The Amazon – A Threatened Paradise

The world’s largest rainforest plays a crucial role in maintaining the global climate and is home to 10% of all species

- Sandra Visser

WITH an area of more than 5,5 million km², the Amazon is the largest rainforest on Earth. It covers about 40% of the South American continent and stretches across nine countries – Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Brazil, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. There are 35 million people living in this rainforest, of which 9% are indigenous groups.

UNIQUE WILDLIFE

About 10% of all the known plant and animal species on our planet is found in this region, as well as 5% of all known bird species. The Amazon Rainforest is home to about 427 mammal species, 1 300 bird species, 378 reptile species and more than 400 amphibian species. The Amazon River is almost 7 000km long and contains the largest number of freshwater fish in the world.

Let’s look at a few interesting animal species:

The capybara (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) looks like a large guinea pig and is the largest rodent on Earth. Its shoulder height can reach 60cm and it can weigh nearly 70kg. It lives in groups near water. It’s not endangered

The giant anteater (Myrmecophaga tridactyla) is the largest of the four living anteater species and grows 2m long. Its distinguishing feature is its especially long snout, with which it slurps up bugs such as ants and termites. Its conservation status is vulnerable.

The green iguana (Iguana iguana) is a popular exotic pet. It’s a herbivore and the males can grow to more than 2m from head to tail. Its conservation status is least concern.