A man in the Amazon is thought to be the last surviving member of his tribe. With development and forest clearing moving in on his location, the Brazilian government has established a no-contact buffer zone of about 31sq miles around him so that he can peacefully live out his life. It wasn’t always that way.

A few Brazilians first heard of the lone Indian in 1996, when loggers in the western state of Rondônia began spreading a rumor: A wild man was in the forest, and he seemed to be alone. Government field agents specializing in isolated tribes soon found one of his huts-a tiny shelter of palm thatch, with a mysterious hole dug in the center of the floor. As they continued to search for whoever had built that hut, they discovered that the man was on the run, moving from shelter to shelter, abandoning each hut as soon as loggers-or the agents-got close. No other tribes in the region were known to live like he did, digging holes inside of huts-more than five feet deep, rectangular, serving no apparent purpose. He didn’t seem to be a stray castaway from a documented tribe.

When those agents finally caught up with him, they discovered that a peaceful encounter was impossible after he shot one of them in the chest with an arrow. They’ve since backed off, letting the man in his late 40s stick to himself. Check out Slate for the full story.

via Get Outdoors [Slate]

Tags: amazon

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