"Here in the vast wilderness surrounding Peru's Alto Purús National Park, the locations of [mahogany] trees, worth tens of thousands of dollars in the United States, have become closely guarded secrets among members of indigenous tribes."

"Scientists searching the Amazon have discovered new species -- creatures such as a baldheaded parrot, a blue-fanged tarantula and a bright red catfish -- at the rate of about one every three days for the past 10 years, the World Wildlife Fund reported Monday."

"The Amazon, the world's biggest river, is at its lowest level in over 40 years near its source in northeastern Peru, causing havoc in a region where it is used as the only form of travel, authorities said."

"A study to be published this year by Ecuadorean glaciologist Bolivar Caceres suggests that the country's glaciers lost more than 40% of their surface area between 1956 and 2006."

"Indigenous activists threatened a clash with Brazil's government as they dispatched boats carrying 150 men on Wednesday to occupy the planned site of a controversial hydro-electric dam in the Amazon, a chief said."

"A Brazilian rancher accused of ordering the murder of U.S. nun and Amazon defender Dorothy Stang was found guilty and sentenced to 30 years in prison."