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Central America. The narrow isthmus of land joining two vast continents.

This is Pipeline Road in Panama. It's named because it runs alongside an old pipeline that was put in during the Second World War to get oil from the Pacific through to the Atlantic Ocean. And cuts through some of the most pristine rainforest in this part of central America, and I have to tell you that amongst birdwatchers, this is a hallowed place.

It's world-famous. Semiplumbeous Hawk. Green Honeycreeper. Blue-crowned Motmot. Black-tailed Trogon.

I've been out here since first thing this morning, that's about five hours, and during the course of that time, I've seen or heard 75 different species of bird. Some of them are quite tricky to identify – I've just got glimpses through the trees. If I was to stay out here all day and work really hard I might see as many as 200 different species.

During Christmas of 1989, a party from the Audubon Society came here and recorded no fewer than 357 different types of birds. It was a new world record, set in this area of rainforest in Panama. To put that in context the most anyone has ever seen in Britain any single day is just 143.

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Semiplumbeous Hawk, Green Honeycreeper, Blue Crowned Motmot and Black Tailed Trogon

And it's not just birds. In this tiny reserve, there are twice as many mammal species as there are in the whole of the UK, three times more butterflies and 10 times as many frogs.

Perhaps this astonishing diversity is shown best by the richness of these superb birds. Hummingbirds are nectar feeders so they find these dishes of sugar solution irresistible. But it's not just the individuals that are so dazzling, it's the sheer variety. Blue-chested hummingbird. Long-billed Hermit. Violet Sabrewing. Black-throated mango and white-necked Jacobin. There are 59 different species of hummingbird in Panama's jungles.

The almost bewildering variety of life that you can find in rainforests is exhibited by almost every animal and plant group that lives there, and it's the same in rainforests all over the planet. It's the remarkable thing that sets them apart from the rest of our terrestrial ecosystem, and it's a profound example of what we call biodiversity. The number of different living things any given area at a given time. The big question is why?

And it's a question that's been vexing scientists for decades. Why are there so many different living things in the rainforest?