236 People and Places
WHAT ARE THE PAMPAS?
The Pampas are vast, fertile grasslands that stretch
across Argentina and Uruguay. This land is ideal for
growing wheat and other cereals and for feeding vast
herds of sheep and cattle, all of which are extremely
important to the two national economies. Gauchos
(cowboys) rode the Pampas for 300 years, working on
cattle ranches, but there are few left now as their role
has largely disappeared.WHAT ARE FAVELAS?
The favelas are the sprawling shanty towns around
most of the big cities in South America, notably Rio
de Janeiro and São Paulo in Brazil. Overcrowding and
the lack of affordable housing in the cities force poor
people to build their own homes from scrap metal
and junk. The favelas have little running water or
sanitation. Recent self-help schemes have begun to
introduce some basic amenities, but progress is slow.HOW LONG IS THE AMAZON RIVER?
The Amazon River is 6,516 km (4,049 miles) long,
which makes it the longest river in South America and
second longest in the world after the Nile. It flows
from the Peruvian Andes eastwards across Brazil to
the Atlantic Ocean. The Amazon carries one-fifth of
the world’s fresh water and discharges so much water
into the Atlantic that seawater 180 km (112 miles) out
to sea is still only slightly salty.1 GAUCHOS
These cowboys look after cattle
on ranches. The name comes
from a South American Indian
word for “outcast”, as they used
to live outside towns and cities
and beyond the law.4 FAVELAS, BRAZIL
Living conditions are poor in the
crowded favelas, or slums, that
surround the main cities of Brazil.
Many inhabitants suffer from bad
health due to inadequate
drainage and sanitation.RIVER AMAZON 3
The Amazon is an important
waterway for Brazil. Ships can
travel inland as far as Manaus,
about 1,600 km (994 miles) from
the sea, and floods deposit
fertile silt on the land.Southern South America
Brazil is the giant of South America, occupying
almost half the continent and containing more
than half its people. Once-rich Argentina has
been impoverished by corrupt government, and
all six countries in this region have had long
periods of military or dictatorial rule in recent years,
although all now have elected governments.
DO NATIVE INDIANS STILL
LIVE IN THE RAINFORESTS?
There were once more than two million native Indians
living in the Amazon rainforest, but today only about
240,000 survive. Most of them were wiped out by
western diseases such as influenza and measles.
Deforestation, farming, and gold prospecting are a
threat to the habitat of many tribes, although some,
like the Xingu, now live in protected areas.KAYAPO INDIAN 3
The headdress of this Kayapo Indian elder from the Amazon rainforest is
made of feathers from the macaw and the stork. Unfortunately, both
birds are now endangered species in Brazil.