The Amazon rainforest is the largest in the world, spanning over 1.4 billion acres across nine countries. It contains an immense level of biodiversity, with over 40,000 plant species, 3,000 fish species, and over 1,000 species each of birds, mammals, amphibians, and reptiles cataloged. Many indigenous tribes still live in the Amazon and have diverse cultures and traditions, such as the Yanomami, Caboclos, and Witoto tribes. However, the Amazon and its extraordinary wildlife are increasingly threatened by deforestation, which destroys around 150 acres per minute and could eliminate the entire forest in less than 40 years.

1. The Amazon!

2. Facts About The Amazon
*It is the largest rain forest in the world! It stretches over 1.4 billion
acres of land and If it was a country it would be the 9th largest in the
world!
*At the moment there are at least 40,000 plant species, 3,000 fish, 1,294 birds,
427 mammals, 428 amphibians, and 378 reptiles have been scientifically
classified in the Amazon!
*The Amazon rainforest has been in existence for at least 55 million years!
* The trees of a tropical rainforest are so
tightly packed that rain falling on the
canopy can take as long as 10 minutes
to reach the ground!

3. Tribes
There are a lot of tribes that live in the Amazon rainforest. Many tribes have different
cultures and traditions that are passed down for all Amazon tribes. For example:
Yanomami tribes are the largest tribe in the Amazon today and they have different
traditions from the Caboclos, Witoto, Manioc, and the Kayapo. Like the Yanomami is
the Caboclos. The Caboclos live in the Amazon too. They are very skilled hunters.
The Caboclos are very good cookers too. They are very wise and can live in the
Amazon with out any problems. One tradition is that the Witoto tribe eats the meat of
the people they kill and use their bones as souveniers or make things.

4. Animals That Live In The Amazon!
There are tons of animals that live in The Amazon but here are some of them.
Scarlet Macaw – are the beautiful scarlet birds that love to
eat seeds, nuts, fruits and can live upto 60 yrs or more. Poison dart frog – are the
most poisonous creatures
on Earth. They are very
brightly colored and ooze
poison through their skin.
Anaconda – is the largest snake on the earth and can even
gobble up a Jaguar. They don’t kill prey by venom Instead,
they wrap their bodies around their prey and squeeze until it
stops breathing.

5. More Facts!
* The Amazon Rainforest is so large that it spans nine countries: Brazil,
Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French
Guiana.
* Many modern medicines derive from plants found in the rainforest, and
this is just from the 1% that have been tested for medicinal properties.
With more than forty thousand plant varieties found in the rainforest,
the potential for finding new vaccines is enormous. Imagine the
possibilities
*Most of our food originally comes from the rainforests of the Amazon.
Amazon derived products include bananas, black pepper, chocolate,
coffee, corn, pineapple, rice and tomatoes.

6. Deforestation
It is estimated that in rainforests around the world, 150 acres of rainforest are
burned every minute.
Experts estimate that we are losing 137 plant, animal
and insect species every single day due to rainforest
deforestation. That equates to 50,000 species a year.
We are losing Earth's greatest biological
treasures just as we are beginning to
appreciate their true value. Rainforests once
covered 14% of the earth's land surface; now
they cover a mere 6% and experts estimate
that the last remaining rainforests could be
consumed in less than 40 years.

7. The Amazon River
The Amazon River is located in South America and is over 640km long. If you were
wondering were it begins its in the Andes Mountains. For much of its
path, the Amazon River can be as much as one to six miles wide!
During flood seasons, the Amazon River can be much, much wider;
some report it is more than 20 miles wide (32 km) in certain places.
The Amazon got its name from the Spanish
explorers. Female warriors called "Icamiabas",
meaning "women without husbands" attacked
Francisco Orellana. Orellana named the river "Rio
Amazonas" after these women whom he compared
to the Amazons of ancient Greek mythology.

8. Thanks For Listening!