Construction will be completed this year on the marine laboratory of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) on the Panamanian archipelago of Bocas del Toro, in the Caribbean sea. The project, which has a price tag of over one million dollars, forms part of the STRI's 20 million dollar annual investment in Central America.

The laboratory will enable researchers from 40 countries to study mangroves, marine vegetation, and the coral around the islands, said STRI director Cristian Samper.

The laboratory will form part of the scientific research complex on Barro Colorado, an island in the Panama canal basin that was declared a biological reserve in 1923. The researchers will set up a system of eight telemetry towers to monitor around 200 species, which will be the most advanced of its kind in any tropical jungle region, said Samper.

In addition, the laboratory will be equipped with solar panels and a septic tank system for treating sewage