for the feat of engineering that is the Panama Canal, it was once targeted for a huge expansion which almost involved the use of nuclear weapons.
Now, a brand-new paper in Scientific Reports is set to transform how we understand the origins of this hugely significant landmass. It suggests that the current model – in which a volcanic landscape is gradually pushed up over the course of a lengthy tectonic battle – may not be the full picture. Instead, the Cardiff University-led team has quite literally dug up evidence that suggests active volcanism, the sort that causes islands to rise up from the waves all over the world, helped build this colossal bridge too.
Source: Forbes
Tips and Things to do in Panama During Carnaval
Carnaval in Panama is just around the corner (March 2-5), and the country is getting ready for the biggest party of the year. Carnaval is a traditional celebration that marks the beginning of the holy week holidays each spring.
It’s a pretty intense party nationwide, comprising of parades, concerts, street foods, dancing, and elaborate costumes. There are so many things to do in Panama during Carnaval, it’s nearly impossible to do all of them in one year. But there’s something for everyone, if you know how to find it. Here are 5 fun things to do:
Source: International Relocation Firm Blog
