Guatemala

C

Climate

The climate of Guatemala varies according to elevation, from hot coastal plains to cold mountain heights. Most of the population lives between 900 and 2,400 m (3,000 and 8,000 ft) above sea level, where there are warm days and cool nights with average annual temperatures of 20°C (68°F). The coastal regions are hot and humid, with average annual temperatures of 28°C (83°F). A rainy season, from May through October, is sometimes called “winter” because it brings cloudy afternoons and lower temperatures, and November to April is “summer.” Yet May is the hottest month, with average lows of 16°C (61°F) and highs of 29°C (84°F); the coldest month is December, when low temperatures average 12°C (54°F) and highs are 23°C (73°F).

During the dry season, especially from February to May, the air is often filled with dust. Rainfall in the tropical northern region averages between 1,500 and 2,500 mm (60 and 100 in) annually; Guatemala City, in the southern highlands, receives 1,320 mm (52 in) annually.

D

Plant and Animal Life

Most plants typical of tropical areas are found in the Guatemalan lowlands. In the mountain regions oak trees predominate on lower slopes, giving way to pine forests above 2,100 m (7,000 ft). Orchids and other brilliant flowers grow abundantly throughout the country.

Deer, monkeys, and piglike mammals called peccaries are common in the sparsely populated lowlands. Other wild animals—including jaguar, tapir, and puma—are found in smaller numbers, and crocodiles inhabit some rivers. Bird life is extremely rich, but the brightly colored quetzal, Guatemala’s national bird, is rare. The government has established several national parks and recreational areas to preserve plant and animal life. Among these are Mario Dary Rivera Park in the Baja Verapaz, dedicated to preservation of the quetzal, and the Chocón Machacas reservation near Livingston, on the Caribbean coast, designated for the preservation of the manatee and the mangroves. Efforts are also being made to save the elusive waterfowl known as the Atitlán grebe, which lives on Lake Atitlán.

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E

Natural Resources

Guatemala’s primary natural resource is the rich soil of its highland valleys and coastal plains, but it also has some petroleum, as well as nickel, lead, zinc, iron, and small quantities of gold, silver, and jade. Only 13 percent of the land is farmed. Forests and woodlands cover 36 percent, offering valuable timber, fine woods, and other products for both domestic use and export. The remaining sections of the country include urban areas, rugged terrain, desert, and lowland areas that have become exhausted or are otherwise unsuitable for agriculture or grazing.

F

Environmental Issues

Much of Guatemala’s rich biodiversity is found in its tropical forests. A large proportion of species are native to the area, but many are threatened with habitat loss. Each year, 2 percent of the country’s forests disappear. More than half of the country’s labor force works in agriculture, resulting in pressure to clear land for crops and pastures. Forests are also cut down to provide wood for fuel.

Guatemala has protected more than 15 percent of its land in parks and other reserves. The Maya Biosphere Reserve, a protected area of tropical rain forest and wetlands in the Petén region, is in danger of encroachment by local settlers, however. This area has suffered extensive deforestation, and many local farmers practice slash-and-burn agriculture. This traditional practice damages soil so that the land can be farmed for only a limited number of years. Numerous conservation groups, both local and international, are searching for ways to save this precious land before it is entirely deforested.

Guatemala has signed international treaties concerning biodiversity, climate change, endangered species, and wetlands.

III

People

Guatemala’s population, the largest of any Central American country, was estimated at 13,002,206 in 2008. Ladinos, who make up more than half the population according to official census statistics, outnumber Native Americans. Small groups of Guatemalans are descended from African and European immigrants. Ways of life differ widely in Guatemala, between ladinos and indigenous people, between urban and rural residents, between the more affluent and the very poor.

Guatemala has a young population, with 40 percent of the people under age 15 in 2008. The birth rate of 29 per 1,000 people is five times the death rate (5 per 1,000). Guatemala’s people suffer from one of the highest infant mortality rates in Central America, 29 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008), but that represents a significant improvement from 125 per 1,000 births in 1960. Life expectancy at birth is 70 years (68 years for males and 72 for females), among the lowest in the region.

The estimated 2008 population density of the country was 120 persons per sq km (311 per sq mi). The majority of the population lives around Guatemala City and in the western highlands. Both coasts are more lightly settled, and the large Petén region has a very small population. In 1995, 1 of every 500 Guatemalans left the country, most fleeing from the violence of the civil war. However, the emigration rate was much lower than that of neighboring El Salvador, and some refugees who fled across the border to Mexico during the war returned to their homes in the 1990s.

Although 53 percent of Guatemalans still live in rural areas, a growing number moved to urban centers during the 20th century. The main causes of this urban migration were rapid population growth and the transfer of more and more land from subsistence farming to production of crops for export. As rural residents no longer had enough land on which to raise crops to feed their families, many sought opportunities in the cities.

Guatemala’s largest metropolitan region is Guatemala City and its surroundings, with an estimated population of 3.2 million in 2000. The capital city itself had 942,348 inhabitants (2002), and the next two largest municipalities in the country are both suburbs of Guatemala City: Mixco (403,689) and Villa Nueva (355,901). Quetzaltenango, a trade center in southwestern Guatemala, ranked fourth in size with 127,569, just ahead of San Pedro Carchá and Cobán.

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