YAWALAPITI INDIANS FETCH DRINKING WATER FROM NEARBY TUATUARI RIVER NEAR THEIR VILLAGE IN THE LOWER AMAZON,...

Female Yawalapiti indians fetch drinking water from the Tuatuari river, near their village in the Alto Xingu area, in the lower Amazon, on May 12, 2002. Xingu culture follows the lines of a very communal life which has changed little in over 1,000 years. Waking before sunrise, the Yawalapiti bathe in the river as they have always done and the women carry pots of water on their heads back to the village. As the young men depart for subsistence fishing the women prepare beiju bread from manioc, and then either boil or grill the fish caught each day, which is then eaten by hand. The Yawalipiti are one of 17 tribes living inside the Xingu Indigenous Park, a reserve created in 1961 roughly the size of Belgium, to protect the indians. The tribe is now 180 strong after being on the border of extinction some 50 years ago, when it dwindled as low as just 12 members. REUTERS/Gregg Newton FOR RELEASE WITH FEATURE BRAZIL-INDIAN GN/SV