Orchid genera and species in Guatemala

The name Guatemala derives from the Nahuatl word „Quauhtlemallan“, and means „Land of trees“. The name was given by the abundance of forest covering the country. Guatemala has a large number of ecosystems due to the diversified rainfall regime and diverse topographic relief, allowing a speed process of plant diversification, that has led to high level of biodiversity. Floristic studies of Guatemala, however, are scarce. In 1990 Fredy Archila decided to start studying the orchids of Guatemala. After 28 years of work and research with the important contribution and collaboration of Dariusz Szlachetko, Guy Chiron and their teams, the orchids genera and species of Guatemala is published, increasing the number of genera to over 220 and species more than 1200. The book includes biogeographical and historical information about Guatemala, descriptions of genera, key to their identifications and check-list of species. Most genera are illustrated by color photographs. The book includes about 600 pages of text and over 300 color photographs of orchids.