- [Narrator] Brazil is one of the world's most urban large nations.

large nations.

What few people, including Brazilians, realize is that one of the least urbanized parts of this huge nation is also a world hot spot of wildlife.

is also a world hot spot of wildlife.

And traditional cowboy culture.

And traditional cowboy culture.

The Pantanal of Brazil.

The Pantanal of Brazil.

- [Announcer] Funding for In the Americas with David Yetman was provided by Agnese Haury.

was provided by Agnese Haury.

Funding for In the Americas with David Yetman was also provided by the Guilford Fund.

was also provided by the Guilford Fund.

(light music) (light music) (street music) (street music) - When I was growing up, Brazil was the Amazon Rain Forest and the beaches of Rio de Janeiro.

That's a misleading picture of the country.

It is now a nation of over 200 million people and 90% of them live within 100 miles of the ocean.

and 90% of them live within 100 miles of the ocean.

The largest city in South America is the city of Sau Paulo with a metropolitan population of over 20 million people.

people.

(Portuguese music) (Portuguese music) Each Sunday, in the main drag of the city of Sau Paulo the authorities close it off so that the people of Sau Paulo can enjoy walking and bicycling up and down their great street.

their great street.

(Portuguese music) (Portuguese music) It's also home to the world's most unusual street art.

It's also home to the world's most unusual street art.

- Somewhere in the 1980's, the first graffiti art appeared in the neighborhood, a drawing of Batman.

Ever since then, the image of Batman has been associated with this place, Batman's Quarter.

associated with this place, Batman's Quarter.

- Here we have an expression that goes on and on of a huge amount of individual work, various media, becomes a democratization of an entire public area and that truly is democratic art in a ways that only Brazilians could do it.

- Brazilian graffiti art is quite distinct, very different from other graffiti in the world because it incorporates a variety of techniques, not just spray paint but also rollers and sponges.

not just spray paint but also rollers and sponges.

- [David] You will see people applying just stickers and you'll also see stencils.

So there are these various combinations of incorporating various old type of graffiti into a new art form and it's everywhere in this alley.

and it's everywhere in this alley.

- [Artist] Graffiti art brings color into this city and maybe it helps overcome the bleakness of our surroundings.

of our surroundings.

I think graffiti art is closely connected with the legacy of Paulolific people.

The only difference is the materials we use and instead of cave walls, we use urban walls, as our canvas.

But we still continue to have that same incesstrial need to communicate through images.

Our rock painting today is more colorful and more dynamic.

I consider graffiti art as contemporary cave painting.

I consider graffiti art as contemporary cave painting.

In Brazil, we are free to paint anything.

The graffiti artist themes can be political, ecological, sociological or ethical.

Perhaps we should view it as an expression of Brazilian tropicality with it's explosion of colors and sensations.

tropicality with it's explosion of colors and sensations.

- Most Brazilians have never been to the Amazon.

Even fewer have been to the world's largest tropical wetland.

tropical wetland.

It's called the Pantanal and it's about 600 miles to the west.

to the west.

You can't see the Pantanal because of the clouds and once we break through you can finally see all of this network of water courses.

Rivers, lakes, ponds.

And it's the beginning of the wet season and some of the farmers are burning off the old grass so that the new grass will come up for their cows.

Where you have a lot of grazing, in the tropics, you see this burning off of the old.

you see this burning off of the old.

All the rivers, they look like veins and arteries.

All the rivers, they look like veins and arteries.

I know the main river down there is the Paraguay river, I know the main river down there is the Paraguay river, the Rio Paraguay, and it goes all the way to the Atlantic.

It's 2,000 kilometers away.

It's 2,000 kilometers away.

And there's the city of Cordoba.

And there's the city of Cordoba.

It's a lot less concentrated than a lot of Brazilian cities.

It's been here for 400 years.

It's been here for 400 years.

(guitar music) (guitar music) Brazil has a national policy when a new jail or prison is being built, the old one is turned over to the Ministry of Culture.

In this case, the Ministry of Culture turned this building over to artists and a woman's cooperative.

over to artists and a woman's cooperative.

- [Woman] We are a woman's cooperative working with recycled fish skin.

Our logo represents love and fish.

- Traditionally the men would fish in the river, the Paraguay River, or in the Pantanal in the vast wetland.

