NATURAL ZONES - Forests of the Torrid Zone.  Savannahs.

Map   Questions.

South America stretches a great distance from north to south and lies within both the torrid and temperate zones. Its natural features are, therefore, greatly varied. Large areas in the torrid zone are cov­ered with equatorial and tropical forests and savannahs.
Equatorial and Tropical Forests. The Amazon Lowlands and part of the northern and eastern coastlands are almost entirely cov­ered with equatorial and tropical rain forests. The Amazon Low­lands have a high temperature throughout the year (about 26° C). Rainfall is heavy, especially in the west,' closer to the Andes. The forests of the western part of the Lowlands are, therefore, thicker and more luxuriant.
In the Amazon equatorial forests the weather is very monoto­nous, each day being like the rest. The sky is usually clear in the morn­ing, the temperature about 22° or 23° C. The early dew evaporates quickly in the scorching sun, which is by this time high in the sky and approaching its zenith. Everything around breathes freshness. The trees break into leaf. But the heat gradually increases, until at about two o'clock it reaches 33—34°C. It becomes stiflingly hot. The leaves, so fresh and green in the morning, are now faded and droop­ing. The birds and animals fall silent. And now the clouds begin to gather in the east. The skies darken, the sun is hidden. There comes a strong gust of wind that sways the tops of the trees. Lightning flashes, thunder crashes, torrents of rain come pouring down. But

Fig. 166. Victoria regia in the Amazon basin. The enormous leaves almost entirely cover the backwater.

everything soon quietens down. Nature comes to life again. Only the heaps of petals and leaves under the trees bear witness to the recent storm. The sun soon sets and there .comes the damp and stuffy night.
Fruits ripen and leaves change all the year round in the equato­rial forests. The trees are striking for the shining green of their foliage. There is hardly a flower to be seen amongst the thick vegeta­tion. Underneath the trees it is damp and gloomy. Everywhere lie rotting trunks and branches.
The trees grow in tiers. Above the rest tower giant ficuses, nutbearing paras and high-stemmed palms. Then come numerous rub­ber-bearing plants, undersized palms and chocolate or cacao-trees. The cacao-tree bears its flowers and fruit not on its branches but on its trunk. The trunks of the trees are entwined with lianas and or­chids. Underneath grow ferns, and on the peaceful backwaters, vi­ctoria regia with leaves that reach two metres in diameter (Fig. 166).

Fig. 167. A flooded forest on the Amazon containing the hut of a caoutchouc labourer.

When the Amazon and its tributaries are in flood, parts of the forest are covered with water, remaining so in places for several months (Fig. 167). On the slopes of the Andes grow montane rain forests, consisting of palms and cinchonas. Especially numerous are the tree-ferns.
The animals are hardly to be seen amidst the dense growth. They are well adapted to forest life. Many of them live high in the trees, clinging to the branches by their long tails. Such long-tailed monkeys
are very numerous and varied. Outstanding amongst these are the howlers, monkeys about the size of a large dog, which fill the forest with their fierce howls morning and evening. Slow-moving sloths hang upside down from the branches, eating the leaves and fruit. Ant-eaters with long and sticky tongues devour countless numbers of ants and termites.
Of the grass-eating animals there is the tapir; amongst the flesh-eating the jaguar. The latter is a good climber and thanks to its spotted fur is almost invisible among the dense leaves.
In the rivers live turtles and crocodiles. The South American crocodile, it should be mentioned, is smaller than the African. There are numerous snakes, including the anaconda that reaches a length of about 9—11 metres. There is a great variety of birds, of parrots, and humming-birds especially. Large bright butterflies flutter everywhere.
Unlike the African forests those on the Amazon are very thinly populated. Deep in the forests live tribes of Indians. Their houses are usually placed on high poles and they sleep in wicker hammocks. Their weapons are long pipes, from which they blow poisoned darts. They hunt, fish, gather edible plants and do some farming, pain­fully clearing small plots of land from the tropical growth and plant­ing manioc, corn and bananas. Weeds of all kinds crowd out the

Fig. 168. Savannah palms.
crops. Clouds of birds feed them. At night wild animal arrive. The inhabitants   are compelled  to   stand   guard against   such   pests   of the field.
The tropical rain forests along the Atlantic coast have changed their appearance. They are replaced by plantations on which various southern plants are cultivated. In the south-east of the Brazilian Highlands, for example, coffee is widely grown. These plantations are the property of large land­owners.

Savannahs. North and south of the equatorial forests lie the savannahs. Here there is less rain. There are sharp distinctions between the dry and wet seasons. On the savannahs grow various kinds of grass with tough; narrow leaves coated with wax. Amidst the grass stand only small clumps of trees, far apart and rarely reaching a
great height. The chief kinds are palm, cactus, myrtle and mimosa (Fig. 168).
Savannahs occupy the Orinoco basin where they are known as llanos (from the Spanish «llano» = even, level; a llano is a level treeless plain or steppe in the northern parts of South America). They occupy the greater part of the Brazilian Highlands, too, where they are known as campos(the Portuguese name for the level grasslands of Brazil).
The eastern part of the Brazilian Highlands is covered with prickly scrubs and scattered trees that drop their leaves in the dry season. There grow cacti and trees with barrel-shaped trunks for storing water (Fig. 169). The southern part of the Brazilian Highlands between the Parana and the ocean contains savannah forests of conifers known as araucarias (Fig. 170). The ground in between the scattered trees is covered with thick grass. Among the underbrush is found the mate, an evergreen tree whose leaves are used for making a kind of tea.
Animal life is much more poorly represented than in the African savannahs. There are no large grass-eating animals.

Fig. 170. An araucaria forest.

Very common, however, is the peccary, a kind of wild pig.
At dusk the armadillo leaves its burrow. It is covered from above with armour of bony plates and has very strong legs and long claws with which it burrows in the earth. Flesh-eating animals include, besides the jaguar, the puma (the American lion).
The few people that inhabit the South American savannahs are engaged mainly in cattle-breeding.
Domestic animals were brought here from Europe, and great herds of these graze on the vast estates of the local landowners.
Questions and Assignments.

• Compare  the South   American and African forests of the
  torrid zone as to location, natural features and population. What
  are their common features and points of difference?
• Compare the South American and African savannahs. What
  are their common features and points of difference?