Ooze in the Jungle?

It was a steamy hot jungle afternoon. The air was so thick it could be cut with a machete. The constant buzzing of the noisy insects gave us a hint that rain was on its way. We were hoping to reach our campsite before the downpour began. As we hurried along, fighting off the biting insects, the first fat drops of rain began to fall on our heads – splat! At least, we thought, the rain would stop the biting insects. Crackle, crash, boom! The tropical rainstorm was upon us. Without thinking, we looked for any form of shelter. Scanning the area, we noticed a broad-leafed tree over to our right and headed straight for it as fast as our legs would care us.
We scooted under the protective covering of the tree’s enormous leaves. We were amazed that the ground was still dry there. We decided that that spot would be a good place to wait out the storm. Being the scientific explorers that we were, we scouted the dry area for any unusual plants or animals.

We headed toward a bright orange orchid about 20 paces away. As we approached the orchid, our excitement built. We realized that this orchid was going to be an extraordinary find, as it was one we had never seen before. Suddenly, we slipped and fell into an oozy, slimy, gooey, yucky, slippery substance. EEK!
What on earth had we fallen into? We had no choice but to investigate.
What is the author’s purpose for writing the selection? Provide one detail from the selection to support your answer.
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