And they would clean the fish, skin them, and throw the skins away often in the river or to sod where they would rot.

But here the women collect them, they soften them, they cure them, and they have them then cut into the ideal size for making into a variety of products.

Fish skins dyed, sewn into the most beautiful purses you've ever seen.

you've ever seen.

- These are tilapia skins but we work with all kinds of - These are tilapia skins but we work with all kinds of scaled fish skins, including piranha and poucoup.

scaled fish skins, including piranha and poucoup.

Normally the skin of the fish has a very strong smell, right?

But after curing the skins, you can see that it has no smell and it becomes soft.

and it becomes soft.

This big purse is made out of between 40 and 60 fish skins.

This big purse is made out of between 40 and 60 fish skins.

- We thought piranhas were just fish that endangered your life as you got in the water, but they are part of making a living for the women who can take that skin and turn it into something beautiful.

and turn it into something beautiful.

We're at the house of Sebastian who is an instrument maker.

The instrument he has are a combination of very original from here and traditional from Europe.

This guitar like instrument came from a wooden bowl This guitar like instrument came from a wooden bowl that people used locally to feed animals.

Somebody discovered that by tapping on it you got a musical note.

you got a musical note.

- This already makes a sound, right?

Now when we close up the box it becomes quite different.

Now when we close up the box it becomes quite different.

It goes on like this.

And we use strings that are made of fishing line.

And we use strings that are made of fishing line.

That bowl has turned into a viola.

That bowl has turned into a viola.

(guitar and Portuguese singing) (guitar and Portuguese singing) - This is actually a place of raising alligators.

There are 75,000 alligators being produced here and it's an excellent way of stopping poaching of the native wild caimans that grow in the Pantanal.

of the native wild caimans that grow in the Pantanal.

They brought, three years ago, 5,000 eggs from the caimans that live inside the Pantanal, brought them here, hatched them and now they are producing them for their leather, for the meat and for the bone.

for their leather, for the meat and for the bone.

The Rio Paraguay, the Paraguay River, is huge.

It's comparable in the U.S. to the size of the Mississippi but we're in Brazil and of course the Amazon's river in Brazil.

But it extends for over 1500 miles deep into the interior But it extends for over 1500 miles deep into the interior and winds up in the Atlantic.

And here we are at this point over a thousand miles upstream.

What we see in the river here, are these little islands of water hisins because the level of the water increases of water hisins because the level of the water increases by as much as 50 feet during the rainy season.

When it comes down it brings all sorts of new floating things that have grown in in the meantime.

Downstream these little islands of water hisins.

They're actually filters.

They clean the water just in the way that oysters do in the cold waters of the Chesapeake Bay or the Atlantic or the Pacific.

We see a fair number of fisherman, certainly not as many as there would have been 30 years ago because overfishing takes place.

But there are still families that rely on fish.

And it used to be that they would get fish a couple hundred pounds in size.

They still get good sized ones but nothing like they used to.

Still, fishing is a major part of life on the river.

Still, fishing is a major part of life on the river.

The Pantanal is world famous for the variety of birds.

The Tuiuiu, which is the huge crane, is about as charismatic a bird as you can find.

It's a symbol of the Pantanal.

That massive black beak and the craw, which is black That massive black beak and the craw, which is black as well, and it catches fish and you can see as it shakes the fish.

The legs occupy two thirds of the body so that they can wade very deeply.

Their wing span is two meters, which is probably close Their wing span is two meters, which is probably close to seven feet.

They're a huge bird.

But in addition to the tuiuiu, there are a number of different herons, egrets, hawks, eagles, too numerous to mention.

too numerous to mention.

(calm music) (calm music) Embrapa is the Brazilian equivalent of the National Science Foundation.

They fund research projects throughout Brazil.

In this particular case, they had a large study, permanent study going on inside the Pantanal where all kinds of research is going on.

where all kinds of research is going on.

- It is a program of the federal government that is operated in the Pantanal for more than 35 years.

Our mission is to work towards high economic productivity while practicing conversation in the Pantanal.

We manage around 4,600 hectors used in part for producing cattle, a product of the Pantanal.

cattle, a product of the Pantanal.

The Pantanal has seasonally flooded soil and land.

The Pantanal has seasonally flooded soil and land.

