panamabiota.org

The Panama Biodiversity Portal is a collaborative research and outreach resource developed by Arizona State University (ASU) and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI). It brings together biodiversity information from different STRI sources to support data sharing and research on Panama’s natural world. The portal focuses on information about plants, insects, fish, reptiles, birds, and other organisms, and currently provides access to specimen records and related geospatial data.

Users can explore the collections through search tools, maps, media, species checklists, and a glossary. Featured resources include checklists for birds of Piñas Bay, plants of Panama, and treehoppers of Barro Colorado Island, alongside educational “of the day” features about amphibians, birds, and reptiles. The portal’s planned additions include DNA sequence data and publication records for STRI vertebrate specimens. Its longer-term aim is to make data available through web services that support analyses such as species distribution modelling, co-occurrence studies, and mapping of phylogeographic and DNA barcode patterns. The portal is an emerging resource for biodiversity research in Panama and beyond.