Amazon: Land of the Flooded Forest The Amazon river is the largest river on Earth. Long ago it flowed east to west into the Pacific ocean, but after the formation of the Andes Mountains, the river became a large lake. Over time the lake turned back into a river, but it switched direction and now flows from the Pacific into the east. The Amazon rainforest is very unique in the world because it is dry for about half the year, and flooded for the other half. Biodiversity in the rainforest has already been recorded as very high, and many of the species in the rainforest have yet to even be seen nevertheless identified. Every year the rains flood the land creating an amazing ecosystem where trees are almost completely underwater and fish are feeding on fruits and nuts in the tree tops. The local people of the Amazon river are called caboclos, they depend on the river to sustain their way of life. The people live in little houses on stilts, and if they are lucky their houses do not flood and they can stay there in the wet season. Almost all the people who live on the river are tenants who are always in debt to absentee landlords. They raise pigs on the docks of the houses and travel by canoe or small boat. To make money they can fish and grow fruit to sell in towns that take over an hour to get to by boat. The people have no electricity and no formal schooling, along with high rates of malaria. They rely on hunting and gathering as a means of survival. While the people only take what they need, there are commercial fisherman who come in and rapidly extinguish fisheries. Biologist Michael Goulding has been studying Amazon biodiversity, he relies on the caboclos and their history to understand the rainforest. He has been watching over fisheries for many years and has noticed a decline in fish size at the markets. He came to the conclusion that the commercial fisherman have been overfishing the Amazon and predicts that the Amazon fisheries will collapse in the near future. This will have a dramatic effect on the caboclos as well as the food chains and complex system of the forest. The rainforest still has so many unknown wonders. So far no one knows how the trees manage to survive after being water logged for months a time. Rare animals such as the Red Uakari are rarely seen, even by the local people. They are only found in the Amazon and are unlike other monkeys in many ways. They do not have tails, and their faces serve as an indicator of their health and malaria. A bright red face means the monkey is healthy. The Amazon basin is also the richest bird region in the world, it is home to over 900 species of which half are found nowhere else on earth. The Hoatzin for example, is a leaf eating bird who nests right above the water in the forest. The chicks are able to swim to avoid predators and the relationship of this bird to other birds is unknown. The fish in the Amazon are also unique. Many of the fish have adapted to have large teeth and powerful jaws for crushing fruits and nuts falling from the trees. Some fish digest only the flower of fruits and the seeds are excreted and germinate later on. The change from wet to dry seasons changes the already complex ecosystem into an even greater wonder. As the floods drain, fish migrate in large schools. The Large River Turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in world, growing up to three feet in length. When the floods drain and sandy beaches are exposed, the river turtles meet on beaches to nest. The giant Pirarucu is the most prized fish of the amazon. They can weigh up to 200 lbs and are prey only to man. The caboclos spend hours trying to catch these fish because they are worth a lot of money and can also increase the man’s status on the river. The people of the Amazon are often nutrient deficient and eat large amount of manioc, a root that is turned into a cornmeal like substance. The manioc provides most of the starch in the Amazonian diet. The early 1970s were when the amazon frontier began being developed. The land was and is being cleared for crops and cattle pastures. Gold mines have also degregated the forest over the years. Mercury used to process gold has been found in fish and is making its way up the food chain into humans. The rainforest is disappearing at a rate of 20 football fields a minute. This irreplaceable wonder is being destroyed every day. It is commonly said that “the cure for cancer” is going to be found in the Amazon. IN my opinion, this statement has a very high chance of being proven true. The amount of biodiversity found in the rainforest is absolutely astonishing and it is still largely understudied. The biodiversity of animals, especially large megafauna, has people willing to donate money to “save” the rainforest. The entire video was focused on animal species, with one mention of the manioc plant. Yet realistically the biodiversity of plant life in the rainforest is even more intricate. Plants are a major source for pharmaceutical products that people use every day. The rainforest also acts as a large carbon sink, helping to store up carbon dioxide in the forest rather than in the atmosphere. The rainforest has so many benefits to people that it should be protected from harm. The immediate use of the rainforest by the caboclos must be studied to gain a better understanding of how the forest functions. However, if commercial companies continue to come in and make money off of the world’s asset, we will be studying the forest from a fossil record. This video does a great job of depicting life in the rainforest and I cannot wait to see it in real life.
