In Kunhardtia rhodantha , the leaves are arrayed into fans, above which extend clumps of blood-red flowers. The toughness of the foliage and the plethora of carnivorous plants are further evidence of a scarcity of nutrients. Alternatively drenched and sunbaked, this is a world seemingly almost alien to life. Only at spots where a little humus has accumulated grow clumps of bushes and stunted trees. Disappointingly soon, the helicopters whisk us back to camp.
Dinner is prepared and a fire arranged on the beach.
With our lake being sunk into a mountaintop, the sky's dark indigo bowl lies unusually small and high above us. Charlie asks each of us seriously. We compose our thoughts, and soon the tales spin off in unpredictable directions. Charlie describes Venezuela's evolving landscape, plants and animals as if they are part of some vast love story. I counter with my stories of the hunting prowess of spiders and ants.