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National Geographic Rain Forest
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Millions of years ago, |
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before man, before the ice ages, |
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when the world was warm and humid, |
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forests like these covered |
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And it was here, |
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that a profusion of life evolved. |
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The remnants of |
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are the rain forests of today. |
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They are home to half of |
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Yet, in the shady depths |
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there is seldom more than a |
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When they are seen, |
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the animals are often revealed |
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and splendid examples of |
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Myriad in their diversity |
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these creatures give |
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a special mystery and splendor. |
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Endless rains and high temperatures |
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create the steamy atmosphere |
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These conditions occur now only in |
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where forests blanket some |
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of the earth's tropics. |
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Within this belt |
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lies the small Central American |
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which possesses one of the richest |
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When Christopher Columbus landed |
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he found a mountainous land |
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and forests like those he'd seen |
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Then, in what is perhaps the first |
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Columbus wrote: |
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"Its lands... are most beautiful... |
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and filled with trees of |
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and they seem to touch the sky; |
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and I am told that |
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as I can understand, |
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for I saw them as green |
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and as lovely as they are |
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But it was partly from |
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that some popular misconceptions |
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For many, the first glimpse |
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was from the rivers |
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The forests seemed impenetrable- |
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a tangled mass of undergrowth |
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which a man could only hack |
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But in reality, |
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and usually easy to move about in. |
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Little light penetrates |
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and so undergrowth is sparse. |
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Only a thin layer of leaves |
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A coral snake searches |
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and finds enough rainwater |
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The bright bands of color warn |
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Below this thin layer of leaves |
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For the luxuriant vegetation |
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is often based |
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The explanation lies in the way |
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Dead trees and fallen leaves rot |
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and their nutrients are rapidly |
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and tiny roots near the surface. |
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The entire system is so efficient |
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and fully 95 percent |
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are held in the living vegetation, |
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hardly any in the soil. |
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To shed its old skin, |
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the coral snake rubs its body |
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against rough surfaces |
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A male poison-arrow frog is |
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With his monotonous song, |
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he will try to entice her |
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to follow him under a leaf |
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The male leads the way. |
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She follows. Within the shelter |
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she'll lay her eggs, |
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She has produced five eggs |
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and will stay nearby |
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Workers from a colony |
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are harvesting leaves to |
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With their scissor like jaws, |
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they easily cut the leaves |
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But some skill is needed |
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when the leaf is hoisted into |
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For some, the problem may be |
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for others, just a sudden puff of wind. |
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But they're the exceptions. |
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For most ants, |
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it's only the first step |
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which may be 100 yards or more away. |
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They follow a chemical trail |
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that first scouted this tree, |
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so they seldom go astray. |
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The leaf fragments that |
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Instead, they are employed |
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in a remarkable system of farming. |
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The leaves are used to |
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that is the only food source |
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Here in the underground garden, |
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the leaves are cut into much |
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probably to remove any spores |
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that might contaminate |
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The leaf edges are chewed |
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and a clear droplet of body fluid |
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is added to create |
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for the precious fungus |
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This is not the work |
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The insects that create these |
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are seldom seen during the day. |
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In daylight, insects are |
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so many feed only at night, |
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leaving their mark everywhere |
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But some insects are active by day, |
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and this morpho butterfly is |
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Before it can be swallowed, |
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Great agility and keen eyesight |
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lizard a formidable predator |
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Nearby, a female is shedding. |
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Her old skin is too nutritious |
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she eats every bit of it. |
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The female is in his territory |
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she shows that she is willing |
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He displays to her by flashing |
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A performance like this is both |
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and proclaims his territory. |
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The female will remain here now, |
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and they'll mate frequently |
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Its body blending perfectly |
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a praying mantis settles |
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created by a fallen tree. |
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When a great tree falls, |
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a gap is created in the forest |
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It is in these sunny spaces |
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The seedlings of most forest trees |
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to flourish, they need light. |
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So the competition for space |
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And for every sapling, |
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there is a clinging vine competing |
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But in this gap, |
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there's a tree that always has |
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This species of swollen-thorn acacia |
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has evolved a remarkable system |
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For as soon as a sapling |
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ants that live on the acacia |
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They cross onto the touching vine |
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In a short time, their work is done, |
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and the vine will lose its leaves, |
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wither, and die. |
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Most forest trees have evolved |
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in their leaves to stop insects |
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But the acacia is edible, |
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and would soon be destroyed |
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were it not for the vigilance |
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Any insect that lands on this acacia |
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soon learns its error-for the |
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In return for their protection, |
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the tree completely supports |
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It secretes for them |
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which they drink from little |
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On the tips of some leaves |
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unique structures are grown |
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They are rich in protein |
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and are taken by the ants |
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It's here within the large hollow |
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that the ants rear their brood. |
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Some of these larvae will mature |
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and fly away to start |
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These young basilisk lizards forage |
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They live in the territory |
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who tolerates them |
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But he allows no other adult male |
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This female is exclusively his. |
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Flowers are attractive |
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and many end up |
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Spider monkeys move |
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as the puma through |
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Towering 100 feet above |
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the canopy harbors more |
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than any other habitat on earth. |
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The treetops mingle and interlock |
