Heading north through the state of Mato Grosso, where Brazil’s central plateau dips gently into the Amazon basin, you first see cerrado, scrublike growth that opens into swampish plains dotted with more vigorous woodland. Some way in, these patches of vegetation join up to form the thicker and taller cerradão. Finally, as Mato Grosso meets the state of Para, the cerradão makes the transition into true rainforest, where giant Brazil nut trees rise 100, then 150, feet to pierce the canopy shielding the forest floor from blistering tropical sun.
