Ooga Booga

If a tribe lives in the forest but has never been seen, do they make a sound?

That answer is still being debated, but they do photograph. One of Brazil's last uncontacted Indian tribes was spotted in the far western Amazon jungle near the Peruvian border. The Indians were sighted in an Ethno-Environmental Protected Area along the Envira River in flights over remote Acre state, said the government.

They photographed "strong and healthy" warriors, six huts and a large planted area, but it was not known to which tribe they belonged. The government does not make contact with the Indians and prevents invasions of their land, to ensure total autonomy for the isolated tribes. Survival International said the Indians are in danger from illegal logging in Peru, which is driving tribes over the border and could lead to conflict with the estimated 500 uncontacted Indians now living on the Brazilian side.

There are more than 100 uncontacted tribes worldwide, most of them in Brazil and Peru.

Me, I find it a little odd that there are still people in 2008 that have no contact with the outside, civilized world. Really, what did they think that the helicopter was that flew over to take their picture? A giant, shiny bird monster? I like that they have their weapons drawn, but it looks a little cartoonish. Even staged, perhaps. Why are they fake spray-on tan orange, and the third person (who looks like a woman) midnight black? I'm all for making a point about conservation and preserving nature's indigenous creatures, but the cynic in me questions the authenticity...