In
many tropical regions of the world,exist today
jungles or tropical rainforests. We will take
a journey into the jungle, exploring and discovering
plant and animal life as well as people who
live in the jungle. |
 Locating a Tropical Rainforest
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Tropical
rainforests are located in a band around the
equator (Zero degrees latitude), mostly in the
area between the Tropic of Cancer (23.5°
N latitude) and the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5°
S latitude). This 3,000 mile (4800 km) wide
band is called the "tropics."
The
equator is an imaginary circle around the earth,
halfway between the north and south poles. Temperatures
at the equator are high. These high temperatures
cause accelerated evaporation of water, which
results in frequent rain in forested areas in
the tropics. The rain averages to about 80 to
400 inches a year.Temperatures can get over
80 degrees Fahrenheit.
There
are rainforests in South and Central America,
Africa, Oceania (the islands around Australia),
and Asia. Tropical rainforests cover only about
7% of the Earth's surface.
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Vegetation |
Since
these jungles are located near the hot equator
and have immense rainfall, vegetation grow fast.
The jungle is packed with tall stretching trees,
vines hanging among the trees and other exotic
plants on the jungle floor. Jungle Vegetation
can be grouped into 4 layers ,at each layer you
find a particular species of plant and animal
life existing.
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Jungle means.. .
The word JUNGLE comes from the Hindi
"jangal", meaning a wild,
rough or waterless place, but the
English term has means thick, impenetrable
rainforest vegetation |
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- Emergent
Layer
The tops of the tallest trees are called
the emergent layer. In a Rainforest, trees,
shrubs and plants of every kind struggle to
reach the light. Emergent trees are very top
heavy and have almost no side branches below
the canopy.They can be as tall as 200 feet
above the forest floor with their trunks being
up to 16 feet around. Scarlet Macaws, toucans
and other birds live in the emergent layer,
with butterflies and many other insects
- Canopy
Layer
This is the primary layer of the forest and
forms a kind of umbrella over the other layers.
Most canopy trees have smooth, oval leaves
that form a point. The canopy forms maze of
leaves and branches which are intertwined
and have many creepers hanging from them.
Many animals live in this area since food
is abundant. Those animals include: snakes,
toucans, monkeys and treefrogs. Wrapped around
many of these tree trunks are lianas which
are is a type woody plants that stretch from
the ground and use other plants as support
so that they can reach the light coming through
the canopy.
- Understorey
Layer
Little sunshine reaches this area so the plants
have to grow larger leaves to reach the sunlight.
The plants in this area seldom grow to 12
feet.It is home to thousands of plants, insects
and birds Many animals live here including
jaguars, red-eyed tree frogs and leopards.
There is a large concentration of insects
here like Army ants, and bees.It is also very
dark and wet, so the trees here don't grow
very tall. Epiphytes are plants which perch
on or stick to other plants. They collect
water in a variety of ways from rain and get
nutrients from organic matter. Mosses, lichens,
orchids, ferns, elkhorns, staghorns, and bird
nest ferns are Epiphytes that grow in the
Understory.
- Forest
Floor
This is the darkest of the layers. Almost
no plants grow in this area, as a result and
it is often hot and steamy. Since hardly any
sun reaches the forest floor things begin
to decay quickly. A leaf that might take one
year to decompose in a regular climate will
disappear in 6 weeks. The soil is hidden beneath
a thin layer of rapidly rotting leaves, twigs
and dead flowers fomr the tress above .Fungi
and animals and insects like ants and termites
as well as worms break down this thin layer
.Giant anteaters live in this layer as well
can u figure out why?
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Habitats
in the Jungle |
Well?
What is a habitat?
A habitat is the place where a population lives.
A population is a group of living organisms of
the same kind living in the same place at the
same time. Within each layer animal are specially
adapted to live there. For example in the canopy
monkeys can use arms and legs and sometimes even
tails to swing from branch to branch; birds such
as parrots have specialized feet with two curling
front toes and two curling back toes to help them
hang on to branches.In the Understory as well
snakes such as boa constrictors spend their days
curled around branches or vines. On the Forest
floor a jaguars’ spots help them to be better
hunters by making them hard to see among the speckled
shadows of the rain forest floor.Below is a typical
food web that can exist in a jungle. Follow the
arrows closely to see how they are connected.
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Jungle
Dwellers |
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Flycatchers
are indeed "rulers" over the flies
and other insects that form their typical
prey. The species name is a Latin word meaning
"hairy," a description which probably
refers to the crest of this species.Feeding
high in the canopy, this species "hawks"
not only flies, but also beetles, butterflies,
grasshoppers, crickets, bees, and katydids.
Great Crested Flycatchers also glean insects
from tree bark and feed on small fruits
as well |
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Mainly
found in South America as well as many other
parts of the world. Near water source such
as swamps.
Some crocodiles lie with their mouths open
and allow birds to safely pick food particles
and parasites from their teeth and gums.
