1.1. Geodiversity of Central America
Due to their tropical nature, fluvial environments dominate the geographical features of the Central American isthmus with several water basins, lakes, and wetlands. The region catchments normally drain to the Pacific Ocean or the Caribbean Sea. The biggest catchments in the Pacific basin are Lempa, Tempisque, and Térraba, while in the Caribbean basin, the biggest catchments are Belize, Saarstoon, Motagua, Ulua, Patuca, Coco, Matagalpa, San Juan, Reventazón-Parismina, and Sixaola. Large lakes are located along the region in Guatemala (e.g., Atitlán, Amatitlán, Izabal), Belize (e.g., Challilo, Northern and Southern), El Salvador (e.g., Coatepeque, Ilopango, Olomega), Honduras (e.g., Yojoa, Caratasca, Tansin, Warunta;), Nicaragua (e.g., Xolotlán, Cocibolca), Costa Rica (e.g., Arenal), and Panama (e.g., Gatún, Bayano). Moreover, wetlands are common in the region, providing important ecological services as carbon sinks, water sources, coastal protection, and biodiversity refuges.
Another important geomorphic environment in Central America is the volcanic landscape. The physiographic provinces indicate the distribution of these landscapes along the Chortis, Nicaraguan, and Chorotega volcanic fronts. Some examples of Central American volcanoes are Tacaná, Tajumulco, Atitlán, Fuego, Santa María, de Agua, and Pacaya (Guatemala); San Vicente, Chinameca, San Miguel, and Conchagua (El Salvador); Amapala (Honduras); Cosiguina, Cerro Negro, Telica, Masaya, Momotombo, Mombacho, and Concepción (Nicaragua); Rincón de la Vieja, Tenorio, Miravalles, Arenal, Poás, Irazú, and Turrialba (Costa Rica), Barú, and La Yeguada (Panamá). Moreover, volcanic geomorphic environments comprise large mountain ranges with dozens of erosional and depositional landforms along the isthmus.
The region features the Caribbean and Pacific coasts with plenty of landforms. Central America’s Pacific coasts are normally intricated and rocky, alternating with sandy beaches (pocket or large), deltas, estuaries, and rich ecosystems such as mangroves and coral reefs (the latter usually of small dimensions). The Caribbean coasts of the region are normally sandy, elongated, and eventually influenced by coral reefs, and large wetlands (estuarine, palustrine, and lacustrine), drawing the fluvial flatlands transition with the Caribbean Sea.
Karst environments are mostly in the north of the region but are present throughout the study area. Cone and tower karst are common in northern Central America, especially in Guatemala and Honduras, while doline karst is typical of small zones of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. Among the common landforms in the region are karstic hills (cones, cockpit, and tower type), sinkholes, caves, and other subsidence or collapse structures such as underground rivers. Glacial landscapes are limited to certain areas of Guatemala and Costa Rica. The highest summits of Alto de los Cuchumatanes in Guatemala and Chirripó National Park in Costa Rica present erosional and depositional landforms derived from the glacial and periglacial during the Last Glacial Maximum (approximately 21 ka ago).
The regular geomorphic environments in Central America are volcanic, fluvial, coastal, karstic, and paleoglacial. Hence, the typical geosites are volcanic, fluvial, karstic, coastal, and archeological in origin. Researchers found that waterfalls are located along the isthmus, which is a regular feature due to its formation in mountain landscapes. Volcanoes and their features are common landforms that mostly border the Pacific coast with some exceptions. Attractive rivers sites were mostly found in Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala, but these geosites are impressive along the whole isthmus. Natural reserves are common geosites in Guatemala, but they are related with protected areas that are extensively present in the region and even have well-established biological corridors. Mountains are common landforms in the region due to their tectonic and volcanic activity. Lakes and lagoons are common fluvial landforms mostly located in Nicaragua and northern Central America. Karst features such as caves and dolines are more common in northern Central America due to their older geological formations. Coastal geoforms are rich and diverse in the region. Archeological sites are mostly located in northern Central America due to their vast indigenous history related to important groups such as the Mayans.