46-747: George Miller Dyott (6 February 1883 – 2 August 1972) was an English pioneer aviator, cinematographer, and explorer of the Amazon . Dyott accompanied Arthur S. Vernay to India and helped produce a documentary on tiger hunting. Dyott was born in New York City to a British father and American mother. Dyott was raised at his father's English home Freeford Hall in Staffordshire and educated at Bedford Grammar School . He went on to train as an electrical engineer at Faraday House in London. He testflew planes not long after
92-583: A few months before Dyott. In the autumn of 1911 Dyott and Capt. Patrick Hamilton travelled to New York with two Deperdussin monoplanes , a two-seater and a single seater. They made an exhibition tour, stopping for a while at the Nassau Aerodrome and in Mexico City . A highlight, literally, of the Nassau exhibition was a night flight in the two seater, with Hamilton as passenger, carrying a searchlight powered by
138-516: A low-water season (known popularly as summer), and a wet season (known popularly as winter) during which, the rivers flood the adjacent, low-lying forests. The climate of the basin is generally hot and humid . In some areas, however, the summer months (June–September) can bring cold snaps, fueled by Antarctic winds traveling along the adjacent mountain range. The average annual temperature is around 25-degree and 28 degree Celsius with little to no distinction between summer and winter season. Amazonia
184-471: A shop in London at 217 Piccadilly in the late 1910s to 1920s. He sold antiques and decorative artworks to a number of important and influential New Yorkers including Ogden Codman Jr. , Elsie de Wolfe , Sir Charles Carrick Allom , Consuelo Vanderbilt , Francis Patrick Garvan , Benjamin Altman , Solomon R. Guggenheim , William Russell Grace , as well as leading art dealerships such as M Knoedler & Co , and
230-553: Is scarcely populated . There are scattered settlements inland, but most of the population lives in a few larger cities on the banks of the Amazon and other major rivers, such as in Iquitos – Loreto in Peru , Manaus - Amazonas State , and Belém , Pará . In many regions, the forest has been cleared for soya bean plantations and ranching (the most extensive non-forest use of the land); some of
276-410: Is 1.5 million distributed. There are an estimated 100 uncontacted tribal groups. The largest organization fighting for the indigenous peoples in this area is COICA . It is a supra organization encompassing all indigenous rights organizations working in the Amazon basin area, and covers the people living in several countries. The river is the principal path of transportation for people and produce in
322-619: Is land. The splash tetra is famous for laying its eggs on plants above water, keeping them moist by continuously splashing on them, the South American lungfish can survive underground in a mucous cocoon during the dry season, some small rivulid killifish can jump over land between water sources (sometimes moving relatively long distances, even uphill) and may deliberately jump onto land to escape aquatic predators, and an undescribed species of worm-like Phreatobius catfish lives in waterlogged leaf litter near (not in) streams. Some of
368-509: Is produced for use in urban areas. Exploitation of bushmeat , particularly deer and turtles is common. Extensive deforestation , particularly in Brazil , is leading to the extinction of known and unknown species, reducing biological diversity and adversely impacting soil, water, and air quality. A final part of the deforestation process is the large-scale production of charcoal for industrial processes such as steel manufacturing. Soils within
414-405: Is quite dense and its variety of animal inhabitants is comparatively high due to the heavy rainfall and the dense and extensive evergreen and coniferous forests . Little sunlight reaches the ground due to the dense roof of canopy by plants. The ground remains dark and damp and only shade-tolerant vegetation will grow here. Orchids and bromeliads exploit trees and other plants to get closer to
460-445: Is quite simple: frogs must always keep their skin moist since almost half of their respiration is carried out through their skin. The high humidity of the rainforest and frequent rainstorms gives tropical frogs infinitely more freedom to move into the trees and escape the many predators of rainforest waters. The differences between temperate and tropical frogs extend beyond their habitat. About 2500 fish species are known from
506-606: The Aloique Indians, but the strength of his evidence soon collapsed on closer scrutiny and the mystery of Fawcett's disappearance remained unresolved. Related to the Fawcett expedition, during which Dyott was held captive by Indians and barely escaped with his life, Dyott published a book about his adventures called Manhunting in the Jungle (1930), and also co-wrote and starred in a 1933 Hollywood action film called Savage Gold . The book
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#1733085732008552-643: The American Museum of Natural History 's collection of Southeast Asian animals, Vernay joined Faunthorpe in India in 1923. This expedition culminated in the American Museum of Natural History 's Vernay-Faunthorpe Hall of South Asiatic Mammals, which opened in 1930 and held mounted elephants shot by the collectors in Mysore. He was elected Vice Patron of the Bombay Natural History Society in 1928. Vernay shot