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Python:
Found mainly in the Amazon rainforest in
the Canopy and understory layer. Has a diet
mainly of Rats, lizards, chickens, many
other mammals, and birds. They eat vertebrates
only.The boa "constricts" its
food. They will wait for days near their
prey's home, waiting for the perfect time
to ambush it. They are very "choosy"
about their food.Their teeth are sharp and
they usually "sink" them into
their prey just before constricting. Swallows
its prey whole by using a system of ligaments
and muscles (cartilage) in its jaws. |
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The
Armadillo is a cat-sized, armored, insect-eating
mammal. Similar in form to an anteater,
the bony, scaled shell of the armadillo
protects it from attacks by predators. Unfortunately,
armadillos often fall victim to automobiles
and are frequently found dead on roadsides.
A
prolific digger, armadillos dig many burrows,
as well as dig for food. Distribution
is often determined by soil conditions,
since the animal will not survive in areas
where the soil is too hard to dig. Many
other wildlife species use and benefit
from these abandoned burrows.
Although
occasionally considered a nuisance by
home owners, the armadillo's habit of
digging up lawns is driven by its appetite
for grubs, which can also harm lawns.
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Green
Tree Boa Found mainly in the Amazon rainforest
in the Canopy and understory layer. Has
a diet mainly of Rats, lizards, chickens,
many other mammals, and birds. They eat
vertebrates only. The boa "constricts"
its food. They will wait for days near their
prey's home, waiting for the perfect time
to ambush it. They are very "choosy"
about their food.Their teeth are sharp and
they usually "sink" them into
their prey just before constricting. Swallows
its prey whole by using a system of ligaments
and muscles (cartilage) in its jaws. |
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They
can be found in the canopy and emergent
layers from Mexico to the Amazon Rainforest.
Their diet is largely one of seeds from
fruits, nuts, and clay as a source of calcium.
Sometimes fruits. Their main enemy is the
Harpy Eagle
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Termites
are ground-inhabiting, social insects that
live in colonies. A colony or nest of termites
may be up to 18-20 feet below the soil surface
to protect it from extreme weather conditions.
Although termites are soft-bodied insects,
their hard, saw-toothed jaws work like shears
and are able to bite off extremely small
fragments of wood, a piece at a time. |
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Found
in the rainforests close to rivers Most
of Central America and parts of South America.
They have very sticky toes which are like
suction cups. Red-eyed tree frogs can grow
up to 3 inches. Most of its life is spent
in the rainforest canopy, but they do swim,
and are excellent swimmers. Red-eyed tree
frogs eat many insects and are an important
part of the rainforest food web chain.
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Found
in the dense tropical forest, swamps, and
open country and the Understorey layer of
rainforest. Diets mainly on grown animals
(loves peccaries, capybara, sloth, tapir,
deer, monkeys), cattle, fish, frogs, turtles
and small gators. Loves meat and will eat
almost anything. They are moving towards
being an endangered animal because of habitat
destruction and poaching. They are excellent
climbers, but usually stalk their prey on
the ground.
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Tapirs
have an excellent sense of smell and good
hearing. They look like a cross between
a pig and an elephant. Some people say they
look like huge rats. There are 4 species
of tapirs (3 in Central and South America,
1 in Southeast Asia).Can Grow up to 8 feet
in length. And can be found in the dense
forest. |
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Ants
can be found in the South and Central American
Rainforests on the forest floor .They
are usually about 8mm to 12mm in length
and they live in a colony which can consist
of a fleet of about 700,000 ants.
They are decomposers. Diets mainly on wasps,
leaf cutter ants, some animals, some insects.
Anything in their path. Its enemies are
:termites, other insects and birds. They
can devour a horse in a matter of hours. |
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Found
in thick rainforests of West central Africa,
southern Cameroon, equatorial New Guinea,
Gabon, Congo. Mandrills are sometimes found
in large groups of 100 or more. When startled
and angry they will snarl, which appears
like a "yawn". They grow up to
3 feet tall. Males (around 55 pounds) are
bigger than females (around 30 pounds).Hunted
for their fur, and kidney stones for medicine.
Mandrill babies open their eyes at birth.
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Sloths
can be found in the Canopy layer of Amazon
Rainforest. Their main enemies are the anaconda,
jaguar and the Hapry Eagle. They have an
image of laziness and inactivity and they
can fall asleep upside down. It's hard for
the sloth to walk on the ground because
of the shape of their toes and fingers.
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Toucans
are found in the lowland rainforests and
palm groves. Their bill is frightening to
other birds and small animals. They have
2 toes forward and 2 toes backwards. This
gives them an excellent grip on trees. Their
tongue is feathered. They are family to
the woodpecker. |
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Importance
of Rainforests? |
The
global coverage by rain forests is reduced each
year by human activities in order to support
things such as agriculture, mineral resource
exploitation, the hardwood lumber industry For
one thing,rainforests are large enough to provide
a safe haven for all of their indigenous species.
One major reason is that the plants in the forest
turn carbon dioxide into clean air, which helps
us fight pollution. Also, by absorbing carbon
dioxide, the rainforests help deter the greenhouse
effect. The trees of the rainforest store carbon
dioxide in their roots, stems, branches, and
leaves.
The
plants and animals of the rainforest also provide
us with food, fuel wood, shelter, jobs, and
medicines. Twenty-five percent of the active
ingredients in today's cancer-fighting drugs
come from organisms found only in the rainforest.
More
than half of the world's estimated 10 million
species of plants, animals and insects live
in the tropical rainforests. One-fifth of the
world's fresh water is in the Amazon Basin. |
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