TRAVEL
trail,Enzowouldbendandpeer intothebrush,
“Let’sseewhat is intheholeoverthere.”
Asyoumight imagine, therewereplentyof
bigthings intherain forest:plate-sizespi-
dersandfist-sizesnails, theharpyeagle(the
Americas’ largestraptor), insectsofsuchgirth
thatyou felttheirpassingbreeze,andkapok
treeswith limbsasthickasVolkswagenbuses.
Therewere insanelycolorfulbirds—white-
throatedtoucans, chestnut-earedaracaris,and
allmannerofmacaws—andheapsofcavorting
monkeys—browncapuchin,duskytiti,and
squirrel—whose leapscausedboughstodipand
crashas ifassaultedbyoverweightraindrops.
Andyes, therewerepiranha: fourspeciesof the
ragged-toothedfish intheTambopataregion,
the largestofwhich, theblackpiranha,growsto
nearlyafoot.Aswepreparedtofishforpiranha
onedawnonTresChimbadasLake,guideYuri
Riveraraisedaneyebrow. “Butyouknowwe
don’thaveanyfishing line, sowearegoingto
havetouseourfingers.”Mastersof the jest,
thoserain-forestguides.
Ienjoyedthegrandeurof therain forest
(twiceweclimbedtall towerstogazeupona
green-canopyseastretchingtoeveryhorizon),
but itwasthecountlessnuancesthatrendered
mespellboundandriveted.Enzopointedout
howtherootsofplantsandtreessnakedout
for impossibledistancesbecausethereare few
nutrientsbeneaththefirst few inchesofsoil.
Hechippedapieceofbark fromagarlictree,
informingmethat itmade foranexcellentbug
repellent(ahandythingtoknow).Hetraceda
fingerbesideaprocessionof termitesmaking
theirwayupatreetrunktotheirnest.
“Ifyouget lost inthewoods,youcaneat
them.Theyhave lotsofprotein.”
Thisbeggedtheobvious.WithEnzo’sper-
mission, Itriedthem.
Hewatchedmy face.
“Uniquetaste,actually,”hesaid.
“Likewood.”
“Mmmmm,”saidEnzo. “Andtherearemil-
lionsandmillionsof them.Termitesarevery
important intheAmazon.”
Everywheretherewassomethingthatmade
youmarvelagainuponthediversityofour
world.Birds(
hoatzin
)thatreleaseahorrible
smell torepelpredators; stranglerfigsthatcrush
anddrainthe life fromtheirhosttree;plants
thateasearthritisand,perhapsofbroader inter-
est,aresaidtoserveasasexualattractant.
Eventheseemingly inconsequentialwasnot
JUNGLEFRIENDS:
CLOCKWISE FROMTOP LEFT
:
TheAmazon rain forest ishome toharpyeagles; kapok trees
with trunksas thickasVolkswagenbuses; theverypoisonousbullet ant; hoatzinbirds
that releaseahorrible smell againstpredators; andpiranha largeand small.
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