Green Gold Baia

It’s not easy to get to Brazil. Three hours of summer to Paris, then more than 10 hours to Rio de Janeiro, one and a half hours to Salvador, the capital of Bahia. However, the three colleagues of journalists flew even further, in the tiny town of Ituber. After all, in fact, the main goal of our arrival in Brazil is this time – a visit to the Plants of Gevei and the Reserve, in which the Atlantic Rain Forest is trying to restore. Sheer "Komarik"-Halfska Aerotexi discharged a loop between low clouds and landed on the excavation lane cleaned from vegetation, dragging directly in the river’s web, on which there was a visible cake from afar. Selva waited for us.

Some three or four centuries ago, the Atlantic Rain Forest stretched a wide band from the driers of La fees to Orinoco and from the mouth of Amazon to Andes. Now it remains small islands, green scraps – the whole territory of Brazil, which occupies most of the Atlantic coast of South America, is either savanna, or plants of bananas, rubbing gevent, as-beans and everything else that is in food; Rainforest can only be seen in several small reserves. One of them is part of the large-scale joint project OURO VERDE BAHIA ("Green Gold Baia") French company MICHELIN and Brazilian government. Of about 10 thousand hectares, allocated under OURO VERDE, about a third of the actual biosphere reserve itself, officially established in 2004 (the rest – "workers" Plantation Gevei, "kindergartens" and "nursery" The same Gevei, experienced landings of the Michelin microbiologists running immediately, struggling with a terrible enemy of GEVE – MICROCYCLUS ULEY fungus).

The reserve begins in the upper reaches of the small river Kashueir Grande, whose calm course is interrupted by an impressive waterfall of Pankad Grande in a pair of tens of kilometers from the coast, and descends to the ocean. Three thousand hectares are still a bit, but another 10 years ago from the rain forest in these parts remained only a few hundred hectares (and in general, since the XVI century, the area of rainforests in Brazil decreased by about 20 times). It is gradually planted, more precisely, they give freely spread, redeeming abandoned and unnecessary sites from the peasants.

We approach the forest on a recent cutting. Here is still sunny, although the forest is already entering into their rights. In the depths of herb, small, but very fragrant irises are hidden, often there are small, meters three rising, Siagrus palm trees (they say, in Paraguay, the dwarfs of its dwarfing, growth with a pencil). The forest in front seems to be a dense green elastic wall. How to enter it without machete? In these parts, there is almost any rustic resident with him; However, the conductor leads us on a well-pierced trail.

The last rain was held a few days before our arrival, but under the canopy of the rainforest anyway. Squals under his feet; moisture with large drops glitters on leaves of small plants-parasites covering the trunks of large trees, on hanging from somewhere from the top "Floors" Forests Lianah. All the time, it is so heavy, hot, the air is so weta, which seems to be able to drink it. Customize the camera is not easy: around solid green; even the bark or greenish, or so covered with epiphyts at the level of the eye, which seems green. I go, all the time squealing on almost bare soil in high rubber boots and greedily looking for any living creature. Say, a spider monkey lives here (Brachyteles Arachnoides, the largest on the American continent) – they remained almost a hundred permanent. According to our guide conductor, it’s not only monkeys here – every year the inhabitants of the reserve are becoming more and more, as if any mysterious telegraph works in animals: "Move here, here is safe!"

By the way, in most tropical regions of South America, there is no more prestigious (and well paid) work than guide-naturalist. The demand for them is especially great in rainforests, where an unprepared person is difficult to see wild animals without the help of a professional. Our guide, however, was not local – an American-ecologist Kevin Flasher, living here for 15 years and in love with these places. Dr. Flasher works by the head of the Department of Studying Biodiversity in the project OURO VERDE and at the same time engaged in the study of large mammals in the Reserve – wild pigs, tapirov, pum and t. NS. But with it to see something very difficult. Here at the top, a little away, piercing shouts are crying – it shouts the monkey, they, apparently, noticed a predator. What predator? "Probably this Puma. Colleagues said that a couple recently appeared here. I saw traces myself. It is very good, it means that the forest is healthy, – says the guide. And adds, thinking a little: – perhaps, it’s time to take a weapon with you. Just in case".

In the bushes in the top ten meters from me along the movement, someone suddenly became careful, and the sound began to be quickly removed. "Bakers (Forest Pig)", – reports Kevin. I have to believe in the word. And won on the tree hangs a slightly unlucky dark bag – a solid. Our accompanying assures that, judging by the footsteps, recently there was an ant here, but now it is not. That’s about the boulder traces of the parking lot of local hunters – they, apparently, waited for the dickery. Perhaps they waited for him – but not we.

The trail envelopes a funny tree – the leaves is practically no, the trunk is covered with big spikes. What does it do here in the dark? This is Saiba (Ceiba Pentandra). When it appears on the light, it grows up to the height of human growth, and then drops the leaves and ceases to grow. So it costs a year, and two, and twenty – as much as you need. And waiting. Sooner or later, the big tree will collapse, died of old age, and the straight sunlight will penetrate into the ever. Immediately, there will be many new trees to grow in growth – who the first grew up, he won, he took the liberated place, because he was not enough for everyone. But Saibi will still be the first, because she has already managed to grow up and stood on "Low start". It quickly stretches up, and when it rises above the level of neighbors, opens the crown like a mushroom, and immediately closes the clearance. A little further we will see the adult Saibu with powerful counterphorts derived from the trunk – it does not grasp it.