At certain times of the year, wide areas are inundated At certain times of the year, wide areas are inundated and the pastures are enriched by the decomposition of the large amounts of organic nutrients the large amounts of organic nutrients that come with the flood waters.

that come with the flood waters.

After the waters recede, the cattle return After the waters recede, the cattle return and the cycle continues.

and the cycle continues.

- Ranchers, the fazendas, who have lived here for these many, many generations know that their cows need to have a supply of grass, even though they can eat other things.

One of the things the Embrapa is trying to do is select the very best grasses, cultivate them, and then make the new varieties available.

Varieties that are derived from the Pantanal itself.

Varieties that are derived from the Pantanal itself.

- The roots of the Pantanal culture go back to colonial - The roots of the Pantanal culture go back to colonial times in this area.

We at Embrapa want to preserve the traditional culture within the Pantanal.

Our whole idea is always to adapt to the broader economy while ensuring the sustainability of existing environmental, economic and social systems.

environmental, economic and social systems.

The Pantano horse has a profound understanding of what is necessary to sustain this rich environment, one that he depends upon for his survival.

one that he depends upon for his survival.

- This pectoral leather plate is secured underneath here and prevents the saddle from sliding around.

and prevents the saddle from sliding around.

If you lasso a skier, it will stay in place.

If you lasso a skier, it will stay in place.

- Today I think we're going to work in the corrals and chutes.

A Pantano horse is a very tame beast, very calm to work with.

very calm to work with.

- On this ranch, we used to have only creole horses not this Pantano horses that for generations lived here.

Today we mostly ride Pantano horses.

We have supplied many of these horses to neighboring ranches, all because of Embrapa.

ranches, all because of Embrapa.

This is a small knife, a canivete, a file and leather scaper to protect the knife.

and leather scaper to protect the knife.

- Embrapa tried to understand this place we're in and how we can make the lives of the people who live here better and to improve the processes of productivity, all the activities developed here.

Here in Pantanal we have some months that the land is very dry and some months with a lot of water everywhere.

So they had to adapt to all of these conditions.

And usually our work tries to create ways to bring sustainability to all of the processes that are being developed here.

that are being developed here.

- In the Pantanal, there's a huge diversity of wildlife but it's also a place where people live and work especially cowboys on the fazendas, or the ranches.

These horses are especially adapted, they're a mixture of breeds from all over the world but they are bred for living in this environment, for working in this environment.

Whether it's in water or in a shrub in the deep thorny forest or out in the plains, they have to be able to deal with all those situations that you find here in the Pantanal.

in the Pantanal.

We think of the Pantanal as a huge wetland We think of the Pantanal as a huge wetland and that's basically true.

But what's even truer is it's a mosaic of habitats.

But what's even truer is it's a mosaic of habitats.

Dozens and dozens and hundreds and hundreds of them.

Dozens and dozens and hundreds and hundreds of them.

At a few places inside the Pantanal are these small salt ponds, they call it a salina, and they lie on an east to west track.

The land subsides a little bit and there's no way for the water to get out.

So, it concentrates all the flow in here and it evaporates leaving the salts behind.

And that little bit of salt is very attractive to wild animals.

to wild animals.

Around the edge is a special kind of palm tree that also craves salt soil.

So this is a mini ecological oasis within a huge ecological oasis.

within a huge ecological oasis.

Even though it's night, we can see the difference in the various habitats here.

Some of this stuff, the trees are very big.

This part, they tell me, has not been grazed or even disturbed for 25 years and you can tell.

It's so dense.

It's so dense.

And then all of a sudden now it comes open and it's more And then all of a sudden now it comes open and it's more like in the salt flats, it's a big open area.

like in the salt flats, it's a big open area.

Those are capid baros and they're going towards the edge.

Oh my goodness, there's a whole family of them.

Oh my goodness, there's a whole family of them.

There must be 12 of them going out there.

They have to be careful because they're prime jaguar food.

They have to be careful because they're prime jaguar food.

There is a a caiman, you can tell by the glint in the eye, There is a a caiman, you can tell by the glint in the eye, it's looking delicious.

If you watch the caiman go, fish are jumping, it's going with it's mouth open and it's trying to catch those piranhas and they're jumping over his head.

Now that's a heck of a no because the piranhas are supposed to eat meat and here's a caiman eating the piranhas.

