As the mid-day sun shines red through the smoke rising from dozens of forest fires, the Yanomami Indians say it is a sign of the apocalypse, and environmentalists fear that they may be right.

The three-month-old fires have raged out of control, including the one just across the Mucajai river. Fire-fighters are trying to protect the Yano-mamis from the worst burning in the history of this remote Amazon region.

However, it may be too late as dozens of small fires burn unchecked inside the 10 million hectares reservation that is a home to the world's largest stone age tribe.

The fires are also scaring away animals that sustain the reservation's 9,000 Indians. "The turtles and the armadillos are disappearing. We have food for now, but I'm worried about later on," said Antonio Yanomami, who uses the tribe's name as a surname.

So far no Indian has died in the fire, but at least three malocas, or grass- covered huts, have been burnt down.

The Yanomami's feel uneasy as the sun glows fiercely through the ghostly shroud of smoke. "This is the sign of the apocalypse for them,' according to Guilherme Danoli, an Italian priest who has lived among the Yanomami's since 1989. "They are beating on the walls of their houses to exorcise the evil spirits,' Danoli says.

Western forecasters say they don't expect rain before mid-April. This unusual dry spell is because of El Ni