Lost... In the Jungle of Doom (8 page)
Read Lost... In the Jungle of Doom Online
Authors: Tracey Turner
T
here’s a trail leading from the riverside back into the forest, and you take it. You realise you might be heading
into a different danger, but you couldn’t stand being beside the river any longer – you’re sure there was something lurking there.
The further you get from the river, the gloomier it gets. You start to wonder if you’d be better off going back . . . when suddenly you hear movement in the trees and
whirl round, your heart pounding. There’s a snorting sound. Could it be something fierce, like a jaguar? You draw in a breath and hide behind a tree. But you breathe out again when you see
what’s making the sounds. Not far away, a tapir snuffles about on the forest floor. It stops and stares at you in alarm, then runs off. What a relief!
The trail splits in two. One leads deeper into the forest, while the other looks as though it will take you back to the river, further downstream.
If you decide to take the trail back towards the river, click
here
.
If you decide to go deeper into the forest, click
here
.
Y
ou find a stream and rinse out your sodden, sweaty socks, then hang them to dry in a patch of sunlight, thankful that it
isn’t raining. You clean your feet, too, as best you can. You push a couple of stout sticks into the forest floor, then hang your wet boots from them, facing downwards. That way, nothing is
likely to crawl into them! You spread your waterproof jacket out on the floor in the sunshine and sit on it so that your feet are in the sun and the rest of you is in the shade. It’s not
long before your feet start to feel slightly better.
You’ve made the right decision. Your feet are showing the first signs of warm water immersion foot, a consequence of continuously keeping your feet in warm and wet
conditions. You rest while your socks and boots dry out, then put them on again. Your feet still hurt, but not nearly as much.
A strange chirping sound makes you investigate some tree roots. In a small pool of water amongst the roots, there’s a tiny, bright blue frog. It’s beautiful!
You’ve never seen anything like it before.
If you decide it’s time you were moving on, click
here
.
If you decide to stay and observe the tree frog, and maybe give your feet a longer breather, click
here
.
Y
ou don’t want to alarm the sloth, just to get a better look. But as you approach, the creature lashes out with its
long, filthy-looking claws and takes a savage bite out of your hand, which you’re holding up to it as you would to a dog.
You stagger backwards, shocked. You’d thought sloths barely moved, and had no idea they were dangerous! The sloth has made deep wounds in your arms and face with its
long claws, and they’re pouring with blood. You can hardly bear to look at the nasty wound in your hand. Now that the shock is wearing off, the pain’s kicking in, making you feel
sick. You look at the sloth, which is still hanging upside down in the tree. It looks absolutely filthy. Who knows what bacteria are lurking in those claws? You decide you have to find water to
clean the dirty wounds, and lurch off in search of some. However, it’s not long before the blood loss makes you pass out. Without shelter, water and medical attention, you soon die.
The end.
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to return to the beginning and try again.
Click
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to find out more about sloths.
• There are two-toed sloths and three-toed sloths, according to the number of claws on their front paws. Two-toed sloths are bigger and more aggressive and
can be up to 80 centimetres long and nine kilograms in weight.
• Sloths are the world’s slowest mammals. They spend 70% of their time resting, and are only active for about two hours a day.
• Though they look a bit like monkeys, sloths are related to anteaters. They are found in Central and South America.
• They spend almost all their time hanging upside down in trees – they even give birth that way! They’re very clumsy on land and have to pull
themselves along with their claws.
• Sloths have been falsely accused of sleeping to up to twenty hours a day when in fact they only sleep for about ten. However, even when they are awake, they
don’t move very much.
• Because they don’t move about much, algae sometimes grows on sloths’ fur, which makes them appear green in colour, though their fur is actually
brown. Moths sometimes live in their fur, too!
• Sloths eat leaves and fruit, and sometimes feed on plants other animals can’t eat, thanks to special bacteria in their multi-chambered stomachs.
• A sloth’s claws can be up to ten centimetres long, although they aren’t especially sharp. Sloths can and do scratch and bite if they feel
threatened.
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to return to your adventure.
Y
ou keep trudging onwards along the rough trail, tapping the ground in front of you with a stick in case there’s a
snake under the leaf mould, when you spot a movement from the corner of your eye. You stop and look, it’s another tapir, or maybe the same one. You watch it for a moment, as it rootles
about on the ground, before it occurs to you that this might be a good hunting opportunity. The tapir isn’t very big and looks quite docile. Plus, you’ve heard they’re very
tasty! Eating some nutritious meat will be good for you. On the other hand, hunting’s not for the squeamish!
If you decide not to hunt the tapir, click
here
.
If you decide to hunt the animal, click
here
.
Y
ou hear a crashing sound high above you in the tree canopy. Looking up, you catch sight of movement in the trees.
It’s a group of big, black and brown monkeys. There must be around ten of them, swinging through the trees! You can make out their long tails, which grab the branches like extra arms.
It occurs to you that these monkeys have similar needs to yours in terms of food and water. Perhaps you should follow them? On the other hand, you’ve heard that monkeys
can be dangerous. They’ve stopped in the trees above you and you look up to see they’re watching you!
If you decide to try and follow the monkeys in search of food and water, click
here
.
If you decide to observe them while they’re here, but continue on your way, click
here
.
If you’re frightened of a monkey attack and run away, click
here
.
Y
ou should have trusted your instincts . . .
The splash you heard and the ripples you saw were caused by one of the biggest animals in the Amazon rainforest – a black caiman, the largest member of the alligator
family. This is an especially big male, and it weighs around eight times as much as you do. These creatures often hunt animals such as capybara at the water’s edge. Although they usually
hunt at night, this one is active now, and he’s spotted you as you stop to take a breather at the water’s edge. He takes his chance, lunging from the water, grabbing you and dragging
you down underneath the surface to drown you.
Look on the bright side: at least it’s all over pretty quickly.
The end.
Click
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to return to the beginning and try again.
Click
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to find out more about black caiman.