"Uh, just where am
I?" You're in French Guyana, a steamy tropical country sandwiched between Surinam and Brazil. French Guyana is infamous for Devil's Island (seen in the distance here). Featured in the movie Papillon, it's a former penal colony, from which escape was reputedly impossible. French Guyana is also known for Haementeria ghilianii, the giant Amazonian leech, which occurs only here and in nearby parts of Brazil. An Italian naturalist named Vittore Ghiliani discovered the animal in 1849, hence its species name. Its generic name—from the Hellenic haema, meaning "blood"—is a nod to its exquisite blood-drinking ability.