598-728: The American Museum of Natural History . The Vernay-Faunthorpe Hall of South Asian mammals in the AMNH is named after him. Born in Weymouth, England, Vernay was born to Louisa Stannard and Thomas Crabb Avant. Shortly after his parents divorced, he emigrated to New York in August 1904 and changed his surname from Avant to Vernay. He found a job as an elevator operator at a furniture store known as A.J. Crawfords and after working there briefly, Vernay started his own shop in 1906, called Arthur S. Vernay, Inc. located at 1 East 45th Street, near Madison Avenue. He also had
644-727: The Wright brothers , and was the first pilot to fly at the Nassau Aerodrome (Mitchell Field) on Long Island at night, in October 1911. He was awarded his Royal Aero Club pilot's Certificate (Number 114) on 17 August 1911. Though less well known now, Dyott gained his licence soon after many of the most famous names of early aviation. Moore-Brabazon was the first to gain the newly devised certificate, on 8 March 1910 and Rolls , Grahame-White , Cody , Roe , Sopwith followed in that year , but de Havilland and Blackburn won theirs in 1911 , only
690-528: The largest strict freshwater fish in the world. The bull shark and common sawfish , which have been recorded far up the Amazon, may reach even greater sizes, but they are euryhaline and often seen in marine waters. In contrast to the giants, there are Amazonian fish from several families that are less than 2 cm (0.8 in) long. The smallest are likely the Leptophilypnion sleeper gobies, which do not surpass 1 cm (0.4 in) and are among
736-459: The smallest fish in the world. The Amazon supports very large fisheries, including well-known species of large catfish (such as Brachyplatystoma , which perform long breeding migrations up the Amazon), arapaima and tambaqui , and is also home to many species that are important in the aquarium trade , such as the oscar , discus , angelfish , Corydoras catfish and neon tetra . Although
782-685: The 1940s (it was then run by Stephen Jussel) and moved to Nassau, Bahamas , where he cultivated an orchid greenhouse, collected species from South America, participated in environmental conservation efforts, co-founding the Bahamas National Trust and the Society for the Preservation of the Flamingo. In the Bahamas, Vernay lived with his wife Marion Woodruff Kelley (married 1908) at their home, Los Cayos, and
828-468: The Amazon are Portuguese and Spanish . There are hundreds of native languages still spoken in the Amazon, most of which are critically endangered . Many tribal groups live in the Amazon Basin, often in relative isolation. It is estimated 400 or more tribal groups have lived in the Amazon Basin for hundreds of years with their own culture, language, and lifestyle. Today total population of Amazon basin
874-406: The Amazon basin and it is estimated that more than 1,000 additional undescribed species exist. This is more than any other river basin on Earth, and Amazonia is the center of diversity for Neotropical fishes . About 45% (more than 1,000 species) of the known Amazonian fish species are endemic to the basin. The remarkable species richness can in part be explained by the large differences between
920-644: The Amazon basin, has several other cavefish species. The deeper part of the major Amazonian rivers are always dark and a few species have adaptions similar to cavefish (reduced pigment and eyes). Among these are the knifefish Compsaraia and Orthosternarchus , some Cetopsis whale catfish (especially C. oliveirai ), some Xyliphius and Micromyzon banjo catfish, and the loricariid catfish Loricaria spinulifera , L. pumila , Peckoltia pankimpuju , Panaque bathyphilus and Panaqolus nix (these five also occur in "normal" forms of shallower waters). The perhaps most unusual habitat used by Amazonian fish
966-455: The Amazon basin. The biodiversity of the Amazon and the sheer number of diverse bird species is given by the number of different bird families that reside in these humid forests. An example of such would be the cotinga family, to which the Guianan cock-of-the-rock belong. Birds such as toucans , and hummingbirds are also found here. Macaws are famous for duck gathering by the hundreds along
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#17330857320081012-503: The Earth." 2°18′35″S 54°53′17″W / 2.3096°S 54.8881°W / -2.3096; -54.8881 Arthur Stannard Vernay Arthur Stannard Vernay (11 May 1877 – 25 October 1960) was a noted English-born American art and antiques dealer, decorator, big-game hunter, and naturalist explorer. He sponsored and took part in expeditions across the world to collect biological specimens and cultural artifacts on behalf of
1058-671: The Guyana Plateau in the north to the Brazilian Plateau in the south. With a length of about 6,400 km (4,000 mi) before it drains into the Atlantic Ocean , it is one of the two longest rivers in the world . A team of scientists has claimed that the Amazon is longer than the Nile , but debate about its exact length continues. The Amazon system transports the largest volume of water of any river system, accounting for about 20% of
