Page 138 - The Rough Guide to Panama (Travel Guide)

136 Central Panama El VallE
LA RANA DORADA – PANAMA’S THREATENED GOLDEN FROG
Decorating everything from pre-Columbian talismans to tacky T-shirts and lottery tickets,
Panama’s golden frog (rana dorada, atelopus zeteki) is one of the country’s most enduring
cultural icons, associated above all with El Valle since the surrounding cloud forest provides its
only known habitat.
In ancient times the Guaymí (or Ngäbe) revered the frog, carving ceramic and golden
likenesses for jewellery and huacas – precious objects buried with chiefs and other
prominent citizens – of this symbol of fertility and prosperity. Indeed legend had it that
possessing one of these “true toads” in life would ensure good fortune in the afterlife as it
would transform into a golden huaca. Even today it is believed that a glimpse of this tiny
dazzling amphibian in the wild will bring good luck, though a sighting is highly improbable
thanks to the deadly chytrid fungus, which decimated amphibian populations worldwide
and wrought devastation in the area in 2006. The waterborne fungus, which attacks the
skin and suffocates the animal, was until recently thought to have wiped out the wild
population. You can see captive frogs at El Valle’s zoo, El Nispero (see below) and,
3 promisingly, there have been recent isolated sightings in the forest. Successful breeding
in captivity through the amphibian Conservation and Rescue Project (Wamphibianrescue
.org) in El Nispero, the Smithsonian’s amphibian centre in Gamboa and several US zoos,
gives hope for their eventual recovery in the wild.

APROVACA Orchid Nursery
Signposted to the left on the way into town from the Interamericana, next to the MIA office • Daily 9am–4pm • $2 • T983 6472,
Waprovaca.com
The APROVACA Orchid Nursery nurtures around five hundred of Panama’s twelve
hundred orchid species, including the country’s rare endemic national flower, the
delicate flor del espíritu santo – named for the centre of each bloom, which resembles a
white dove. The centre aims to reintroduce many of the endemic species – threatened
by poaching – back into the wild.

El Nispero
1km north of Av Central • Daily 7am–5pm (EVACC closed on Tues) • $5 • T983 6142 • Take the turning between the police station and the
ATM and follow the rocky unmade road for about 1km
For many, El Valle is synonymous with golden frogs (see box above). Your best
chance of glimpsing the diminutive amphibians is at the local zoo, El Nispero,
where they form the proud centrepiece of the impressive Centro de Conservación
de Anfibios de El Valle (EVACC for short). Sixteen other threatened native species
of frog, toad and salamander have also been collected for study and breeding in
captivity, with a view to releasing them back into the wild once the chytrid fungus
is no longer a threat.
Unfortunately the rest of the zoo, which started life as a plant nursery and still
functions as such, crams 55 species of bird, alongside ocelot, margay, capybara, several
types of monkey and even the progeny of Manuel Noriega’s tapirs – adopted after the
US invasion – into inadequate cages.

Butterfly Haven
Signposted left off Av Central, just before the police station • Jan–Sept & Dec Mon & Wed–Sun 9am–4pm • $5 • T6062 3131,
Wbutterflyhavenpanama.com
The Butterfly Haven has a butterfly house with around 250 multicoloured butterflies
flitting around as well as a nursery where you can learn all about the life cycle of
lepidoptera. There’s also a garden café and gift shop.

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