And yet, animals are more interesting – after all, 180 of 202 species of animals, considered in Brazil on the verge of extinction, lives in the Atlantic rain forests. Say, it is in this reserve that is saved from almost complete extinction of the type of yellow-mancuts (Monkeys Cebus Xanthosternos). And among plants, and among the animals here is full "Endemics" – species not found elsewhere. For example, the small bird of Scyta Psychopompus, which the Brazilians call Papaculo (Papaculo), generally lasts now only here and more anywhere. My view is all the time turned up, then to the ground: maybe I’ll see a snake? In general, snakes in Brazil is enough, but in Central America there are somewhat more than in South, especially poisonous. Poisonous penetrated here from Asia about the tertiary period and managed to form many new species (especially sparkling distinguished), and they settled in South America later, and while there are very few of them – only 7 gods, in five times in Africa or Asia. Nevertheless, in the forest, it is still better to walk in boots, and at night – with a flashlight. There she is! No, I was wrong – this is just "crybaby" Monster (from the Aronechnik family), typical forest liana. Her wriggling green stem with dark stains really resembles a snake. A "Plax" It was nicknamed for the fact that the aquatic mouth of her leaves actively distinguish water, which escapes to the pointed end of the sheet, the same "nose", And dripping down. No, with snakes never lucky, sorry. And I saw the famous hummingbirds only on the terrace of my house in a pair of tens of kilometers from the reserve – colors with such an attractive nectar on it there was much more than in the first "Yarusa" Wet adolescent forest.

My only one "Production" It became ground planaria (from the detachment of cilma worms), a wonderful strange inhabitant of the most wet places. We published it can be taken for a random crack in the soil, near it seems to be frozen in dark glass. But "glass" Suddenly comes to life and begins very slowly flowing somewhere aside, showing movable trumps from the gap in the front of the body. Of course, one planaria "Will not be fed", But for a successful meeting with all other inhabitants of the forest, it is not necessary to come here for a day, but for a week, and then we would be lucky, and repeatedly, I am sure.

For the fate of the reserve, perhaps, you can be completely calm – in recent years, the ideas of nature conservation find a lively response in the hearts of Brazilians, and words "ecology" and "Forest protection" cause the most positive reaction. At least to people working in this area, are everywhere with tremendous respect. The peasant, of course, will not cut off his hectare of the plantation, from which his family feeds to fall on it "Natural forest". Yes, it is not necessary – the main thing is that the protected forest does not go hack. And when the site is allocated to plantation, the government now requires warranties that 20 percent of the territory (if at least 20 hectares are sold) will be used under "Natural plantings".

Atlantic, rain

In early Miocene, about sixteen to twelve millions of years ago, the main part of the plains on our planet (most of Europe and Asia, almost all of Africa and both America) was covered by an endless tent of the rabbish green forests. But nothing is eternally under the moon, and even the continents do not stand still. The climate has gradually changed, ice caps are on the poles, global cooling "stuck" adjacent to the territory of the territory, and myocene tropical rainforest began to decline gradually. And yet he lived almost to the present day.

Rained tropical forest grows in the zones of a wet non-seasonal equatorial climate with an average annual temperature of 22-28 ° (or at least where in the winter is not below 18 °), the annual amount of precipitation is at least 1,500 millimeters and the relative humidity of at least 50 %. What does he represent? Some researchers stand out in the vertical structure of rainforests almost 12 tiers, and yet they are rather 4-5.

The topmost tier consists of trees above 30 meters, the crowns are not closed in it (therefore, the rainforests have often made such such "ragged" view). Present "roof" Forests at an altitude of 25-30 meters is the second tier. Then there is a tier of low trees (from 10 to 15 meters) and the surface tier with young, bushes, etc. There are also inter-tiery vegetation, the most curious representative of which (in any case, for Europeans) is Liana.

One of the most characteristic features of the rainforest – exceptional biotic wealth, while the huge variety of animal world is mainly maintained due to the variety of flora: the number of species of the trees only on one hectare of the forest reaches a hundred (not to mention Liana, epiphytes and herbs). It is curious that such a amount of biomass exists usually on completely non-fermentation, bare soils, of which all active substances are washed. At the same time, fresh organics have enough: these are fallen leaves, branches, seeds, fruits, etc. But higher plants can not "there is" This is directly, and they enter the symbiosis with mushrooms (living on the roots) mushrooms – from here and the dominant surface root system. True, superficial roots, of course, are unable to whine in the soil (which is also practically no) a giant tree, and therefore the biggest trees grow themselves the wild roots adjacent to the trunk and slightly resembling stabilizers in the rocket. Such roots, it happens, depart from the trunk down at an altitude of several meters, and they fall to the ground in three-way meters from the main barrel.

The wet Atlantic Forest, once covered the fair part of the southern American continent, to date almost completely disappeared, only some separate islands remained with a cumulative area hardly in a hundred thousand hectares. One of these islets is a small reserve in the east of Brazil, part of the project "Green Gold Baia". Photo Alamy / PHOTAS