Golden Amazon The Amazon Rainforest is a great source of biodiversity, but it is also a great source of lumber, fish and supposedly gold. Commercial companies are exploiting the land and leaving devastating tracks across the forest. Independent logging industries are cutting down the forest at ever increasing rates. Commercial fisherman are exhausting the fisheries. Gold miners are tearing up the earth and leaking mercury into the food chain. Logging companies scare the workers into not saying anything about their work. People and families have gone missing when they try to stand up for the environment. A logging mafia has formed that is unpoliced and steadily growing. Just one truck of logs holds 30 cubic meters of endangered trees which are processed and sold in the same city. An “explorer” goes out and finds trees that are good for logging, usually specific hardwood species. This man will make less than 20 dollars a day working for a company whose profit is immeasurable. There are no police around to prevent this assault of the defenseless forest. Trees over a hundred years old are chopped down, affecting everything within 50 square meters of the fallen tree. Just ten men cutting trees drop 150 trees (17 cubic meters) a day. The people interviewed in the video say how they are risking being killed along with their families, they know people who have gone missing. Foreign countries play a big role in the logging trade now since Asia and Africa have become exhausted over the years. Over 80 percent of the timber that Brazil sells is cut illegally with over two thirds of the timber wasted by being made into saw dust or unusable cuts. The laminating industry calls for a lot of wood, leading Brazil to believe that its wealth in timber is a legitimate source of income. The most frustrating part about all of the unmonitored logging is that there are sustainable ways of using resources. One swiss company is sustainable in their use of timber, they view the wood business as a whole. The extraction and sale of timber is only profitable if the ecosystem does not suffer and as long as regenerative methods and policies are pursued. Exploitation in sustainable ways can be done, as shown by this company. The company cuts the trees in specific ways so that their growth is not completely effected. They reduce their use of machinery by using cables to drag trees out of the forest instead of driving trucks through and damaging more vegetation. This company sells their timber with a stamp showing it is certified by the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) so that people can make informed decisions when buying products. Fishermen in the Amazon river hunt for the prized Pirarucu. While spearing and netting, the fishermen select for the older fish and do not catch fish for trade. They have seasons for fishing and some fish are illegal to catch. The most interesting part of fishing in Brazil is that they use every part of the fish. They cut out the guts and feed whatever is inside to the livestock. They cook up and eat the fillets, and the skin is made into shoes. Some parts of the fish are even made into clothes. Unfortunately, even though there are regulations on fishing, some people still continue to fish for species out of season and sell them in markets where they sell them to make a profit at the expense of the future generations of the fish. The dream of leaving poverty by way of gold drives people to ruin the earth right below their feet. Independent mines reach depths of 200 meters, with treacherous conditions. Workers lower themselves into the mines every day and pick at the earth hoping to find just one nugget of gold. Realistically only 1 percent of the land has gold. There are approximately 2,000 gold mines and 400,000 people still willing to risk their lives for a nugget that never comes. Industrialization increases productivity and increases the capacity to ruin nature. In order to get one gram of gold,the miners crush a ton of quartz. The wounds in the landscape are incurable. The brazilian constitution requires the gold diggers to return the disturbed environment back to its original state, but that is impossible. The process of getting gold is tediousand takes a lot of work. In one day fifty men can collect 1.2 kg of quicksilver gold (gold mixed with mercury), of which only 480 grams will be valuable. That is $5,400 worth of pure gold. The cost of these commodities: timber, fish, and gold, come at a price greater than the profit. The timber is worth much more as an ecosystem service than as a flooring. As a home to other species, and as a carbon sequestering device, the tree will be more beneficial to the world. At the federal university of Mato Grosso, studies have shown that thousands of fish in the Amazon contain 1,200 parts per billion of methyl mercury in their flesh. That is almost three times the standard set by the world health organization. These pollutants in fish biomagnify and when consumed by humans. Eating these fish can cause a build up of methylmercury in human bodies which affects the central nervous system. In the grand scheme of life, nothing is worth more than the health of the planet and the living beings who occupy it.
