Indigenous people of the Amazon rainforest

Photos and descriptions of unique plants found in the Amazon rainforest

It’s the plants that provide homes for the incredible diversity of Amazon animals. Read about 29 of the most fascinating Amazon rainforest plants.

These animals are only found in the Amazon rainforest.

The mighty Amazon River and its surrounding rainforest is home to millions of different species of animals, with new ones being discovered regularly.

Infographic illustrates the diverse and fragile Amazon ecosystems

This infographic helps readers better understand the vast rivers, forests, plants, and animals that call the Amazon rainforest home. Home to the largest collection of plant and animal species in the world, the Amazon rainforest has 16 thousand known...

Explore Amazon rainforest species in this interactive

Explore plant and animal species from different parts of the rainforest, including the canopy, forest floor, and river basin while learning some general facts specific to the Amazon rainforest.

Interviews with loggers, tribespeople, environmentalists, ranchers, and scientists about Amazon rainforest deforestation.

Around for 10 million years, the Amazon Rainforest might completely disappear before the end of the century. This 10-minute read shares personal accounts from loggers to Indigenous people, with satellite images of the deforestation of a 134,000...

Amazon rainforest facts, species, and threats

The World Wildlife Federation presents a brief overview of the Amazon rainforest, covering key facts like location, size, and importance. An overview of threats includes unsustainable resource extraction, climate change, and poorly planned construction projects.

Finance sector has power to help the Amazon rainforest

Read this article to uncover the potential role of the financial industry in addressing deforestation, climate change, and biodiversity loss in the Amazon rainforest. The finance sector can significantly contribute to conservation efforts by...

Impact of Brazil's politics on the Amazon rainforest

In this seven-minute podcast, Andrew Limbong speaks with environmental researcher Erika Berenguer about Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s ambitions to save the Amazon Rainforest from deforestation.

NASA satellite data and sound recordings used to assess rainforest health

This two-minute video describes the work of scientists who are analyzing the impact of repeated forest fires in the Amazon by recording the unique sounds in degraded forests. The team is using acoustic sensors to record sounds of wildlife in the...

Amazon fires: Causes, impact, and prevention strategies

This article explores the issue of rampant fires in the Amazon rainforest, detailing their root causes, devastating impacts, and potential prevention methods. The Amazon rainforest's unique biodiversity and climate conditions make it unsuitable for...

The current state of Amazon rainforest deforestation

Scientists say the Amazon rainforest is approaching between 20%-25% deforestation, a critical tipping point at which the damage is irreversible. Demand for beef and soy are the main drivers.

The jaguar is the largest feline in the Americas and serves as a keystone species by acting as an apex predator with a diverse diet across multiple environments, thereby regulating the populations of dozens of species.

Explore a map of global native lands

This interactive map visualizes Indigenous territories across the world. Users can search by location, language, or tribe to explore the histories, cultures, and present-day communities connected to specific lands.

Take a virtual tour through the Amazon Basin

Thanks to Google Maps’ Street View feature, people can virtually explore the Amazon River basin and its surroundings—part of the Amazon rainforest that is under the protection of the Brazilian government with restricted access to the public. The...

Desert wildlife: diverse, threatened, and misunderstood

This article sheds light on the surprisingly diverse wildlife that thrive in deserts, while also highlighting the gaps in human understanding of these ecosystems. Deserts are home to one-quarter of terrestrial vertebrate species—three percent of...

Nonprofits strive to replant the Amazon and slow global warming

This article explores the efforts of nonprofit organizations like Rioterra in reforesting the Brazilian Amazon to mitigate climate change. Their goal is enormous: reforest an area twice the size of Germany, costing over 20 billion dollars. In order...

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature, as of 2025, there are over 18,000 endangered animal species worldwide, with the share of fish, insects, mollusks, and reptiles increasing since 2007.

Fig trees are considered keystone species because they provide year-round habitat and fruit, which are eaten by an estimated 1,300 species of birds and mammals worldwide.

