Reference-and-Education - Wildlife EzineArticles

The Amazon Rainforest is family to numerous species that make up twenty percent of those found on the planet. Application an country of two and a half million square miles, representing two-thirds of South America, the Amazon Rainforest expands into nine countries: Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Suriname, Ecuador, French Guiana and Guiana.

The Amazon Rainforest, wise to be the world's largest natural resource, constitutes over fifty percent of the earth's total rainforest.

Known as the surface lungs it produces across twenty percent of the Earth's oxygen; more than any other single source. As such, it is a critical origin of the air that we breathe.

Its' canopies are family to the iconic toucan hit its' thick, short neck and its large colourful beak in combinations of red, black, blue, white and red. Additionally, the Amazon Rainforest hosts across one third of the total bird species found on Earth. Many of arbitrarily are in danger of extinction due to mans encroachment on and deforestation of the rainforest.

In increase to its abundant avian population, the Amazon Rainforest is also home to the capybara. At two stall grandiloquent and weighing in at over one hundred pounds, the capybara it is the planet's largest rodent. An endangered species, it is an first-class swimmer, outlay most of its' days, and nights, in and under the water. The capibara exists mainly on a diet of aquatic vegetation, melons, squash and grass.

The Amazon Rainforests greatest mammal is not a land animal, as you might suspect, but lives in the Amazon River and its' tributaries, the Amazonian manatee. Also known as sea cattle (a reputation earned from its herbivorous habits and spending most of its days grazing). About hold even supposed they saw mermaids when encountering the Amazonian manatee.

Considered the almost beautiful of all the Amazon Rainforest's creatures is the mythical Amazon pink river dolphin. Distress occasionally the effects of development of the Amazon Rainforest, the Amazon pink river dolphin is a severely endangered species due to the pollution of its' habitat from agriculture, mining and industry. Local fishermen do not see the dolphinfish for its beauty due to its habit of tearing holes in their nets to steal their catch.

A beautiful, but deadly, Amazon Rainforest occupant is the jaguar. An first-class hunter, and raw athlete, the jaguar grows to up six feet long and can weigh as much as two hundred pounds. Naturally proficient on land or water, the jaguar can climb trees or run in search of its prey, or swim after aquatic prey such as the pirarucu or turtles.

A lower attractive, but simply as dangerous, Amazon Rainforest resident is its largest predator, the black caiman. Hit no raw enemies, other than man, it can grow to as large as twenty feet in length and weigh in at over three thousand pounds. It has might-have-been known to eat the likes of monster river otters, capybara and even humans.

Of naturally the Amazon Rainforest, with its diverse animal population, is home not only to large predators, but also the nearly microscopic. One of the almost lethal of which is the poison arrow frog. Harmless if left only it possesses the most powerful toxin known to man. Its toxin can defeat as many as one 100 people. The Amazon Indians hold long harvested the frog for its poison, which they use on the tips of their arrows when hunting.

The Amazon is a fit environment for the fabled anaconda, which grows its entire life. The greatest always caught was approximately twenty eight feet long with a girth of forty four inches and estimated to weigh nearly five hundred pounds.

The almost notorious of all the Amazon Rainforest's wildlife is undoubtedly the piranha. The almost afeard and best known of all the rainforest's creatures is the red bellied piranha. Feeding in big schools they can converge upon, and devour with their razor sharp teeth, such prey as caimans, anacondas and jaguars. However, wayward to pop myths attacks on humans are extremely rare.

The almost notorious of all the Amazon Rainforest's wildlife is undoubtedly the piranha. The almost afeard and best known of all Amazon rainforest's creatures is the red bellied piranha. Feeding in big schools they can converge upon, and devour with their razor sharp teeth, such prey as caimans, anacondas and jaguars. However, wayward to pop myths attacks on humans are extremely rare. .