The
Lacandon Jungle (
Spanish:
Selva Lacandona) is an area of
rainforest which stretches from
Chiapas,
Mexico into
Guatemala and into the southern part of the
Yucatán Peninsula. The heart of this rainforest is located in the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas near the border with Guatemala in the Montañas del Oriente region of the state. Although most of the jungle outside the reserve has been partially or completely destroyed and damage continues inside the Reserve, the Lacandon is still the largest
montane rainforest in
North America and one of the last ones left large enough to support
jaguars. It contains 1,500 tree species, 33% of all Mexican bird species, 25% of all Mexican animal species, 44% of all Mexican diurnal butterflies and 10% of all Mexico's fish species.