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many of its inhabitants never leave |
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A three-toed sloth feeds |
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while a mother carries her baby |
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into the cool shade |
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A "lie-in-wait" lizard remains |
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It's a strategy that serves it well: |
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the lizard is overlooked |
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And an unsuspecting victim |
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Rain forests seldom get less than |
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Some even exceed 400 inches. |
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And so, most of the leaves |
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of the forest are specially |
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from their surface as quickly |
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If water stays on them, |
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the leaves may rot or become host |
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These drip tips ensure that |
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The forest floor can usually |
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But when the rains are |
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the forest becomes saturated |
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and the water runs off to flood |
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flushing fallen trees |
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A tide line of rotting vegetation |
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and a shy agouti forages |
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These paper wasps are drying |
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Constructed of wood pulp, |
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it would soon soak up the rain |
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if the wasps didn't drink the water |
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The adults take so much care |
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because in each of the cells is |
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and their entire brood could be |
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As each larva grows, |
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the wasps enlarge its cell |
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of pulp and saliva |
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And when the nest begins to warm |
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they cool their brood |
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their wings to create a current |
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The eggs of a poison-arrow frog |
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and the female carries two tiny |
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While they are developing into |
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they have to be in water. |
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She takes them up a tree to a site |
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she has chosen in |
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She will deposit them in rainwater |
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She makes her way down a leaf |
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And here, she submerges her tadpoles |
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until they release their grip |
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The tadpoles will complete their |
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In six to eight, |
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and return to the forest floor. |
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Army ants are on the move. |
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They build no permanent nests and |
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constantly comb the forest |
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This species preys only |
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and here they attack a nest |
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there is nothing the wasps can do. |
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They abandon their brood |
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which will soon strip the nest |
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They take their plunder |
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on the underside of a fallen log. |
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Here, by linking special hooks |
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they form long, hanging chains. |
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Through sheer numbers, |
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these strands mesh together to |
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Within the nest, |
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to create chambers for |
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At night, the forest teems |
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It's now that most of |
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To survive the ravages of insects, |
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most plants have evolved toxic |
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But insects in turn have developed |
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So together they have evolved, |
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until now most insects have become |
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that they can only eat the leaves |
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or only one family of plants. |
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This harlequin beetle spends |
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as a larva concealed |
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But now as an adult, |
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The beetle is host to |
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that finds refuge in the creases |
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Also riding on the beetle |
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are pseudoscorpions that prey |
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help in the powerful job |
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the creases is no chance |
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A stick spider suspends itself |
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above a leaf on which its prey |
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Its web is held by the tips |
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Green leaf-frogs gather near |
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The males wait near the water |
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to intercept the females |
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Clasping the much larger female, |
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the male will stay with her now |
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She selects a leaf directly |
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and as she lays her eggs, |
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The cat-eyed snake isn't |
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He is after their eggs. |
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And as egg-laying has been going |
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he will easily find others. |
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Many snakes are attracted |
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when the leaf-frogs are laying. |
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They eat almost all the eggs. |
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Glass frogs also lay their eggs |
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in this case a stream, |
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and the male remains |
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until they're ready to hatch. |
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His presence probably deters flies |
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and other insects |
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On a rainy night about two weeks |
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the vigil of the male ends |
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when the emerging tadpoles drop |
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But the frogs do not always manage |
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to lay their eggs directly |
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However, the tadpoles are specially |
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that help them cope |
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The first rays of sun |
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and a mist rises up |
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that divides Costa Rica, |
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separating the forests of |
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from those of the Pacific. |
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High in these mountains, |
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the forest receives moisture |
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from direct contact with the clouds, |
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and the vegetation changes |
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Many of the creatures found here |
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can live only at these |
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And it's here at the very top |
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that a rare mating ritual occurs. |
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It takes place only during |
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when contact of cloud |
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when enough water has collected to |
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in which golden toads lay their eggs. |
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These toads occupy an area |
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no greater than one square mile. |
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They have been found nowhere else |
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The golden males gather |
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and fight for possession of |
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Once firmly established on her back, |
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a male is usually secure |
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and can easily repel |
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Long strings of eggs are laid in |
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and if the misty weather persists |
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another generation of golden toads |
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Bellbirds announce their territories |
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from the tops of the tallest trees. |
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A pair of Resplendent Quetzals are |
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The males are considered |
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the most beautiful birds |
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The ancient Mayas and |
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the quetzal that only royalty |
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were allowed to wear |
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in their ceremonial costumes. |
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To kill the bird was a crime; |
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they were simply caught |
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and released after their long |
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But the forests are going. |
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At the present rate of destruction, |
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most countries will lose their |
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And with the forests will go |
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and irreplaceable life forms |
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Many will become extinct even |
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before they have been described |
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Their importance to |
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and their possible contribution |
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to human welfare will never |
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But at last, |
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some countries are beginning |
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rain forests justify their |
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And tiny Costa Rica, by its example, |
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has become a world leader |
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One quarter of its land is given |
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and a full eight percent |
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is permanently protected |
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If other nations will follow |
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there is hope. |
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But it is a race against time, |
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because in the hour it has taken |
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some 3,000 acres of the world's |
