A20_4222

Enchanted
…Mythical, mysterious, between the animal and the human… Magic!
She was a cunhantãFrom the Tupi Guarani cunha-antã=resistant woman. Pretty girl, young woman. More who lived in one of those great lakes in the countryside of the Amazon. From a riverine family, she lived on a stilt house that, at the time of the flood, was surrounded by water and people could reach the door by canoeThe canoe is a small boat, narrow and light, and daringly close to the waterline. With both sharp ends, it is operated by a wooden oar, but in the absence of an oar, the riverine can uses any piece of wood or even a branch. It is considered the most used means of transport by riverside and indigenous people in the rivers of the Amazon. More. Sometimes, in the great floods, the water invaded the house and had to make the marombaWhen there is an exceptional flood, the water rises to the floor of the stilt and rises above it… so the riverside dweller builds a maromba, that is, a higher floor that allows him to store his utensils and even his bed in the dry.
Also, maromba is a high platform made of planks or tree trunks where cattle are sheltered during large floods. It also serves as a refuge for plants, domestic animals and riverine tools. More. The girl was approaching marriageable age, and there were already young people in the village who shared glances.
The feast of Saint John arrived and the barracãoAt first, the ‘barracão’ was the deposit of goods that the owner of the rubber plantation exchanged with the rubber collected by the rubber tappers.
Later the ‘barracão’ became the hall where the villagers gathered to celebrate during the festivities. More was decorated. At night everyone was there for the festivities, including the young woman of our history. Could this be the opportunity to find the man of her life?
Suddenly her gaze was caught by a handsome young man, robust, elegant, dressed in white, with a hat, white too. Not only was her gaze immediately returned, but the young man resolutely walked up to her and asked her to dance. She didn’t even consider the possibility of resisting the fascinating invitation and so, they danced all night, until the gallant asked her to go outside. They swam, went to the depths together and it still felt like a dance, which the young woman gave up without any resistance and didn’t even question how she could dive so deep without needing to breathe. When the first light of dawn broke the enchanted night, the boy turned into a boto and dove to the bottom of the lake.
She never saw him again and for days and days she stayed on the edge waiting nostalgically, until her belly grew and she knew that she would have a child, the result of that enchanted love.
Thus, another Boto’s sonThe academic interpretation of boto’s son is that when an unmarried or even married woman becomes pregnant out of wedlock then the boto is held responsible and she will register her child as ‘son of the boto’. Specialists from the top of their chairs found the solution. However, in my view, the situation is much more complex. It may happen that paternity is attributed to the boto in order to release the real responsible person. This is a legend of indigenous origin and is told throughout the Amazon. The legend carries within itself the enchanted world of spells and the magic of what is invisible to the limited eyes of urban culture. There is much more to nature than modern ‘civilized’ man can see. For this reason, it would be at least prudent not to venture into known statements and hasty judgments. More was born, he would have his mother’s name on his birth certificate and in the father’s line it would be written Boto’s son.
This is the legend of the boto that can be heard in any corner of the Amazon, with small variations, but always showing the animal’s seductive power.
There are versions in which the boto is a beautiful woman who seduces boys; the legend is lost in the night of time, its origins are attributed to indigenous peoples, well before the Portuguese invasion.
Times have also changed a lot and the «conquest of paradise» also brought the perverse habits of the colonizers. It is not uncommon to discover that hidden behind the legend of the boto, sometimes, there may be a family member or a neighbor who abused the girl.

A20_4222 – Leonide Principe
Equipment: NIKON D2X with lens 70.0-200.0 mm f/2.8 set at 200 mm – Exposition: ISO: 100 – Aperture: 4.2 – Shutter: 1/500 – Program: Normal – Exp. Comp.: 0.0,
Original digital capture of a real life scene –
Original file size: 4312px x 2868px
Location: lago do Bim (Iranduba – Amazonas Brazil)
Date: June 28, 2006 – Time: 11:03:06 AM
Collection: Amazon River DolphinKnown as boto-vermelho – (Inia geoffrensis). Cetaceans that live in rivers and lakes in the Amazon. Their behavior is similar to that of dolphins. One of the most common legends that refer to the animal is that it transforms itself into a well-dressed and handsome young man who goes to parties along the river where he seduces girls. Before dawn, it flees and returns to the river or lake where it transforms back into a dolphin. In his expedition, Jacques Cousteau gave it the name “pink”. In the Amazonian tradition, however, it is known as the “red” dolphin. It usually roams alone or in pairs and often approaches humans, even when fishing. The other Amazon dolphin, the Tucuxi boto (Sotalia fluviatilis), has a darker back. is smaller and more shy. More – Persons shown: none
Keywords:
Ariau paranaParana – (from the Tupi para’ ná, similar to the sea). The branch of a river that feeds water back into the same river downstream or into another river.  Paranás occur frequently In the Amazon Basin and many of them are densely populated.   More, paraná do Ariaú, Iranduba, Amazonas, Amazônia, Amazon, Amazonian, Brazil, Brasil, Brazilian, América do Sul, South America, boto-vermelhoKnown as boto-vermelho – (Inia geoffrensis). Cetaceans that live in rivers and lakes in the Amazon. Their behavior is similar to that of dolphins. One of the most common legends that refer to the animal is that it transforms itself into a well-dressed and handsome young man who goes to parties along the river where he seduces girls. Before dawn, it flees and returns to the river or lake where it transforms back into a dolphin. In his expedition, Jacques Cousteau gave it the name “pink”. In the Amazonian tradition, however, it is known as the “red” dolphin. It usually roams alone or in pairs and often approaches humans, even when fishing. The other Amazon dolphin, the Tucuxi boto (Sotalia fluviatilis), has a darker back. is smaller and more shy. More, Amazon river dolphin, boto cor-de-rosa, encantado, enchanted, Inia geoffrensis, pink dolphin, tonina, mamíferos aquáticos, aquatic mammals, mamíferos, mammals, FAUNA, animals, boutu, bufeo
EN1 The boto’s son A20_4222
PT1 Filho do boto A20_4222
© – Leonide Principe, all right reserved
www.leonideprincipe.site

