Mexico is a vast country, between the US in North America and Guatemala in Central America. It is dominated by the Sierra Madre, minor mountains rages, hills and forests, mostly fertile due to volcanic activity. Apart from the vast capital metropolis, must us rural with towns and farmers, where especially the 68 native peoples (from the once imperial Aztec to tiny tribes) live in relative harmony with nature. Colonial-Catholic and native traditions exists alongside a varied fauna and flora, from (once nearly extinct) black bears to orchids and specialized bees), agriculture (including blue agave for tequila) ad migrating visitors, like hibernating monarch butterflies. Written by KGF Vissers

The ancient temples of the Maya still tower over the jungles of the Yucatan, where jaguars, monkeys and tropical birds make their home. Beneath the forests a vast, watery underground world is still being explored.

Northern Mexico is dominated by two great deserts, the Sonoran and the Chihuahuan. This edition unravels the forces that have created this arid world and how the wildlife has adapted to living here.