Plants of the Tropical Rainforests Tropical Rainforests T ropical rainforests are the wettest places on earth Billions of different kids of animals and plants live in tropical rainforests The tropical rainforests have billions of species (kinds) of plants and animals, more than anywhere else on Earth. Scientists do not yet know all the species that are to be found in a tropical rainforest and new ones are still being discovered. The reason there are so many species is because rainforests are very old, some almost 100 million years old, which means dinosaurs probably lived in them. In the tropics it is always hot and it rains every day. Tropical rainforest plants Some canopy trees grow over to over 100 metres high. Many 'every day' foods originated in rainforests, including tomatoes, peppers, corn, rice, coconut, banana, coffee, cocoa, cassava (tapioca), beans and sweet potatoes. Because the weather is hot and wet, trees do not need thick bark to slow down moisture loss and have instead thin, smooth bark. us@kidcyber.com.au
Fun Fact! Earth Floor: Biomes Tropical Rainforest: Plants Although tropical rainforests receive 12 hours of sunlight daily, less than 2% of that sunlight ever reaches the ground. The tropical rainforest has dense vegetation, often forming three different layers--the canopy, the understory, and the ground layer. Frequently, people think of the tropical rainforest as a "jungle" where plant growth is dense even at ground level. However, the canopy created by the tall trees (100-120 feet) and the understory, prevents sunlight from reaching the ground. The soil is, therefore, always shaded, and very little vegetation is able to survive at ground level. Vegetation can become dense at ground level near riverbanks and on hillsides. Plant adaptation Plant survival in a tropical rainforest depends on the plant's ability to tolerate constant shade or to adapt strategies to reach sunlight. Competition for sunlight by plants is sometimes deadly. Back | Next
Did you know? About the Rainforest - Information and Facts on Tropical Rainforests, Save the Rain Forest | Rainforest Adventures The role of the rainforest transcends scientific definitions. Even though only 7% of the world’s original rain forests remain, more than half of the planet’s species still live there. This wealth of life benefits us every day. Simply put, rainforests are the Earth’s lungs. Additionally many food items you enjoy every day originally came from rainforest across the globe. Due to deforestation, some 100 species will become extinct every day – many of them are still undiscovered and their qualities will be lost forever.
More 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.
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