A20_4134

Forest hunter
The backbone of the boto (Inia geoffrensis) is much more flexible than the spine of the other members of the same family. When the seasonal growth of water invades the forests on the edge, the fish takes refuge in this environment, where, in addition to more protection, they find plentiful food of seeds and fruits that fall from the trees. It is in this same environment that the boto swims freely and easily hunts its prey. This ability to swim between trees is due to the flexibility of its spinal column. That’s why it’s very rare to see a «boto» jumping out of the water like dolphins do. When the «boto» rises to the surface to breathe, only the breathing hole emerges, so that it is only when the water is calm and windless that the presence of the dolphin can be noticed.

A20_4134 – Leonide Principe
Equipment: NIKON D2X with lens 70.0-200.0 mm f/2.8 set at 70 mm – Exposition: ISO: 100 – Aperture: 6.7 – Shutter: 1/180 – Program: Normal – Exp. Comp.: 0.0,
Original digital capture of a real life scene –
Original file size: 4312px x 2868px
Location: lago do Bim (Iranduba – Amazonas Brazil)
Date: June 28, 2006 – Time: 10:46:21 AM
Collection: Amazon River Dolphin – Persons shown: none
Keywords:
Ariau parana, paraná do Ariaú, Iranduba, Amazonas, Amazônia, Amazon, Amazonian, Brazil, Brasil, Brazilian, América do Sul, South America, boto-vermelho, Amazon river dolphin, boto cor-de-rosa, encantado, enchanted, Inia geoffrensis, pink dolphin, tonina, mamíferos aquáticos, aquatic mammals, mamíferos, mammals, FAUNA, animals, boutu, bufeo
EN2 Forest hunter A20_4134
PT2 Caçador da floresta A20_4134
© – Leonide Principe, all right reserved
www.leonideprincipe.site

P04_095

Inside the forest
Amazon River dolphin (Inia geoffrensis)
The igapóIgapó comes from the Tupi language ia’pó. Strip of forest with its own vegetation, through which the waters normally penetrate during the flood season. Many varieties of fish depend on the igapós to spawn, protect and feed their young. In general, the aquatic life of the Amazon basin is very dependent on the igapós because of the fruits, insects and small animals they contain. Therefore, in order to maintain the ecological balance, it is fundamental that the vegetation of the flooded areas is preserved. More is the flooded forest and entering the forest is a specialty of the boutu. In the photo, in the Tapajós River, a river of «clear waters», completely transparent, the dolphin shows its exceptional flexibility.
However, it doesn’t matter the visibility in the water, it can be any type of water, even the one that has no visibility at all, the boutu emits a sound that covers its front and returns, the one that is closer returns earlier, so in a minute fraction of a second, the cetacean forms a mental image of the environment, identifying the position and distance of trees and especially the movement of fish, which are the main target of its food.

P04_095 – Leonide Principe
Camera Nikon F5 with Nikkor lens 70-200mm f2.8 – Diapositive Film Fujichrome Velvia 50 – Scanner: Nikon SUPER COOLSCAN 5000 ED
Digitised from a positive on film –
Original file size: 5362px x 3565px
Location Taken: Praia Maria José (Santarém – Pará Brazil)
Date Taken: 1995
Collection: Amazon River Dolphin – Persons shown: none
Keywords:
boto-vermelho, Amazon river dolphin, boto cor-de-rosa, encantado, enchanted, Inia geoffrensis, pink dolphin, tonina, mamíferos aquáticos, aquatic mammals, mamíferos, mammals, FAUNA, animals, boutu, bufeo, Praia Maria José, Santarém, Pará, Para, Amazônia, Amazon, Amazonian, Brazil, Brasil, Brazilian, América do Sul, South America
EN3 Inside the forest P04_095
PT3 Entrando na floresta P04_095
© – Leonide Principe, all right reserved
www.leonideprincipe.site