1104-661: The Llanganati Mountains in search of lost Inca Treasure. Dyott spent most of his life in South America but died in the city of his birth, New York City, in 1972. Books Film Amazon basin The Amazon basin is the part of South America drained by the Amazon River and its tributaries . The Amazon drainage basin covers an area of about 7,000,000 km (2,700,000 sq mi), or about 35.5 percent of
1150-478: The South American continent. It is located in the countries of Bolivia , Brazil , Colombia , Ecuador , Guyana , Peru , Suriname , and Venezuela , as well as the territory of French Guiana . Most of the basin is covered by the Amazon rainforest , also known as Amazonia . With a 5.5 million km (2.1 million sq mi) area of dense tropical forest , it is the largest rainforest in
1196-765: The US in April 1913. He made a sixth month demonstration tour, flying for more than 2,000 miles at venues between New York and California. When he returned to the UK he flew it in the London- Brighton handicap of November 1913, but had to make an unscheduled landing. After serving as a Royal Naval Air Service squadron commander during the First World War, he became an explorer and joined the Royal Geographical Society . In 1927, he
1242-526: The clay cliffs of the Amazon River. In the western Amazon hundreds of macaws and other parrots descend to exposed river banks to consume clay on an almost daily basis, the exception being rainy days. The green anaconda inhabits the shallow waters of the Amazon and the emerald tree boa and boa constrictor live in the Amazonian tree tops. Many reptile species are illegally collected and exported for
1288-575: The design firm Tiffany Studios . From the 1920s to the early 1940s, he had a shop at 19 East 54th Street in New York. In the 1920s, Vernay grew increasingly interested in game hunting and naturalist exploration. In 1921 he stayed at the Biligirirangans with Ralph Camroux Morris and saw wild animals in nature for the first time. He returned to the US and then sponsored a collecting expedition led by Colonel John Champion Faunthorpe intended to enhance
1334-443: The inhabitants harvest wild rubber latex , and Brazilian nuts . This is a form of extractive farms, where the trees are not cut down. These are relatively sustainable operations in contrast to lumbering or agriculture dependent on clearing the rainforest. The people live in thatched houses shaped liked beehives. They also build apartment-like houses called " Maloca ", with a steeply slanting roof. The most widely spoken languages in
1380-442: The international pet trade. Live animals are the fourth largest commodity in the smuggling industry after drugs, diamonds and weapons. More than 1,500 species of amphibians swim and are found in the Amazon. Unlike temperate frogs which are mostly limited to habitats near the water, tropical frogs are most abundant in the trees and relatively few are found near bodies of water on the forest floor . The reason for this occurrence
1426-582: The largest flamingo colony in the world. The major expeditions sponsored by Vernay include: A large number of species and subspecies described from specimens collected on his expeditions have been named after him including the fish Hypsibarbus vernayi , the Spottail Barb Enteromius afrovernayi , the climbing mouse Dendromus vernayi , the rodent genus Vernaya and the Angolan file snake, Mehelya vernayi . Vernay's business papers are in
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1472-586: The major fish groups of the Amazon basin include: More than 90% of the animal species in the Amazon are insects , of which about 40% are beetles (Coleoptera constituting almost 25% of all known types of animal life-forms.) Whereas all of Europe has some 321 butterfly species, the Manú National Park in Peru (4000 hectare-survey) has 2300 species, while Tambopata National Reserve (5500 hectare-survey) has at least 1231 species. The Amazon River basin has
1518-482: The most diverse orders in the Amazon are Characiformes (43% of total fish species in the Amazon) and Siluriformes (39%), but other groups with many species include Cichlidae (6%) and Gymnotiformes (3%). In addition to major differences in behavior and ecology, Amazonian fish vary extensively in form and size. The largest, the arapaima and piraiba can reach 3 m (9.8 ft) or more in length and up to 200 kg (440 lb) in weight, making them some of
1564-556: The plane's motor. In Mexico the two seater carried many passengers, including the Mexican Republic's President Madero . He later reported on the different flying conditions in hot climates, particularly the effects of thermals, rotating winds and the excitement of flying over forest fires. After returning to the UK, he decided to design his own aircraft. This was known as the Dyott monoplane ; after receiving and testing it, Dyott took it to
1610-619: The rare Javan rhinoceros near Telok Anson in 1932 along with Guy Rowley while searching for Schomburg's deer. It was the last of its species in Perak. In 1935 he became a trustee of the American Museum of Natural History and in the same year he accompanied Charles Suydam Cutting to Tibet where they met the Dalai Lama . His last expedition was to Africa in 1946. Around the same time he became very interested in orchids. Vernay sold off his company in
