Global Location
Where in the world would you find a Tropical Rainforest?
There are tons over the world! With many interesting features. Here are some examples of where you would be able to find some!
-Olympic Rainforest (North America)
-Rainforest's of Central America
-Amazon Rainforest (South America)
-Madagascar Rainforest
-Congo River Basin (Africa)
-Rainforest's of South East Asia
-Rio (Brazil)
There are tons over the world! With many interesting features. Here are some examples of where you would be able to find some!
-Olympic Rainforest (North America)
-Rainforest's of Central America
-Amazon Rainforest (South America)
-Madagascar Rainforest
-Congo River Basin (Africa)
-Rainforest's of South East Asia
-Rio (Brazil)
Plant and Animal Life
A lot of plant life in the tropics have fruits which provide a lot of food for the animals. A lot of rain happens in the rain forests "hence the name", the plants have to be able to absorb the water with there stems and leaves. They usually are very erotic and beautiful, a lot different then what most people are usually used to.
Here are some examples...
1) Spineless Indian Bamboo-This particular bamboo can grow anywhere between 40 feet and 80 feet in height. The leaves are long and narrow and green in color. They grow alternately on opposing sides of the stem, in two rows.
2) Bougainvillea- Woody climber with stiff curved thorns. Leaves bright green, alternately arranged along stem. Flowers inconspicuous, floral tube (perianth) white to yellow.
3) Coconut Tree- They grow from sandy soils. Often they are found near the ocean and sustainable to the excessive salt in the air. 4) Strangler Figs-Strangler figs are considered sacred to many Hindus because they believe the Buddha once sat under a strangler fig to meditate. The ficus religiosa is a type of strangler fig in India that is considered sacred.
5) Tualang Tree-The tualang tree is a majestic emergent tree of the Southeast Asia rainforests best know for the disk shaped honeycombs which hang from its horizontal branches. Towering above the canopy the tualang can reach 250 feet, or the 30 stories in height
The amount of animal life there is in a rainforest is crazy. There are so many different types from mammals, to reptiles. Sadly there is a vast amount of extinction and endangerment. Different types of animals live in the "layers" of the forest. Birds for example live in the upper part where the trees are. Larger animals like the jaguar lives on the forest floor. Monkeys, sloths, and lemur type animals live in the trees. A lot of the animals will hide in trees or in hollows to hide from predators. In some cases a lot of insects and lizards camouflage very well and basically match.
Here are some examples...
1) Chimpanzee-Chimps are mainly found in rain forests and wet savannas. While they spend equal time on land and in trees, they do most of their feeding and sleeping in trees.
2) Bengal Tiger-Tigers are the largest members of the cat family and are renowned for their power and strength.
3) Linnes Sloth-The fur flows from the front to the back of the animal. The fur is very fine. On the back feet of the sloth there are five claws, three visible, two not visible.
4) Africa Forest Elephant-Largest land-living mammal in the world, they use their trunk to breathe like a snorkel in deep water.
5) Toco Toucan- They spend a lot of time in trees, they are not very good at flying. Toucans mainly travel among trees by hopping. When they do take flight, they flap their wings vigorously and glide, traveling only short distances.
Here are some examples...
1) Spineless Indian Bamboo-This particular bamboo can grow anywhere between 40 feet and 80 feet in height. The leaves are long and narrow and green in color. They grow alternately on opposing sides of the stem, in two rows.
2) Bougainvillea- Woody climber with stiff curved thorns. Leaves bright green, alternately arranged along stem. Flowers inconspicuous, floral tube (perianth) white to yellow.
3) Coconut Tree- They grow from sandy soils. Often they are found near the ocean and sustainable to the excessive salt in the air. 4) Strangler Figs-Strangler figs are considered sacred to many Hindus because they believe the Buddha once sat under a strangler fig to meditate. The ficus religiosa is a type of strangler fig in India that is considered sacred.
