Subtitled "Mysteries of the Tropical Rain Forest and the Scientists Who Are Trying to Solve Them," this books is an engaging account of ecological research and ecologists at Barro Colorado Island, the Smithsonian Institution's Tropical Research Station in Panama. Royte, a journalist and research-assistant-at-large, is an entertaining and insightful guide to flora, fauna and science.  (AMZ74, $18.95)