Four children managed to survive for 40 days in the jungle alone thanks to the skills they learnt from their grandmother, officials have said.
The eldest sibling, Lesly Jacobo Bonbaire, fed her brothers Solecni Ranoque Mucutuy, nine, Tien Noriel Ronoque Mucutuy, four, and 11-month-old Cristian Neryman Ranoque Mucutuy, who is now one, after learning to hunt and fish from a young age.
The 13-year-old is aware of which fruits and seeds are safe to eat in the rainforest and which ones are poisonous, her proud grandfather Fidercio Valencia said.
To ensure her own survival and the safety of her siblings, Lesly fed them fruit and hunted fish so that they would have something to eat, according to reports.
The four kids, members of the Huitoto people, survived an Amazon plane crash that killed their mother and then braved the jungle for 40 days before being found alive by Colombian soldiers on Friday.
They were taken to a hospital in Bogota, Colombia, for treatment, where they were visited by the country's president Gustavo Petro, who called them an "example of survival" and said their story will be remembered forever
Mr Petro on Friday said the children were first found by one of the rescue dogs that soldiers took into the jungle.
He added that for a while he had believed the children were rescued by one of the nomadic tribes that still roam the remote swath of the jungle where the plane fell and have little contact with authorities.
As the search progressed, soldiers found small clues in the jungle that led them to believe the children were still alive, including a pair of footprints, a baby bottle, diapers and pieces of fruit that looked like they had been bitten by humans.
"The jungle saved them," Mr Petro said. "They are children of the jungle, and now they are also children of Colombia."
Their children's has also given a clue as to what may have helped the youngsters survive in the jungle against the odds.
Speaking with the local Caracol news network, Damarys Mucutuy said that a "survival game" they used to play must have helped them live through the horror ordeal.
Damarys explained how that the two eldest children, Lesly and Soleiny, would play a game in which they would "set up like little camps".
And Lesly, 13, had knowledge of which "fruits she can't eat because there are many poisonous fruits in the forest".
"And she knew how to take care of a baby", added the aunt.
When they found the children, the Colombian Army also surveyed the scene, finding hair ties strewn around on the jungle floor, suggesting that resourceful Lesly had used them to construct the shelters that kept them alive.
Fatima Valencia, the kid's grandma, said she was "very grateful" and thanked "mother Earth" for "setting them free."
The BBC reported that Lesly often looked after the other three while their mum was at work, a key part of their survival.
"She gave them flour and cassava bread, any fruit in the bush, they know what they must consume," Ms Valencia said.
