National Geographic: Rain Forest Page #2

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The female will remain here now,

and they'll mate frequently

over the next few days.

Its body blending perfectly

with the leaves,

a praying mantis settles

in a patch of sunlight

created by a fallen tree.

When a great tree falls,

a gap is created in the forest

canopy.

It is in these sunny spaces

that the forest regenerates itself.

The seedlings of most forest trees

cannot survive in shade;

to flourish, they need light.

So the competition for space

around a fallen tree is intense.

And for every sapling,

there is a clinging vine competing

for a place in the sun.

But in this gap,

there's a tree that always has

clear growing space around it.

This species of swollen-thorn acacia

has evolved a remarkable system

of defense.

For as soon as a sapling

or vine touches it,

ants that live on the acacia

attack the intruder.

They cross onto the touching vine

and cut through its leaf stems.

In a short time, their work is done,

and the vine will lose its leaves,

wither, and die.

Most forest trees have evolved

poisonous chemicals

in their leaves to stop insects

from eating them.

But the acacia is edible,

and would soon be destroyed

were it not for the vigilance

of the ants.

Any insect that lands on this acacia

soon learns its error-for the

ants bite and sting viciously.

In return for their protection,

the tree completely supports

the ants.

It secretes for them

a sugar-rich solution,

which they drink from little

nectarines between the leaves.

On the tips of some leaves

in each acacia,

unique structures are grown

especially for the ants.

They are rich in protein

and vitamins,

and are taken by the ants

to feed their larvae.

It's here within the large hollow

thorns of the acacia

that the ants rear their brood.

Some of these larvae will mature

into fertile adults with wings,

and fly away to start

another colony in a seedling tree.

These young basilisk lizards forage

along the river's edge.

They live in the territory

of this adult male

who tolerates them

and probably fathered them.

But he allows no other adult male

to intrude here.

This female is exclusively his.

Flowers are attractive

to the leaf-cutters as well,

and many end up

in the fungus gardens.

Spider monkeys move

as easily through the canopy

as the puma through

the forest's understory.

Towering 100 feet above

the forest floor,

the canopy harbors more

tree-dwelling creatures

than any other habitat on earth.

The treetops mingle and interlock

to create a self-contained world;

many of its inhabitants never leave

its sunny spaces to venture below.

A three-toed sloth feeds

in the hot sun,

while a mother carries her baby

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