Friday, August 15, 2008

Timber!


Trees getting pushed over by winds seems to be common fare in this kind of a tropical forest. The soils are extremely poor, thus trees don't develop tap roots. In the lower image you can see that this fallen tree wasn't a mature one, but nevertheless, doesn't show any signs of a vertical root system. Surface feeders are the order of the day because food for the forest is topside. Nobody knows the name of the downed tree. When Cleuson went to clear the trail, he was surprised at how difficult it was to cut. In the top image you can see both heartwood and sapwood. The older the tree gets, the more heartwood present and less sapwood. The larger tree is an older Brazil nut tree, approximately 300 years old, according to some guides.

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