5) Tualang Tree-The tualang tree is a majestic emergent tree of the Southeast Asia rainforests best know for the disk shaped honeycombs which hang from its horizontal branches. Towering above the canopy the tualang can reach 250 feet, or the 30 stories in height
The amount of animal life there is in a rainforest is crazy. There are so many different types from mammals, to reptiles. Sadly there is a vast amount of extinction and endangerment. Different types of animals live in the "layers" of the forest. Birds for example live in the upper part where the trees are. Larger animals like the jaguar lives on the forest floor. Monkeys, sloths, and lemur type animals live in the trees. A lot of the animals will hide in trees or in hollows to hide from predators. In some cases a lot of insects and lizards camouflage very well and basically match.
Here are some examples...
1) Chimpanzee-Chimps are mainly found in rain forests and wet savannas. While they spend equal time on land and in trees, they do most of their feeding and sleeping in trees.
2) Bengal Tiger-Tigers are the largest members of the cat family and are renowned for their power and strength.
3) Linnes Sloth-The fur flows from the front to the back of the animal. The fur is very fine. On the back feet of the sloth there are five claws, three visible, two not visible.
4) Africa Forest Elephant-Largest land-living mammal in the world, they use their trunk to breathe like a snorkel in deep water.
5) Toco Toucan- They spend a lot of time in trees, they are not very good at flying. Toucans mainly travel among trees by hopping. When they do take flight, they flap their wings vigorously and glide, traveling only short distances.
Physical Landscape
The Rainforest has layers. From top to bottom it starts off with the Emergent layer. This layer includes trees that are usually spaced wide apart. The trees have an umbrella shape that grow tall over all other trees. Secondly we have the Canopy layer. The Canopy layer forms a type of room over the understory and forest floor. The many leaves of the canopy attracts more sunlight for photosynthesis. Making food for the plant and animal life. The canopy layer provides shelter under the trees from any weather conditions. Then we have the Understory layer, the leaves block the rest of the light that gets through the canopy from the forest floor. Lastly we have the Forest Floor. Decomposition occurs on the forest floor which is a process that is needed for the rainforest. Thousands of plants and animals also live on the forest floor. The average yearly temperature is approximately 26 degrees but the temperature can range from 20s to 30s. The physical landscape plays a role in influencing the characteristics of the biome because the temperature and features determine what plant and animal life can actually be adapted in the right niche.
Food Web
In the rainforest for example the cougar will eat the monkey, the monkey will eats the insects. The higher you are on the hierarchy the better chance of survival. In a rainforest you would want to be the cougar.
The Carbon Cycle
The carbon cycle lies with plants. During photosynthesis, a plant absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Oxygen is released back into the atmosphere. When the plant decays carbon is returned to the environment.
Energy Flow
The Rainforest gets a ton of sun and rain. Which allows for the plants to grow bigger, taller, and stronger. As shown in the diagram below, 100% of the rainfall reaches the rainforest. 50% of that rainfall is consumed, 25% of it evaporates, and the other 25% of it is surface runoff.
Human Influences
The Tropical Rainforest's is extremely endangered. Us humans are the ones to blame. We have cost the forests to lose millions of plant and animal life.
1) Human Activities
2) Deforestation- Causing habitat loss
3) Pollution and Climate Change
Negative and Positive Impacts
*Animal life are all becoming extinct
*Forests are wiped away for human needs
*Get more wood out of it
* A lot of research has shown a good chunk of our medicine comes from the plants
Deforestation is the main industry that impacts the rainforest
Some Conservation Efforts to save the Rainforest's are...
http://www.worldlandtrust.org/
http://www.rainforestadventure.com/sustainability/our_conservation_efforts/
1) Human Activities
2) Deforestation- Causing habitat loss
3) Pollution and Climate Change
Negative and Positive Impacts
*Animal life are all becoming extinct
*Forests are wiped away for human needs
*Get more wood out of it
* A lot of research has shown a good chunk of our medicine comes from the plants
Deforestation is the main industry that impacts the rainforest
Some Conservation Efforts to save the Rainforest's are...
http://www.worldlandtrust.org/
http://www.rainforestadventure.com/sustainability/our_conservation_efforts/