That's not the way it's supposed to be.

That's not the way it's supposed to be.

And that must be what they call the little wolf.

Actually it's a canine species, it's a member of the dog family and they consider it here to be a little wolf.

family and they consider it here to be a little wolf.

(moos) There's a herd of brahma cows, brahma is what they call them where I come from.

There must be a couple hundred of them and they're all massed together.

massed together.

I wonder if that's for protection from jaguars.

You see that kind of weird flying like a drone right in front of us, that's a night jar.

They're closely related to the whipper wills.

They're so well camouflaged, they also lay their eggs right on the ground, they don't build nests.

right on the ground, they don't build nests.

That is the mountain javelina.

It's actually new to this area, and it's a different species from the native one here.

They're kind of a problem.

They're kind of a problem.

It's bound and determined to get away It's bound and determined to get away and they do a lot of destruction.

They're moving in, they eat everything, and they're pushing other critters out of the way.

other critters out of the way.

(light music) (light music) - Cows that are about to calf need to separated from the union calves for at least 30 days to produce the best calving results.

calving results.

This breed is called ne loir, brought to Brazil in the 19th century from India.

It's not the native Pantano calf.

It's not the native Pantano calf.

That breed has adapted to life in the wetlands for over 200 years.

The Pantano breed is a tough animal adapted here on Pantanal.

It is a small animal with high fertility rates.

It is a small animal with high fertility rates.

- That calf over there is a Pantano cross breed.

- Both cows and bulls protect the young ones from the threat of wildcats, like jaguars.

We have seen this happen in the herds here in this region.

We have seen this happen in the herds here in this region.

- Hi baby, I know I'm a strange guy, from a strange country, speaking a strange language.

from a strange country, speaking a strange language.

- She was injured by another little bird.

I helped her heal and she ended up staying.

She sings and cries and imitates everything.

She sings and cries and imitates everything.

(bird chirps) - I have never heard such a cacophony of bird sounds as I have heard in the Pantanal.

The sight of the birds, the immense number, the species of parrots is overwhelming.

And in the Pantanal, I've gotten to view of what I consider to be the world's most beautiful bird.

The hyacinth macaw.

The hyacinth macaw.

Almost unnerving aspect of the Pantanal is the colossal number of caimans.

They get up to three meters long, that's about ten feet long, and there are hundreds of thousands of them.

They're just a part of life and the local people pay no more attention than I do to an English sparrow.

pay no more attention than I do to an English sparrow.

But they are here and they are a part of the food chain, both as predators and prey.

both as predators and prey.

One of the things you hope to see in the Pantanal is otters, believe it or not.

And they are here in good numbers.

And they are here in good numbers.

I have heard it said that a healthy jaguar is an indication of the healthy ecosystem.

A healthy otter is an indication of a pretty healthy river system and these otters are healthy and having a lot of fun.

system and these otters are healthy and having a lot of fun.

The Brazilian government is aware that the Pantanal is one of the world's great storehouses of wildlife.

And it's home to hundreds of ranches that go back as much as 500 years.

It also knows that this great wetland is a source of freshwater for downstream south western Brazil and even Paraguay and Argentina.

They depend on this great abundance of freshwater coming from the Pantanal.

coming from the Pantanal.

Join us next time In the Americas with me, David Yetman.

Join us next time In the Americas with me, David Yetman.

The Amazon River stands alone in our world for it's size and it's immense volume of water but also it's great diversity of wildlife and human cultures.

diversity of wildlife and human cultures.

A couple of times a year at the river's mouth, the Amazon and the Atlantic ocean do battle.

On these few days, the Atlantic wins.

On these few days, the Atlantic wins.

The Pororoca.

The Pororoca.

(trumpets) (trumpets) - [Announcer] Funding for In the Americas with David Yetman was provided by Agnese Haury.

was provided by Agnese Haury.

Funding for In the Americas with David Yetman was also provided by the Guilford Fund.

was also provided by the Guilford Fund.

Copies of this and other episodes of In the Americas with David Yetman, are available from the Southwest Center.

To order, call 1-800-937-8632.

Please mention the episode number and program title.

Please mention the episode number and program title.

Please be sure to visit us at intheamericas.com or intheamericas.org.

or intheamericas.org.