The EPA works directly with Indigenous nations to protect native lands

Through the National EPA-Tribal Science Council, the agency works directly with federally recognized tribes, supporting air and water monitoring, pollution cleanup, and environmental restoration. Special grant programs also exist to enable tribes to develop their own environmental programs and enhance their technical capacity.

Colombia’s biodiversity performs the national anthem

Scientists and composers in Colombia trekked more than 600 miles collecting audio from the country's vast assortment of creatures. Using parabolic microphones, recorders, cameras and field gear, they recorded the sounds of birds, whales, landscapes, and more to eventually recreate their Colombia’s national anthem using its biodiversity as an orchestra. Follow the fascinating journey and listen to the “natural anthem” in the article.

View the biggest threats to biodiversity, according to the World Wildlife Fund, led by changes to species' environments, species overexploitation, and invasive species.

The largest river on Earth is actually in the sky

High above the canopy of the Amazon rainforest drifts an airborne river fed by the towering trees below. The trees pull water from their roots into their trunks, pushing any excess water out of their leaves and into the atmosphere as vapor. Watch this six-minute video to learn how.

Humans may be the ultimate invasive species

Originating in East Africa, Homo sapiens migrated across the world beginning about 60,000 years ago and directly harmed countless species by consuming resources and modifying ecosystems to serve our needs. While meeting the definition of an invasive species, some ecologists argue the opposite, claiming that humans have helped preserve numerous species.

Possessing trunks that contain about 40,000 individual muscles, African elephants act as keystone species by trampling and clearing trees, making pathways in forests, digging water holes, and spreading seeds.

The Amazon rainforest is considered the 'lungs of the Earth,' but it contributes less than a quarter of the oxygen of phytoplankton—microscopic plants, algae, and bacteria capable of photosynthesis.

The ritual burns of California forests

Many ecosystems around the world have adapted to regularly occurring wildfires. Some human cultures saw the advantage of such fires and integrated them into their community rituals. Learn about similar tribal traditions looking to better manage California's forests today.

Native Americans built democratic systems of governance

Indigenous nations, such as the Muscogee, a confederacy of towns in the present-day Southeast, practiced participatory governance centered on communal decision-making and the consent of the governed.

Some tribes push for national parks to be under Indigenous control

Ojibwe author and academic David Treuer talks about his push for 80 million acres of American national park land to be returned to Indigenous stewards. Treuer proposes the government grant control of this land to a consortium of tribes, which would maintain and manage it for use by all Americans.

Invasive species may harm new ecosystems via the spread of disease

Besides damaging native species through direct interactions such as competition for resources and predation, invasive species may come from environments with greater biodiversity than the new environment. This makes them more likely to carry pathogens unfamiliar to native species, increasing the risk of biodiversity loss.

Indigenous women are murdered at 10 times the rate of all other ethnicities in the US

Murder is the third-leading cause of death among Indigenous women, who are also 2.5 times more likely to experience violence than any other group. More than 4 in 5 Indigenous women have experienced violence in their lifetime.

Fungi have been used to restore island habitats in the central Pacific

After removing 1.5 million invasive coconut palm trees and eradicating the black rats that fed on them, as well as seabirds and crabs, conservationists working with the US Fish and Wildlife Service identified areas where fungi could be transplanted to provide nutrients to native trees. These trees serve as nesting sites for seabirds whose guano nourishes coral reefs.

While invasive species typically harm ecosystems by outcompeting native organisms for resources, some provide unexpected benefits, including new shelters, nesting habitats, and reduced environmental heat stress.

Even in nature reserves, climate change is driving rapid ecological collapse

Studies show a dramatic decline in insect populations, resulting in cascading global biodiversity losses across non-insect species. The balances in tropical ecosystems are the most affected by climate change.

Some animals, including certain tropical ants, have little or no microbial populations in their gut, upending the idea that all animals rely on this ecosystem to help maintain their health and proper functioning.

