Chapter 14

Tropical Survival

FOOD

14-44. Food is usually abundant in a tropical survival situation. To obtain animal food, use the procedures outlined in Chapter 8.

14-45. In addition to animal food, you will have to supplement your diet with edible plants. The best places to forage are the banks of streams and rivers. Wherever the sun penetrates the jungle, there will be a mass of vegetation, but riverbanks may be the most accessible areas.

14-46. If you are weak, do not expend energy climbing or felling a tree for food. There are more easily obtained sources of food nearer the ground. Do not pick more food than you need. Food spoils rapidly in tropical conditions. Leave food on the growing plant until you need it, and eat it fresh.

14-47. There are an almost unlimited number of edible plants from which to choose. Unless you can positively identify these plants, it may be safer at first to begin with palms, bamboos, and common fruits. Appendix B provides detailed descriptions and photographs of some of the most common food plants located in a tropical zone.