People of the rainforest
Most of the world's rainforests are populated by indigenous people. These are people who have been living there for thousands of years . They depend on the rainforests for survival. Some people live in places that you can get to only by boat.
Many people collect fruits, nuts and firewood. They hunt and fish for food to stay alive. They burn down small areas of rainforest and grow crops there. When the soil gets too bad , they go to other places and plant new crops. This method of farming is called shifting cultivation.
Today, the living areas of these indigenous tribes are in danger, because other people have come here to chop down trees, raise cattle or mine gold and silver.
Indigenous people in the Amazon rainforest
Words
- cattle = cows that are kept on a farm
- chop down = cut down
- crops = plants like corn, wheat or rice, that are grown by farmers and used as food
- depend on = you need the help of something or someone
- firewood = wood that you collect to make a fire
- indigenous people = native people who have always lived in the same place
- method = way, form
- mine = to dig deep holes into the earth and bring coal, gold and other valuable minerals to the surface
- raise = to look after animals and help them grow, so that they can be sold
- shifting cultivation = farmers grow crops on a piece of land, but only for a short time - when the soil is too bad to grow food they move on to the next piece of land
- soil = the top part of the earth on which plants grow
- survival = to live on in dangerous situations
- tribe = a group of people who have the same language and customs; they are often ruled by a chief or leader