Ceiba pentandra, or Samaúma, is one of the largest trees in the world.
Reaching 70 metres in height, she towers over other trees in the rainforest.
Her huge buttress roots are taller than a grown person.
Underground is a mass of fungal threads called the mycelium, which links the roots of different plants.
Our Samaúma gathers nutrients and intelligence via the mycelial network and uses it to share these resources with other trees.
A single Samaúma channels a colossal volume of water through her roots.
Nearly 1,000 litres travel up her trunk everyday.
Her leaves capture energy from the sun and use it to turn carbon dioxide and water into sugars.
The tree needs the sugars to live and grow.
During this process called photosynthesis, Oxygen is produced as a by-product.
Oxygen is needed by other organisms and is one way that trees help support life on Earth.
She is also known as the ‘Ladder of the Spirits.’
Climbing up into her crown, we find the place where spirits of the forest are united… those of plants, animals and humans.
With her physical might and abundant offerings, her canopy reaching skywards and her roots embracing everything around them, it is no wonder she is known as the Queen of the Amazon.
The Majestic Samaúma
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