UWC Grade 5 (2009-2010)

A: Every animal has the ability to protect itself from being someone's next meal. Each species has evolved with its own set of unique adaptations, ways of helping them to survive. BLENDING IN The coloring of some animals acts as protection from their predators. Insects play some of the best hide-and-go-seek in the forest. The "walking stick" is one such insect; it blends in so well with the palm tree it calls its home that no one would notice it unless it moved. Some butterflies, when they close their wings, look exactly like leaves. Camouflage also works in reverse, helping predators, such as boa constrictors, sneak up on unsuspecting animals and surprise them. The three-toed sloth is born with brown fur, but you would never know this by looking at it. The green algae that makes its home in the sloth's fur helps it to blend in with the tops of the trees, the canopy, where it makes its home. But green algae isn't the only thing living in a sloth's fur; it is literally "bugged" with a variety of insects. 978 beetles were once found living on one sloth! STAYING OUT OF SITE The sloth has other clever adaptations. Famous for its snail-like pace; it is one of the slowest-moving animals on earth. (It can even take up to a month to digest its food!) Although its tasty meat would make a good meal for jaguars and other predators, most do not notice the sloth as it hangs quietly in the trees, high up in the canopy. ARMED AND DANGEROUS Other animals want to announce their presence to the whole forest. Armed with dangerous poisons used in life-threatening situations,their bright colors warn predators to stay away. The coral snake of the Amazon, with its brilliant red, yellow, and black coloring, is recognized as one of the most beautiful snakes in the world, But don't admire its beauty too long; its deadly poison can kill within seconds The poison arrow frog also stands out with its brightly colored skin. Its skin produces some of the strongest natural poison in the world, which Indigenous people often use for hunting purposes.Another animal with no friends is the hoatzin. Often called the stinkbird, it produces a horrible smell to scare away potential predators.

The perfect partnership - Azteca ants live on the Swollen Thorn Acacia Tree, which offers the ants everything needed for survival - lodging, water, and food for themselves and their young. In return, the ants protect the trees from predators. Whenever the ants feel something moving at the foot of the tree, they rush to fiercely fight the intruder. They also protect it from vines and other competing plants that would otherwise strangle it. As a result, nothing can grow near these trees. They are the only trees with a built-in alarm system!

The whole of the ecosystem is balanced on plants, animals and the environment as a whole... Be it temerature by region or vegitation or insects.... If you remove just one component, the rest collapse...

Now, people are bringing disaster to the rainforest.

One of the easiest benefits of deforestation to spot are the economic ones. Lumber products are one of the most staple constructive materials in human society. Whether it's raw lumber used for making tables and houses, or paper and other wood by-products, we simply cannot live without the use of lumber. Like steel and stone, wood is one of the most basic natural resources, and unlike steel and stone, it is renewable simply by growing more trees. The only real trick to balancing it's consumption is to grow more trees to replace the ones taken.

his benefit of deforestation not only covers the people who cut down trees and process them, but also extends to the people who "clean up" after them. For every patch of forest cut down, arable land becomes available for farmers, or can be used as an area to place urban living sites like apartments, houses, and buildings. The number of people employed by such a construction project are many and varied. Or, if the city/government mandates replanting trees to replace the lost ones, then jobs are also provided for those people who do the seeding after a patch of forest is stripped.

This video provides an overview of the culture and practices of the Machiguenga, a group of indigenous people who live in Manu National Park of Peru, the world's largest rainforest reserve. These people remain isolated even today, living the same way they have for over 1000 years, though that is changing.

The anaconda is an amphibious snake.  It gives birth to live young.   Some anacondas, which live in the water, can reach up to 30 feet in length!  The anaconda is most active at night.    Although they are not venomous, they defend themselves by inflicting severe bites, but kill by constriction.  They swim well and kill their prey by strangling them.  If that does not work, they drown them.  They are usually able to last two years without eating.  They feed on birds and small animals.  They will kill animals as large as jaguars.    The anaconda is the largest snake in the world.  This snake is in the boa family.  It is found in stream banks and swamps in South America, east of the Andes from Columbia and Venezuela to Northern Bolivia, and South Central Brazil.  There is little known about the anaconda.   

The boa constrictor is one of the largest snakes in the world, ranging in size from 10 to 14 feet long.  The boa is very large, but the anaconda in South America is larger.  Most boa constrictors live in Guiana and Brazil.  Boas defend themselves by striking.    The boa is a constrictor, which means it wraps around its prey tighter and tighter until their prey dies.  Whenever its prey breathes out, the boa wraps tighter.  After the prey has been constricted, the boa eats it whole.  Boas eat mice and rats, and occasionally a small deer. To eat bigger things (like deer), they stretch their mouths very wide by unhinging their jaws.  It can take several weeks for the boa to fully digest its food.     Boa constrictors vary in color from brown to gray.  A large female can give birth to as many as 50 young!  Boas use heat pits to sense their surroundings, because they have bad eyesight. 

Use less gasoline and plastic.Gasoline and plastic are two things that are made from petroleum, or oil. A lot of oil comes from the rainforests through a process called extraction. Since oil extraction is very harmful to the rainforests, using less oil products can help save the rainforests.

Eat less red meat.One big reason rainforests are being destroyed is for beef. Millions of acres of rainforest are slashed and burned, which means that the land is set on fire in order to clear it. The cleared land is then turned into grass pastures for cows.

Use less paper.Since most paper comes from trees, using less paper can help save the rainforests. Use recycled 100% post-consumer waste (PCW) paper whenever possible.