Fact sheet: Tropical Rainforest Animals Where can you find an antelope the size of a rabbit, a snake that can fly, or a spider that eats birds? All in tropical rainforests, of course! Tropical rainforests are home to the largest and the smallest, the loudest and the quietest of all land animals, as well as some of the most dangerous, most beautiful, most endearing and strangest looking animals on earth. You've probably heard of some of them: jaguars, toucans, parrots, gorillas, and tarantulas all make their home in tropical rainforests. Q: Why do more animal species live in the rainforest than other parts of the world? A: Scientists believe that there is a great diversity of animals because rainforests are the oldest ecosystems on earth. The nearly perfect conditions for life also helped contribute to the great number of species. Some rainforest species have populations that number in the millions. Q: Which type of rainforest species is most numerous? Insects are often beautiful and always fascinating. Glossary
Rainforest Animals Tropical rainforest climate Worldwide zones of Tropical rainforest climate (Af). A tropical rainforest climate, also known as an equatorial climate, is a tropical climate usually (but not always) found along the equator. Regions with this climate typically feature tropical rainforests, and it is designated by the Köppen climate classification. Description[edit] Distribution[edit] Upland rainforest in Borneo. A tropical rainforest climate is usually found at latitudes within five degrees North and south of the equator, which are dominated by the Intertropical Convergence Zone. Some of the places that have this climate are indeed uniformly and monotonously wet throughout the year (e.g., the northwest Pacific coast of South and Central America, from Ecuador to Costa Rica, see for instance, Andagoya, Colombia), but in many cases the period of higher sun and longer days is distinctly driest (as at Palembang, Indonesia) or the time of lower sun and shorter days may have more rain (as at Sitiawan, Malaysia). Examples[edit]
Ten Amazing Rainforest Plants Our surroundings are sometimes taken for granted. Even something as unique as the rainforest is forgotten. It seems a little bit of knowledge and a shove in the right direction can get people to appreciate the environment. So, why not start with the wonder that is the rainforest? Even though rainforests only cover less than two percent of the Earth’s entire surface area, they are home to 50 percent of the plants and animals. You’re probably thinking “I know all there is to know about bananas; I eat them for breakfast and can make delicious banana bread.” Habitation: Found in Central America, South America, Africa, Southeast Asia and non-tropical regions like the United States thanks to modern agricultural technologies. Known for their beauty, orchids are the largest family of plants in the world. Habitation: Extremely adaptable and grows in most climates with the majority being found in Central America, South America and in countries along the Andes Mountains.
Rainforest Biomes The tropical rain forest is a forest of tall trees in a region of year-round warmth. An average of 50 to 260 inches (125 to 660 cm.) of rain falls yearly. Rain forests belong to the tropical wet climate group. The temperature in a rain forest rarely gets higher than 93 °F (34 °C) or drops below 68 °F (20 °C); average humidity is between 77 and 88%; rainfall is often more than 100 inches a year. There is usually a brief season of less rain. In monsoonal areas, there is a real dry season. Rainforests now cover less than 6% of Earth's land surface. A tropical rain forest has more kinds of trees than any other area in the world. About 1/4 of all the medicines we use come from rainforest plants. All tropical rain forests resemble one another in some ways. Despite these differences, each of the three largest rainforests--the American, the African, and the Asian--has a different group of animal and plant species. Layers of the Rainforest Plant Life Animal Life Where the Rainforests Are Found
Rainforests Facts Facts about Rainforests Do you know how many tropical rainforest plants have been identified as having anti-cancer properties? Or how many continents around the world contain rainforests? And just how quickly are the world's rainforests disappearing? Find out the answers to these questions and more as you check out these interesting rainforest facts! Facts about the Global Coverage of Rainforests Covering less than 2 percent of the Earth's total surface area, the world's rainforests are home to 50 percent of the Earth's plants and animals. Facts about the Rainforest as Part of our Global Environment and Well-being Rainforests act as the world's thermostat by regulating temperatures and weather patterns. Facts about the Abundant Life and Important Resources that Rainforests Share with Us A typical four-square-mile patch of rainforest contains as many as 1,500 flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 400 species of birds and 150 species of butterflies. Want to Test Your Rainforest Knowledge?
climate. A tropical rainforest is an ecosystem type that occurs roughly within the latitudes 28 degrees north or south of the equator (in the equatorial zone between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn). This ecosystem experiences high average temperatures and a significant amount of rainfall. Rainforests can be found in Asia, Australia, Africa, South America, Central America, Mexico and on many of the Pacific, Caribbean, and Indian Ocean islands. Within the World Wildlife Fund's biome classification, tropical rainforests are thought to be a type of tropical wet forest (or tropical moist broadleaf forest) and may also be referred to as lowland equatorial evergreen rainforest.[3] Overview Tropical rainforests can be characterized in two words: warm and wet. Tropical rainforests are among the most threatened ecosystems globally due to large-scale fragmentation due to human activity. History Tropical rainforests have existed on Earth for hundreds of millions of years. Forest structure Ecology
Interesting facts Tropical Rain Forest As you can see from the map to the right, the tropical rainforests are, indeed, located in the tropics, a band around the equator from 23.5 N (the Tropic of Cancer) to 23.5 S (the Tropic of Capricorn) (red lines on map, right). Because the Earth tilts 23.5 degrees on its axis as it travels around the sun, at some point in the year (the solstices, June 22nd in the north, December 22nd in the south) the sun will be directly overhead on one of these lines. At the equinoxes the sun is directly over the equator. Within this band, solar radiation is most intense, and thus the surface of the planet warms the most. The warmth leads to a lot of evaporation, and as warm, moist air rises, it cools, the water condenses, and the water falls back to the earth as rain. Not all of the land in the tropics is tropical rainforest. {*style:<a href=''>*}{*style:</a>*}Another biome similar to the tropical rain forest is the{*style:<b>*} cloud forest.
Climate The average temperature in the rainforest is about 30C, 80F it changer very l... Tropical Rainforest The rainforest that we have chosen to do our project on is in and is called the Amazon Rainforest. You can see on the picture in the upper left corner that the Amazon is the dark green area on the map. In an average year in a tropical rainforest, the climate is very humid do to all of the rain which amounts to about 250cm per year. The climate is found near the equator. 40o F. This is red fungus (Pycnoporus sanguineus) these would be classified in the Fungi kingdom. This is white fungus (Lentinus) and it would be classified in the Fungi kingdom. This is the fern leaf. This is the Cattleya Plant. This is the Toco Toucan. This is the vampire bat. This is Euglena. This is an Actinopod. Howler Monkey The howler monkey is the loudest monkey in the rainforest. The howler monkey can get up to 2ft and there tail 30”. The Baboon can live up to 20years.Howler monkeys are vegetarians they eat flowers, fruits, and leaves. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 1. www.earthobservatory