Amazon Rainforest Essay

The Amazon

The Amazon is a sublime location. This region is abundant in species of vegetation and animals, many of which have not even been discovered (National Geographic). The animals of the Amazon Rainforest all come together to form a complex and intricate ecosystem. Deforestation, climate change, are factors that have recently come against the Amazon Rainforest (National Geographic). In this scenario, the future of the Amazon Rainforest appears bleak. A from National Geographic focuses on specific animals that have inhabited the rainforest for up to millions of years, their relations with one another, and the factors that threaten their survival.

To begin the video, the narrator gives some background information about the Amazon Rainforest.

According to National Geographic, "This bizarre creature has been polishing its deadly tactics for millennium. Its name, matamata simply means kill. It remains motionless, but as a reptile it must breathe air, the matamata does that by extending its specially adapted neck, moving slowly to avoid detection. It uses its snout as a snorkel. When a fish gets close enough, the matamata opens its mouth, creating a huge vacuum. This sucks in the victim faster than in the blink of a human eye" (National Geographic). The giant Amazon river turtles are yet another species to inhabit this region. "Towards the end of the dry season, the river levels are at their lowest, exposing broad sand Banks. To one huge and ancient creature, this temporary landscape offers a brief opportunity essential to their survival. Female giant Amazon river turtles come to the same stretches of the river year after year, they search for the highest spot on the beaches to lay their eggs" (National Geographic.). This is a very time sensitive activity for the sea turtles. National Geographic explains, 'Timing is crucial and there is little margin for error. In a few weeks, the rains will return, and the beaches will be washed away, the eggs must hatch before them. It is a precise timetable, and the turtles have followed it for countless generations, but the climate is changing everywhere. If weather patterns shift

National Geographic further entails, "At the start of the dry season, the mother otter relies on river levels falling to expose dry patches of land where she can make her den. These quiet backwaters provide a perfect place for young otters to learn and play. It is a race against time, the rains will return, and the dens will flood. If weather patterns change, it will challenge this finely tuned parenting plan" (National Geographic). Sloths on the other hand are threatened by logging, "Logging in the Amazon stretches a forest into islands isolated vegetation. Every species will have to be able to move or adapt in order to survive, and not all creatures are mobile" (National Geographic). It is known that sloths hang in trees and move very slowly. Sloths travel on tree branches, so if the forest becomes fragmented, sloths will not be able to move at all (National