From 2001 to 2023, the need to expand cattle grazing pastures to meet global demand for beef has been the primary driver of deforestation.

Native Americans developed pottery and religion, and experienced population growth during the Woodland period

Between 500 B.C.E. and 1100 C.E., Indigenous peoples produced pottery and practiced animism, a spiritual worldview in which animals, plants, and natural forces are believed to possess sacred power. They moved seasonally to make the most of available resources.

Brief article explaining why the Amazon rainforest might now produce more carbon dioxide than it absorbs

Climate change and deforestation may have transformed the Amazon rainforest into a net source of planet-warming gases instead of a carbon sink, according to Smithsonian magazine.

An inventory of ancient trees in the United Kingdom

The world is filled with trees that are hundreds—if not thousands—of years old, and the UK's Woodland Trust believes each one deserves the same protections great cathedrals and castles receive. This active database invites users to peruse...

Listen to the music David Attenborough recorded during his expeditions around the world

During this audio documentary feature, Attenborough plays musical performances by communities he encountered while producing natural history series, including Gamelan orchestras in Bali, palace music in Tonga, and Aboriginal didgeridoo players. With each recording, he provides anecdotes about when it was made, decades ago.

Native, wild bees are at much greater risk of extinction than honey bees

It is estimated that there are more honey bees, which often compete with native bees for resources, on the planet than at any point in human history. Meanwhile, 40% of invertebrate pollinator species, including wild bees and butterflies, face extinction in the coming decades.

Bees are crucial for pollination and food security

When animals and insects pick up the pollen of flowers and spread it, they allow plants, including many food crops, to reproduce. The most common pollinator is the bee, but bees are at risk from pollution and pesticides.

As environmental engineers—a main type of keystone species—prairie dogs support over 150 other species through their grazing habits and burrowing of underground tunnels, which serve as habitats for owls, snakes, ferrets, insects, and other organisms.

The Indigenous people of the central Californian coast made many advancements

The Indigenous people of the central Californian coast made advancements in basketry, small stone tools, the use of shell beads as currency, and plank canoes for seafaring. In the years before European contact, their numbers reach 25,000 across 150 settlements.

Amazon deforestation down by a third in 2023

Read this article to understand how Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who started his term on January 1, 2023, has been successful in reducing deforestation in the Amazon region. Deforestation dropped by 33.6% in the first six months of...

Read 10 of the best quotes about nature from David Attenborough

From reflecting on the interconnectedness of life and humanity's shared responsibility to protect biodiversity to the power of young people in driving change and understanding nature's beauty and importance, this list highlights some of the most noteworthy things said by the famed natural historian.

4-minute overview of gold mining in the Amazon rainforest

A 2022 NBC news investigation of gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest. Much of the $3B in illegal gold is trafficked to the US every year.

Native voices share their histories along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail

Tribal historians recount their peoples' histories and perspectives on the Lewis and Clark expedition, offering an Indigenous narrative of the lands, encounters, and legacies that shaped the journey.

Explore guides on pollinator-friendly plants native to where you live

Pollinators have co-evolved alongside specific plants from their natural habitat and see their populations increase in environments with these native flora. This collection offers recommendations for regional plants that can provide nectar and pollen, serve as host plants for caterpillars, and offer nest sites for specialist bees.

Benign species can become invasive if introduced into predator-free habitats

Most ecosystems contain organisms that, over many generations, have evolved into a stable balance with one another and their surroundings. In a new environment, a species may no longer be restricted by the limiting factors it is used to, and the native organisms in the area may not adapt quickly enough to the invader to establish a new balance.

Microforests in urban environments may help combat climate change

Areas of densely packed native trees and drought-tolerant plants within cities can pull carbon dioxide from the air, cool surrounding neighborhoods, and support local wildlife. The idea behind microforests traces back over 50 years to Japanese ecologist Dr. Akira Miyawaki, who promoted planting whole ecosystems to restore degraded land.