Overview

Welcome Video

To start the voyage, view a welcome video featuring Moacir Fortes, also known as Captain Mo. This actual riverboat captain from Brazil tells a local story he calls "The Seven Perils," which describes the electric eel,stingray, piranha, anaconda, caiman (cousin of the alligator), piraíba (giant catfish), and candirú (parasitic catfish).

Captain Mo's Boat

Board the Victoria Amazonica, a stylized replica of Captain Mo's boat. View a map of the river and flip througha book of real riverboats that travel along the river highway moving goods, scientists, locals, and tourists. Prepare to travel through seven unique ports of call while learning about the incredible biodiversity of the Amazon River. Each stop focuses on one of the seven perils, or dangerous animals, and a common type of Amazon terrain.

Peril: Piranha

View a tank of live piranhas and question their vicious reputation once you learn that their diverse diet of fruits, fish, and dead animals does NOT typically include humans! Discover why the Amazon River has the greatest aquatic biodiversity in the world, including more than 30 species of piranhas. Use the computer interactive toinvestigate the Fishes of Amazonia mural, created by renowned artist Ray Troll. See the 125 different animal species-furred, feathered, but mostly finned-he painted with the guidance of many scientists. Learn about piranha evolution by comparing the fossil cast of an extinct "mega-piranha" from 13 million years ago to amodern piranha skull.

Port of Call: Deep Channel
Perils: Piraíba (giant catfish) and Candirú (parasitic catfish)

Learn about catfish diversity by comparing their extreme differences in size, shape, color, skin, and more. Hearthe local "yarn" about giant catfish swallowing people whole, then see a life-size cast of a piraíba and reach into its belly to discover what this giant catfish really eats. Watch the Bloody Suckers video about the candirú, andsing out loud with Candirú Karaoke. Participate in a catfish sorting game and assemble a puzzle to match uniquecatfish adaptations to their niche in the river.

Port of Call: Floating Home
Peril: Caiman (cousin of the alligator)

Inspect a stylized floating home, an example of how the people of the Amazon build their houses to accommodate the dramatic rise and fall of the river level. Search the river banks, just like locals and field researchers in the Amazon, for hidden caimans and other creatures. See a real caiman from the Museum's collections and learn now this species, the South American cousin of the alligator, has emerged from the brinkof extinction.

Port of Call: Tetra Stream

Discover the link between your living room and the Amazon River. Crawl into an underwater viewing dome fora unique look at live cardinal tetras, marbled hatchetfish, and blue discus fish. Learn about the ornamental fishtrade as you follow the tetra's journey and understand how the purchase of a tropical fish in the United States affects the local community in the Amazon.

Port of Call: Flooded Forest
Peril: Electric Eel

Feel a slight electric shock equivalent to that of a small electric eel. Then imagine feeling the jolt of a larger eel, such as the 600 volts of electricity nine-foot electric eels use to stun prey and ward off predators. Listen tothe sound of knifefish using their low-voltage discharge to navigate through the water and communicate withother electric fish. Learn about an amazing recent discovery-the "muck fish." Watch a video showing Denver scientist Kirk Johnson and Brazilian scientist Paulo Petry searching for this animal, and then reach into a tank filled with rotting leaves and debris to uncover examples of other critters living in this environment.

Port of Call: Floodplain Lake
Peril: Anaconda

Re-enact the annual flood cycle of the Amazon using a scale model to flood and drain the rain forest. View dramatic animated illustrations of the rainy season as compared with the dry season and learn about how thisflood cycle contributes to the floodplain's great riches-fish, fruit, crops, and an astonishing variety of plantsand animals. Work together with others to lift a life-size, soft, sculpted anaconda. Meet a biologist who has captured more than 1,000 anacondas during his studies of the huge snakes and the degradation of their habitat.Learn of the real perils that threaten the Amazon: damming rivers, cattle ranching, mercury from gold mining, over fishing, bio-piracy, poaching, and logging.

Port of Call: Sandy Bank
Peril: Stingray

See live freshwater stingrays that prowl the shallow waters and sandy banks of the Amazon. Use a computer animation of the area's geologic history to learn how these marine animals, along with dolphins and manatees, have adapted to the freshwater environment. Hide colorful, patterned stingrays on a carpet and see the many colors and patterns of these animals, just like the different colors and patterns of the river. View a real stingray tail barb-a powerful defensive weapon.