Tropical Rainforest

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Tropical Rainforest
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EMERGENTS Giant trees that are much higher than
the average canopy height. It houses many birds
and insects. CANOPY The upper parts of the
trees. This leafy environment is full of life in
a tropical rainforest and includes insects,
birds, reptiles, mammals, and more. UNDERSTORY
A dark, cool environment under the leaves but
over the ground. FOREST FLOOR Teeming with
animal life, especially insects. The largest
animals in the rainforest generally live here.
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Emergent Level

• Emergent layer of the rainforest is a layer of
  trees stretching 50 to 60 meters above the
  forest floor.

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Canopy

• This layer supports most of the rainforest
  animals.
• The canopy offers such an abundance of shelter
  that many of the animals living in this layer
  never need to descend from it.
• Insects hum and nibble on plants, reptiles
  slither along the branches and trunks of trees,
  monkeys chatter back and forth as they swing
  through the branches, and brightly colored birds
  dart among leaves.

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Understory

• Made up of the trunks of canopy trees, shrubs,
  plants and smaller trees.
• Many of the plants living in this level have
  adapted to growing in the shade and don't need
  much light.

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Tropical Rain Forests

• Tropical rain forests are found in a belt around
  the equator, where temperatures and rainfall are
  very high all year round
• There is very little variation between the
  seasons
• They will have an even distribution of rainfall
  annually
• Warm temperatures with less variation during the
  year
• The best known rain forests are found in tropical
  regions between the Tropics of cancer and
  Capricorn

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Tropical Rain Forests

• Tropical rain forests are found in a belt around
  the equator, where temperatures and rainfall are
  very high all year round
• There is very little variation between the
  seasons
• They will have an even distribution of rainfall
  annually
• Warm temperatures with less variation during the
  year
• The best known rain forests are found in tropical
  regions between the Tropics of cancer and
  Capricorn

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The Amazon Rainforest

• One of the most well known rainforests is the
  Amazon
• Where is the Amazon?
• South America
• The Amazon rainforest is the largest rainforest
  in the world
• It covers an area about two thirds the size of
  the US
• Two thirds of the Earths fresh water can be
  found there

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Blue and Gold Macaw

• The crown of his head is green and its belly is
  golden yellow and have long tails.
• The Blue and Gold Macaw eats nuts, seeds, and
  fruit.

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Toucan

• The  toucan  lives in canopy of the rain forest.
• The toucan has a very big bill. Its bill is
  rainbow colored.
• It has blue legs and feet.
• It colors help it hide from predators.

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Blue Morpho Butterfly

• In the Rainforest they live at the top of the
  tallest trees, which is in the Emergent layer
  (emergent layer is high-up above the canopy.)
• The Blue Morpho has blue wings with a brown
  border.
• The Blue Morphos colors blend in its
  surroundings.

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Howler Monkey
- Howler monkeys have brown, black, or reddish
fur and blend in with the trees. - The Howler
monkey eats fruit, leaves, flowers, and nuts.
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Jaguar

• It is black with black spots called rosettes and
  has a muscular body. - It eats turtles and Gray
  Snappers.
• It is the king of roaring cats.

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Sloth

• Sloths hair is specially designed to allow algae
  to effectively colonize.
• Sloths are covered with tan to greyish brown
  hairs.
• The sloth primarily eats leaves and fruit.

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Where are tropical rainforests located?
Tropical rainforests are located close to the
Equator between the Tropic of Cancer and the
Tropic of Capricorn. This means that it is always
hot between 70 and 85o F.
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THE FOREST FLOOR
Very little sunlight reaches the forest floor so
few plants can grow. However, there are thousands
of species of insects such as ants, beetles and
termites crawling around. This agouti paca lives
on the forest floor along with other animals such
as jaguars, anteaters and snakes.
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Poison Dart Frog
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Bromeliad
Bromeliads have bright orange, red, blue or
purple flowers. Their leaves catch the rain like
buckets. Some small frogs, snails,
salamanders and crabs may live their entire lives
on a bromeliad.
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Blue Morpho Butterfly
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Why are rainforests so important?
Rainforests are home to more than half of the
worlds plant and animal species. Some animals
can only be found in the rainforest
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The rainforest plays a big role in the Earths
climate!
Trees use carbon dioxide and provide oxygen
just the opposite of people. By using a lot of
carbon dioxide each day, rainforests keep
the temperature, humidity, rainfall and wind
levels of the Earth stable. If there is too much
carbon dioxide, those things might change
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Medicines Theres a reason why rainforests are
called the worlds largest pharmacies! We have
already developed medicines such as those used to
fight cancer, diabetes and heart diseases from
rainforest plants. More cures might be found here
one day!
Bark from the Cinchona tree has been used to
produce Quinine, a drug used to prevent and treat
malaria. Cinchona comes from South America.
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Do you eat bananas? Do you know someone
who drinks coffee? Do you use anything made of
wood?
All of these things originated in the rainforest!
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Why are rainforests disappearing?
It is hard to balance the needs of people and the
protection of rainforests. With the worlds
population growing every day, there is more and
more pressure on forests. Many rainforests are
cut down for land to live on or to create
products that we all need, such as beef or paper.
But wait we can still have our rainforest and
eat our chocolate, too.
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By asking your parents to choose products that
are made in a way that is safe for the forest and
for people, you can help save the rainforest --
and all the plants and animals we depend on
and love.
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References

• Websites
• Allin, Lisa. "Welcome to the Rainforest." 12 Feb
  2007 lthttp//www.geocities.com/RainForest/5798/le
  vels.htmlgt.
• "Sloth Industry, Sloth Info." 1995. 12 Feb 2007
  lthttp//www.sloth.ca/sloths/two_toed_sloths.htmlgt.
  
• "Yahoo!." 2007. 12 Feb 2007 ltwww.yahoo.comgt.
• Col, Jeananda. Enchanted Learning. 1996.
  http//www.EnchantedLearning.com
• "Rainforest." 2002. 12 Feb 2007
  lthttp//www.mbgnet.net/sets/rforest/index.htmgt.
• Books
• Marent, Thomas. Rainforest. DK ADULT 2006.
• Pratt, Kristin Joy. A Walk in the Rainforest. CA
  Dawn Publications , 1992.
• Bergen, Lara, and Corey Wolfe. The Rainforest
  Race (Go, Diego, Go! Ready to Read). Simon
  Spotlight/Nickelodeon , 2006.
• Castaldo, Nancy F. . Rainforests An Activity
  Guide . Chicago Review Press, 2003.