Brazil: I have Seen the Earth Change
Climate Change and deforestation have had enormous effects on the people of Igarape. The state hired a medical assistant in place of a doctor for the town. The assistant, Malene, harvests medicinal herbs for the people in the town and knows all the residents very well. She tells of how she remembers being twelve years old in the community and the water never used to rise as high as it has in recent years. She explains how the community fears the rain because every time it rains there are large waves called banzeros that come through the river and ruin everything. She is concerned that if the water continues to rise she will lose all of her plants. If the water continues to rise, she will lose all of her plants. The water takes everything when it floods, and they have no protection. Banzeros crash into houses and ruin them. Banzeros are extremely dangerous waves. The people cannot sleep because the boats and house move so much. 2009 was record breaking floods in Igarape. David Mcgrath Director of IPAM Amazon Environmental Research Institute, helping amazonian people to adapt to the climatic changes. Willie Barreto Mcarro from the Center for Research for the Biosphere and Atmosphere in the Amazon has been studying climate change in the Igarape. He has concluded that there is no longer a balance between the seasons. The separation of rainy and dry seasons is gone, and each gets worse every year. The shorter dry season is due to La Nina weather patterns causing a direct effect on precipitation in the region. El Nino comes as a wind from the Pacific, spreads around South America, near Igarape de Costa, increasing temperature and decreasing the amount of rain. But La Nina does the opposite. The climate change is enforcing the El Nino and La Nina effects they now occur every year instead of every 5 to 8 years. People of Igarape are realizing that without any trees, the land disappears. They understand that trees hold soil in place and that deforestation causes the problems in the weather and ultimately climate. They notice that when it used to rain in a wooded area trees roots would be deep in the ground, allowing water to penetrate and recharge the ground. But slowly through deforestation there was a waterproofing effect. This partial sealing of the ground prevented water infiltration and favored transport of sediment towards rivers and lakes. The sedimentation caused the waves. Having the waves caused the water to be unfit for fish and so the fish left the region. This is how the people realized that vegetation plays an important role in storm surge protection. Willie found that communities that had grasses planted in the waters near the community were much less affected by the waves and storms. Igarape decided to plant the canarana plant, a species similar to bamboo, to protect the community from the waves. This also provided a place for fish to live again. The town set into educating the children about reforestation and its importance. They also took charge of setting fishing limits on their own town and worked out ways to spread their ideas to neighboring communities. There are Brazilian laws that allow the citizens to protect themselves and their natural resources. Using these laws as a base, the people decided that the fish would only be able to be caught with a rod and not a net. From here the community continued to improve and think of more sustainable ways to use their resources. I think that deforestation is causing more problems than we can foresee at this point in history. This scenario is just one example of the direct effects of deforestation. However, the climate change being experienced in this part of the world is just one piece of a much larger puzzle. If the climate is changing in South America, other areas will show effects as well. All air masses are interfering with each other which means that one change can affect a much greater area than it may seem. Learning from these areas that are affected first will help other places be ready when climate change begins to affect them as well. For example, the idea of vegetation as protection from storm surge. If coastal areas in the world begin planting now, they will be ready before the change comes.
Amazon Forest Wildlife The Amazon is where adaptation is the key to survival. The Amazon Water Basin is the watering can to the Amazon rainforest. The black caiman are one of the amazon’s most ancient inhabitants. They have changed very little since the time of dinosaurs. They gather in large number during the dry season and they jump and slap the water working in a pack to round up prey. The Amazon Basin is over 400 million hectares, the Amazon River is 6000 km long. Many interlocking relationships have taken very long to form. The dotted humming frog and burrowing tarantula spider work together. The spider can detect chemicals on the frog’s skin. The frogs eat ants that eat spider eggs. The spider provides the frog with protection. The Brazil nut trees have flowers that are tightly shut. Bees unravel these flowers and simultaneously pollinate the flower. The agouti has sharp enough teeth to break the seed pod of the nut tree. There are many seeds, so the agouti buries them. They germinate and become trees the following season.