By: Michael M. Block 5
Do you know where the Amazon Rainforest is? Do you know what plants and animals are in it? Well if you read this you can find out! The Amazon is in the northern half of South America containing the countries of Brazil, Venezuela, Columbia, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Guyana, and Surinam. That sounds like a lot of space but, it used to cover 14% of the earth, and now it only covers 6% of the earth. A big part of the drop is due to deforestation, the cutting down of trees which people cut down for wood, paper, lumber, and many other reasons. The climate of the Amazon is 70 degrees Fahrenheit and is hot and humid year round. I was just sitting in a tree eating a banana when I saw the metal bird come down. I got closer to hear the metal bird’s driver say, “The plane you called safe crashed! Because of you I and 5 other people are stuck out here until you send somebody to come get us. What do you mean we’ll be out here for a week! You got us stuck out here so you can get us free!” I ran away after that, I am a pygmy monkey, the smallest of all monkeys. So, it would be easy for me to get stomped on. I don’t get much bigger than a soda can. I have to watch out for the Boa Constrictor, the Python, and the Harpy Eagle. Speaking of pythons their carnivores or, they only eat meat. Also, a Boa Constrictor uses camouflage to hide from prey. It’s wired though I have claws instead of nails. I’m an omnivore if you didn’t know I eat plants and some meat. Did you know that anything that is living is an organism, I’m an organism, you’re an organism a banana is an organism! Speaking of banana’s their producers, or they produce good for things. It’s like they got an unexpected tour from an ecotourism or a trip to a place that has been untouched by mankind. Ooh… A caterpillar! I love caterpillars their delicious! Yum! Oh sorry I’m really hungry, well not anymore. Have you ever heard of photosynthesis? Well it’s the process of plants converting sunlight into food. Talking of plants do you know what foliage is? Well it’s the leaves of any type of plant, like the green part of it’s the green part of the leaves. Do you know what a herbivore is? It’s an animal that eats only plants. And do know what adaptation is? Well it’s the instinct of animals that let change to a
different environment from their original habitat. Talking about habitats do you know what a habitat is? It’s the natural environment of an organism and you should know what an organism is because I already explained it.
Let’s meet my friend. He’s an orange winged parrot.”Taco! Where are you Taco?””Over here Tortilla.””This is my friend Taco, tell them about yourself Taco.””I’m an orange winged parrot. Unlike other birds I don’t have to be nomadic or constantly moving because in the rainforest it is always warm. Luckily Taco and I know of a conservation area, where they protect trees and animals. Some of the animals that I have to watch out for is the False Vampire Bat, and the Capuchin Monkey. That makes me and Tortilla prey, or we get hunted for food. Then that makes the False Vampire Bat a predator, or they hunt for food. I live in the Emergent layer with Taco, then there is the Canopy layer it acts as a sunroof to the layers below it. Next is the Understory layer where trees only get up to about 12 feet, and last there is the Forest floor it is almost complete darkness. But it is good for a midday nap! One of my favorite trees is the Tree Fern, let’s go meet him.”
~ 2 hours later ~ “Hey Burrito, why don’t tell about yourself.””Ok, I’m a Tree Fern in the Amazon Rainforest. I prefer wet tropical areas, I don’t know why but I just grow better there. A lot of animals live in me and I’m afraid that one day I’ll get cut down, and be made into lumber or into paper.””Another one of my favorite trees is the Brazil Nut Tree.”
~ 2 hours later ~ “Tell us about yourself Barbacoa.””Well I’m actually a Brazil Nut Tree. I produce nuts that are sold all over the world. And did you know that the nuts I produce are grown in sphere type things with 12 nuts in a sphere. I have no specific place I would like to grow in so I’m scattered throughout the Amazon. I am very tall but young for a tree. One day I hope to reach up to 200 feet like I can.”
Do you know what a food web is? It’s a web that shows who gets eaten and who eats what. Here’s an example of one. The arrows show the transfer of energy.
Here’s another type of map, a climate map of the Amazon. Look at it.
“One of my favorite tribes to be around is the Machigunga tribe. They live in a village type set up in rows with a decent amount of families. They use wood and straw for shelter and are set up the same as other tribes but their culture is completely different. They use their resources wisely and they try to ration them. Did I tell you that they hunt for food, well they do. I never seem to be around when they do their traditions and other stuff so I can’t explain that.”
“Another good tribe is the Yanomamy Tribe. They are also set up in a village kind in rows. Their set and use for resources is very similar to the Machigunga tribe. It’s strange though, like the Machigunga tribe I’m not around when they do their traditions and stuff.
Well I went back to the site of metal bird, or plane, crash and another metal bird thet was bigger and louder came and picked up the people who were in the crash. I love this tree because it is filled with bananas, grasshoppers and other fruit. It all turned out good and… Ooh!! A banana!! I love bananas more than grasshoppers!!
And do you know what the land cover for the Amazon is? Here’s a little map to show you what it is.
Well in the end the metal bird crash survivors get picked up, you learned about the rainforest and I just found banana. A good thing is that nobody got hurt or died. By the way do you know where the things that die go in the Amazon? They get broken down into simpler substances by decomposers and are eaten. By the way the Amazon Rainforest has 20% of the world’s oxygen. So I suggest if you want to breathe you should join a club or a association to help conserve the rainforest.
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