1656-584: The region are generally shallow and cannot be used for more than a few seasons without the addition of imported fertilizers and chemicals. "Over past 20 years (2021), the Brazilian Amazon emitted 13% more CO 2 than it absorbed". "Amazon biodiversity also plays a critical role as part of global systems, influencing the global carbon cycle and thus climate change , as well as hemispheric hydrological systems, serving as an important anchor for South American climate and rainfall. It also produces 20% oxygen of
1702-615: The regions, with transport ranging from balsa rafts and dugout canoes to hand built wooden river craft and modern steel hulled craft. Seasonal floods excavate and redistribute nutrient-rich silt onto beaches and islands, enabling dry-season riverside agriculture of rice, beans, and corn on the river's shoreline without the addition of fertilizer, with additional slash and burn agriculture on higher floodplains. Fishing provides additional food year-round, and free-range chickens need little or no food beyond what they can forage locally. Charcoal made largely from forest and shoreline deadfall
1748-483: The sunlight. They grow hanging onto the branches or tree trunks with aerial roots , not as parasites but as epiphytes . Species of tropical trees native to the Amazon include Brazil nut , rubber tree and Assai palm . More than 1,400 species of mammals are found in the Amazon, the majority of which are species of bats and rodents . Its larger mammals include the jaguar , ocelot , capybara , puma and South American tapir . About 1,500 bird species inhabit
1794-700: The total water carried to the oceans by rivers. Some of the Amazon rainforests are deforested because of an increase in cattle ranches and soybean fields. The Amazon basin formerly flowed west to the Pacific Ocean until the Andes formed, causing the basin to flow eastward towards the Atlantic Ocean. Politically the basin is divided into Peruvian Amazonia , Amazônia Legal of Brazil, the Amazon natural region of Colombia , Amazonas (Venezuelan state) , and parts of Bolivia and Ecuador . (km ) (km ) Plant growth
1840-454: The true danger they represent often is greatly exaggerated, the Amazon basin is home to several feared fish species such as piranhas (including the famous red-bellied ), electric eel , river stingrays and candiru . Several cavefish species in the genus Phreatobius are found in the Amazon, as is the cave-dwelling Astroblepus pholeter in the far western part of the basin (Andean region). The Tocantins basin, arguably not part of
1886-442: The various parts of the Amazon basin, resulting in many fish species that are endemic to small regions. For example, fauna in clearwater rivers differs from fauna in white and blackwater rivers , fauna in slow moving sections show distinct differences compared to that in rapids , fauna in small streams differ from that in major rivers, and fauna in shallow sections show distinct differences compared to that in deep parts. By far
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1932-553: The world. The Amazon River begins in the Andes Mountains at the west of the basin with its main tributary the Marañón River and Apurimac River in Peru . The highest point in the watershed of the Amazon is the second biggest peak of Yerupajá at 6,635 metres (21,768 ft). The Amazon River Basin occupies the entire central and eastern area of South America, lying to the east of the Andes mountain range and extending from
1978-570: Was active in the early years of aviation in South America too. He established a company, Dyott & Company Ltd. of Lima, taking aerial photographs, scenic vistas and native scenes, which were sold as post-cards. Dyott retired to Santo Domingo de los Colorados, Ecuador, sometime in the mid-1930s. During World War II, Dyott returned to England in service of his country and a few years after the war's end retired once again to Ecuador. Dyott came out of retirement in 1947 and conducted his two final expeditions, which departed from Pillaro, Ecuador, venturing into
2024-455: Was later adapted to film as Manhunt in the Jungle (1958). In 1929 Dyott played himself in a documentary called Hunting Tigers in India , filmed in India on the A. S. Vernay expedition under the auspices of the American Museum of Natural History . It was billed as "the first all-talking nature picture" and was supposedly shown to First Lady Mrs. Hoover in the White House theatre. Dyott
2070-560: Was part of an expatriate social community that included the Duke of Windsor and Duchess of Windsor , the Swedish entrepreneur Axel Wenner-Gren , and hosted the English author Ian Fleming when he visited the Bahamas in 1956 before writing both Dr. No and Thunderball . Fleming accompanied Vernay and Robert Cushman Murphy along with his friend and OSS agent Ivar Felix Bryce, to Inagua which had
2116-469: Was the second person to transverse the Amazonian " River of Doubt ", in the footsteps of the 1913–14 Roosevelt-Rondon Scientific Expedition . Dyott wanted to verify Roosevelt's claim of discovering the river, for which there had been some doubt. The day after his marriage to Persis Wright in 1928, he mounted an expedition to search for the missing British explorer Percy Fawcett in the Amazon. Dyott found evidence he believed confirmed Fawcett had been killed by
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