El Naturalista en Nicaragua Author:Thomas Belt, Jaime Incer Barquero Thomas Belt, an English naturalist of the Victorian age, arrived in Nicaragua in 1868. He was the first scientist who made an in depth study of the country?s flora and fauna, particularly focusing on the habits of insects and birds, and whose collections are now preserved in the Natural History Museum of London. For Nicaragua and the rest... more » of Central America, "The Naturalist in Nicaragua" is one of the few written works of that century that portrays the humble way of life and the thoughts of our great grandfathers, who were very naïve, but who turned a deaf ear to the voice of progress, "blanketed by the sleepy folds of an easy life free of problems," . This lifestyle did not go unnoticed by the analytical, mountaineering naturalist, when he reflected on the patriarchal way of life, which deeply saddened him given the rough conditions in which peasants lived. "The Naturalist in Nicaragua" is now considered a classic work of its type, compulsory reading for everyone interested in the biology of the tropics. The original version, dated back to 1874, was rated by the Encyclopedia Britannica, as "a work of great merit." The English edition has since been reproduced four times, as recently as 1985. This edition is the second version in Spanish.« less