Jimmy and plant used by fishermen.
Beautiful girl in Palmari.
Beautiful girl in Palmari.
Jimmy and Sharon in Palmari.
Someone’s pet near the Farinha factory.
I guess I look like a good tree to this guy.
I guess I look like a good tree to this guy.
Praying Mantis eggs. Looked like foam. We saw them many times. Bad camera, BAD!!
I started walking across the creek on this log. 1/4 through it, something painful happened.
This ubiquitous vine is known as monkey ladder.
Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of this plant...
Unfortunately I can’t remember the name of this plant...
Our guide fishing for piranhas.
Rowing in the flooded forest looking for piranhas.
Rowing in the flooded forest looking for piranhas.
Beautiful table atop Palmari’s observation deck.
Javari from the observation deck.
Maloka building in Palmari.
Canopy platform atop a Ceiba tree 33 m high.
To Hell with acrophobia… me starting the ascent to the first platform.
Me weighing acrophobia on one side and pathetic defeat on the other.
Me and Sharon on the way up.
Me at the first platform.
Me getting ready to zoom to the next platform via pulley. (150 m ride)
Me rappelling down from the third platform.
Sharon arriving at the first platform.
She mentioned something about her arms…
Me and S in the first platform.
Hanging bridge between platforms.
Hanging bridge between platforms.
Hanging bridge between platforms.
Hanging bridge between platforms.
Hanging bridge between platforms.
Sharon arriving at the second platform.
S getting ready to zoom down with the pulleys.
S getting ready to zoom down with the pulleys.
Sharon with Triciclo, the resident guacamaya in Palmari.
One of the larger huts in Heliconia.
The small bay by Heliconia.
The small bay by Heliconia.
The small bay by Heliconia.
The juice from these leaves is used by aborigines to fish. When poured into the water it will temporarily render the fish unconscious.
From that, there is a short step to make Farofa, which adds delicious texture to just about any meal. The Casaba starch is poisonous and must be extracted first. (This was yuca, not casaba.)
This tree has a tabular root system similar to that of the Ceiba, yet the panels are much thinner. When hit with a stick they produce a very loud low frequency sound that travels for long distances and can be used for communication.
This tree has a tabular root system similar to that of the Ceiba, yet the panels are much thinner. When hit with a stick they produce a very loud low frequency sound that travels for long distances and can be used for communication.
When hunting, this clay makes both a visual and olfactory mask. It is allegedly good for the hunter’s skin too. No effect on the pray’s skin was reported.
The Piranha Caribe is the most ferocious in the area. This was a large specimen at ca. 25 cm. Despite the fish being clinically dead (I’m pretty sure), Jimmy never put his hand too close to it’s mouth. We were told that a good bite of a fish this size will cut clean through a finger, bone and all. Note to self: always use a match or equivalent when playing dentist with these individuals.
Moments after this picture was taken the unlucky animal went from Piranha Caribe to Piranha Soup, or as Doña Marta preferred to say in her lovely Brazilian accent Caldo de Piranha. Unfortunately we left for a hike and missed the meal.
Another view of the business end of this little beast.
One of them landed on my head in an occasion. Being completely wild it took a small sample of my ear before flying off again, unaware that this is frowned upon.
Peque-peque in the foreground.
