poison dart frogs can produce toxins powerful enought to kill 150 adult humans

One of the topics Year 8 girls have recently studied in geography is the structure, functions and global importance of the Amazon rainforest.  A trip in April to The Living Rainforest at Newbury gave them a chance to see for themselves how the future of tropical rainforests and other ecosytems is closely connected to human lives and lifestyles.

Rosanna Hammerton in L4LS describes the day:

giant Amazon lily - its leaves can reach 6' across and can support the weight of a person!

When we arrived we were welcomed by three guides. In three groups we were taken into the rainforest where there were animals and rainforest plants. We first came across a chameleon which was camouflaged in its cage. It was boiling hot inside. We then moved on to look at the plants. There were loads of different ones and the guide told us about a few, like the Swiss cheese plant which has holes in its leaves like Swiss cheese to let light pass through the leaves. We also saw vanilla pods growing. There were all sorts of animals, some of which were scary, like the snakes.

leafcutter ants

In the second glasshouse there were insects and birds flying free. My favourites were the small black monkeys, which were very cute. There was also a tank which had turtles, fish and a stingray. We were able to see the different layers that are in the rainforest: the canopy and under canopy, the emergent layer and the shrub layer. The guide passed round some interesting objects for us to look at, like unroasted coffee beans and cocoa pods.

After playing for a while in the great playground outside, we had another tour, when we learned about sustainability and products that come from the rainforest. We then visited the shop and set off back to Kingsley. It was a brilliant day!