so.Hikingonehumid-thickafternoonthrough
yetanothertunnelof fernand leafandvineand
creeper,Enzostoppedtodelicatelydrawa fat leaf
downtowardmynose.
“Yousee?”heasked.
I leanedcloserbecauseIdidn’tsee.Masters
ofblending, thesedenizensof therain forest.
Actuallythisantwaseasytosee,being
shoeshineblackandhalfasizebiggerthanyour
averageant.But itstill looked likeanant. Iwon-
dered ifEnzowasfinallyrunningoutof things
toshowme.
“Bulletant,”hesaid. “Verypoisonous. Italked
totheresearchersandtheytoldme it’sthesame
kindofpoisonasakingcobra’s,onlymuch less.
Butstill,youdonotwanttobebitten.”
Hencethethreesimpleguidelinesposted in
both lodges. “Makequestions,”“silence isgood,”
and“avoidmanipulatealiveorganisms.”
Althoughthesmall thingsneverceasedto
swarmandsurprise, therain forestwasquite
capableofproducing itsklaxoncalls.Lateone
afternoon, thesettingsunsending foggybeams
of lightdownthroughthecanopy, theentire for-
estsuddenlyechoedwitha longroar, something
likethepassingofagreat,deepwind. Itwas
followedbyaseriesofgutturalgrunts.
IturnedquicklytoEnzo,buthemadeno
movetorun.
Iwishedtomakeaquestion.What inthe
worldwasthat?
“Howlermonkey,”saidEnzo. “It isthenoisi-
estanimalonearth,afterthebluewhale.”
Thehowlscontinued,primitiveandnow lovely
inthewaning light.Itwasthedrumbeatofadif-
ferentworld.Itisgoodforustohearsuchthings.
Enzo lookeduptothegloamingsky,as if
trackingthegruntsbouncingabout inthe
canopy,andthenhesmiled.
“Thenature isamazing.”
79
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