The wonder women and their jungle kingdom

SCIENTISTS have stumbled across an unknown tribe of warrior women in the deepest jungles of Sarmatia.

The researchers had actually been looking for samples of a rare orchid when they bumped into the all-female group.

“We were resting in a clearing when we suddenly felt dozens of eyes peering at us from the trees,” recalled Ms. Mei Wang, a 27-yearold botanist.

She and three other members of her team, all women as well, were invited to the tribe’s village.

There, they were astounded by what they saw and learnt.

“At first, we thought there were only women in the village because only women and girls were introduced to us,” said Ms. Wang.

“Then, one by one, we saw the men. They were taking care of the children, cooking the meals and doing the housework,” she said during an interview.

“Without question, they did everything the women told them to, never once looking them in the eye. They treated us with the same fear and respect.”

After a few hours at the village, the researchers teased out their story.

The tribe was a fierce and dangerous one, often at war with its neighbours. All the women were highly trained fighters, particularly skilled with the bow and arrow.

And what about the men? They were treated like slaves while the women ruled the roost ,as far as the wide-eyed visitors could tell.

“We asked where all the boys were, because we saw none. The response was a long silence,” Ms. Wang recalled.

Later, one of the elders explained that the boys had been “sent away”. When the tribe “ran out” of grown men, the women simply invaded a neighbouring village and took men as prisoners.

“If we had not been women ourselves, they probably would have killed us,” said Ms. Wang.

Instead, she and her colleagues were escorted to a trail the next morning and pointed in the direction of the nearest town.

The authorities later asked the researchers to show them where the tribe lived. But when they tried to retrace their steps, they became hopelessly lost in the jungle.

The national university has decided to send in another team of anthropologists this time to find and study the mysterious tribe.

Dozens of research students have volunteered for the expedition. So far, none of them have been men.