“We made our noonday halt on an island where very tall trees grew, bearing fruits that were pleasant to the taste. Other trees on the island were covered with rich red and yellow blossoms, and masses of delicate blue flowers and of star-shaped white flowers grew underfoot. Hither and thither across the surface of the river flew swallows, with so much white in their plumage that as they flashed in the sun, they seemed to have snow-white bodies, borne by dark wings. The current of the river grew swifter; there were stretches of broken water that were almost rapids; the laboring engine strained and sobbed as with increasing difficulty it urged forward the launch … At nightfall we moored beside the bank, where the forest was open enough to permit a comfortable camp. That night the ants ate large holes in [expedition naturalist Leo] Miller’s mosquito netting and almost devoured his socks and shoelaces.” – Theodore Roosevelt, Through the Brazilian Wilderness (ed. Dain Borges)