Biome: Rain Forest

By: Jason Tompa, Katie Lekh, Ryan Birmingham and Hailey

Fuzak

Locations• Northern South America (Brazil)• Central America (Costa Rica)• Western Central Africa (Congo)• Islands in the Indian and Pacific

Oceans (Sri Lanka)• South East Asia (Malaysia)• Generally just above and

below the equator

Tropical Rainforest ClimateTemperature

• Tropical climates are moist for all months with average temperatures of above 18 degrees Celsius

• Latitude range for the rainforest climate is 15-25 degrees for North and South of the equator

• Average temp is about 77 degrees Fahrenheit

• Temperature rarely goes above 93 degrees Fahrenheit or below 68 degrees Fahrenheit

• Approx. same temp all year round• Due to the closeness to the equator the

rainforest is subjected to more solar radiation making it much hotter

• Average humidity is between 77-88%

Precipitation• Humid because of the

heavy rainfall Annual precipitation is above 50-260 in.

• Per month, the rainforest receives about 4 in of rain

• 50% of the rainforests precipitation comes from the rainforests evaporation

Tropical Rainforest Climate

Pictures from: http://www.geographyhigh.connectfree.co.uk/s4wstrfstuds.html

Tropical Rainforest Soil• The top soil layer of the rainforest

is very thin and of poor quality• The soil of tropical rainforests is

very shallow and poor in nutrients• There are almost no soluble

nutrients• Because of the years of heavy

rainfall all the nutrients in the soil have been washed away

• The nutrient cycle (when vegetable and animal matter decomposes and nutrients are released back to the soil to be taken up by again by

plants) of the soil is very poor• The top soil layers are stained red

from the acidic-iron oxides

Tropical Rainforest Soil

Pictures from:http://www.sln.org.uk/geography/schools/blythebridge/gcseecosystemtropicalrf.htm

Why Should you live in the Tropical Rainforest?

• It is a very warm environment• It is easy to get water• It is close to the equator so the temperature is

basically the same year round

Vegetation• There are 4 layers of trees in

the rainforest: – Emergent (100-240 feet tall,

spaced wide apart)– Upper Canopy (60-130 feet tall,

blocks most light from continuing on to Understory)

– Understory (60 feet tall with shrubs and plants)

– Forest Floor (Receives little to no light so there is barely any growth)

• A shrub layer receives about 3 % of the light that filters in through the canopies. These shrubs are capable of a sudden growth surge when a gap in the canopy opens above them.

Plant Adaptations• With over 80 inches of rain per year, plants

must shed water off their leaves quickly so the branches don't get weighed down and break.– drip tips, grooved leaves, and oily coatings

to shed water.• Leaves are very large to absorb as much

sunlight as possible. – leaf stalks that turn with the sun to absorb

the maximum amount of light.• Leaves in the upper canopy are dark green,

small and leathery to reduce water loss in the strong sunlight. Some trees will grow large leaves at the lower canopy level and small leaves in the upper canopy.

• Ferns and mosses do well, along with epiphytes. These are plants that grow on other plants, such as larger trees to get sunlight.

Epiphyte and Moss

Vines

• Over 2,500 species of vines grow in the rainforest. Lianas start off as small shrubs on the forest floor. The liana and the tree grow towards the canopy together. The vines grow from one tree to another and make up 40% of the canopy leaves.

Why Should You Live in the Rainforest?

• There is a lot of plant diversity• Plants can be used as different kinds of medicine• You will be protected from the sun’s harmful rays• The different layers provide a lot of different living

spaces for different species• The large leaves can be used for shelter• The vines can help you climb trees for food

Animals

Adaptations• For animals to live in the Tropical

Rainforest multiple adaptations may be made in attempt for more sunlight or food.

• Some animals adapt by– developing a stronger beak to

break through shells.– Being able to live and climb trees.– Adapting the ability to produce

long sound effects– Different color skin for camouflage

Why should you live in the Tropical Rainforest?

• More than half of the world’s animal species live there

• Year round warmth with temperatures of about 77° Fahrenheit

• There is a lot of water, and one pond may contain more diversity in fish then in all waterways in Europe.

• In two and a half acres, there can be between 40 to 100 different species.

Human Factor: Adaptations

• The tribes are conservationists, they never take more then they need because then they might not have enough next year.

• They are more concerned with how they are harming the environment then how productive they can be

• They are physically fit because of the little stress in their environment and the hard work they have to do to survive.

Human Factor: Adaptations• They are lucky if they live to be

40 years old• They need large territories for

small groups of people to survive

• Each tribe has developed their own culture

• They are semi nomadic• They have to deal with high

temperatures (tanner skin, no walls on houses) and a lot of rain (being able to climb, both to get food and escape floods)

Human Factor: Adaptations• They have developed a

sophisticated way of communication by using different sounds

• They have to know what plants, fungi and animals are edible

• Better hearing because their sight is useless on the dark floor of the forest. They use to hearing to tell what part of the forest they are in

• Hunt with poison darts, and fish by making nets out of vines

Human Factor: Opportunities– Study all the bio diversity present in the rain forest– Learn different tribal remedies– Discover new types of medicine because of all of the

plant diversity– Learn a new culture– Help protect and save the rainforest and the world

Human Factor: Limitations – Their can’t be big populations of

people, can only survive in small groups

– 1 in every 2 child dies in the rain forest

– The different tribes have no immunity to western diseases so as more western people work in the rain forests the tribes are being introduced to new diseases that they can’t handle

– Food is very difficult to find because of the poor soil and most life is in the canopy, and the humans live on the ground

Human Factor: Pros/ ConsPros

• Get to see new/ different kinds of species

• Living in the most diverse place on Earth

• New/ different kinds of medicine

• Experiencing a simpler life• Helping the planet because

you will use less resources• Get to experience new culture• It’s a very warm environment

Cons• Living in a very dark, wet place• Hard to find food, and a lot of

competition for it• Short life span• Have to deal with your habitat

being destroyed by mining and logging and farming, which leads to soil erosion

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