APES BIOMES PROJECT:
TROPICAL FOREST
Allie Torrence
APES-K
Common names of this biome?
• Evergreen rainforest
• Has no dry season.
• Seasonal rainforest
• Has a short dry period, seasonal changes, and the vegetation
appears about the same as evergreen rainforests.
• Semi-evergreen forest
• Has a longer dry season than the seasonal rainforest.
• Moist/dry deciduous forest (monsoon)
• Dry season length increases as the amount of precipitation
decreases.
Found at: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php#tropical
Food web of this biome?
Python
Vampire Bats
Jaguar
Iguanas
Chimpanzees
Macaws
Orchids
Seeds
Fruit Bats
Banana Trees
Found at: http://www.google.com/
url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCoQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhsfs2.ort
n.edu%2Fmyschool%2FNGanguly%2FAPES%2520PowerPoint%2FBiomes%2520-%25202nd%2FRainfo
rest%2520powerpoint.ppt&ei=Uoj9UsmeE7OmsQTX9IGACQ&usg=AFQjCNG4SCEsS7udwKVrDNnBYQJ
DXFbWGg&sig2=dtFh-9Weh7hwdQBGwE4IpQ&bvm=bv.61190604,d.cWc
Red-Eyed Tree Frog
Parrots
Monkeys
Bamboo
Insects
Coconut Trees
Where is this biome found in the world?
The biome is found “near the
equator, within the area bounded by
latitudes 23.5 degrees N and 23.5
degrees S.”
Found at:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php#tropical
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/k4/biomes/Boverview2.html
http://education.kings.edu/dsmith/Lesson%207.html
Climate?
• Average Temperatures: 20ºC (68.000ºF) - 25ºC
(77.000ºF)
• Annual rainfall levels: ~200 centimeters (60-160 inches)
• Tropical Forest’s have distinct seasonality
• Only two seasons: rainy and dry
• The length of daylight = 12 hours
• Less than 2% of that sunlight ever reaches the ground because of
the vast number of tall trees found in the biome.
Found at:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php#tropical
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforestP.html
Climatograms (1)
Tropical Monsoon Climate:
Akyab, Myanmar
Found at: https://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=100
Climatograms (2)
Found at: https://www.marietta.edu/~biol/biomes/troprain.htm
What types of animals and plants are
found in this biome?
• “Highly diverse: one square kilometer may contain as many as 100
different tree species.”
• “Trees are 25-35 m tall, with buttressed (strong/ sturdy) trunks,
shallow roots, and large dark green leaves” in order to absorb more
sunlight.
• “Plants such as orchids, bromeliads, vines (lianas), ferns, mosses,
and palms are present in tropical forests.”
• “The combination of constant warmth and abundant moisture
makes the tropical rainforest a suitable environment for many plants
and animals.”
Found at:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php#tropical
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforest.html
Animal Adaptations
• “Learning to eat a particular food eaten by no other animal” due to the wide
variety of species and the vast number of organisms.
• Finding habitats in trees. This is because tropical forests have many trees
whose leaves and branched cover the ground almost entirely.
• Example 1: “Toucans have adapted by developing long, large bill. This
adaptation allows this bird to reach fruit on branches that are too small to
support the bird's weight. The bill also is used to cut the fruit from the tree.”
• Example 2: “The sloth uses a behavioral adaptation and camouflage to
survive in the rainforest. It moves very, very slowly and spends most of its
time hanging upside down from trees. Blue-green algae grows on its fur
giving the sloth a greenish color and making it more difficult for predators to
spot.”
Found at:
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforestA.html
http://kids.nceas.ucsb.edu/biomes/rainforest.html
Plant Adaptations
• Tropical forests are very dense but as a result the lower
levels receive less sunlight and have less biodiversity.
• Plant survival in a tropical rainforest depends on the
plant's ability to tolerate shade or to adapt strategies to
reach sunlight.
• Example 1: “The strangler fig needs sunlight to grow and
reproduce. As the strangler fig matures, branches and
leaves grow upwards creating a canopy that blocks
sunlight from the host tree. Additional roots are sent out
and wrap around the host tree, forming a massive
network of roots that strangle and eventually kill the host.”
Found at: http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforestP.html
What are the human impacts on this
biome?
• Deforestation:
• “More than one half of tropical forests have already been destroyed.”
• “Each year, some 140,000 sq km of rainforests are destroyed” by logging
companies who use the tree lumber to make profit or the forest area is
cleared for farming purposes.
• “Many endangered tropical forests are located in Africa. The forests
there are in severe danger because human populations are doubling
every 20 years.”
•  With the large population then there is a higher demand for the
biome’s resources.
•  leads to decreased oxygen levels around the world because tropical
forests produce much of the oxygen that humans use.
Found at:
http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/habitats/tropical_forests/
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php
Other fun and interesting facts!
• “A hectare of Malaysian rainforest may contain 180 kinds
of trees.
• “A temperate forest hectare might have just 10 species of
trees.”
• “Over 15 million species of plants and animals live within
this biome around the world.”
Found at:
http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/habitats/tropical_forests/
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforest.html
Works Cited: (1)
All About Toucans – The Birds With Long, Brightly Colored Bill. (2014). Retrieved February 13, 2014, from
Easy Science for Kids website: http://easyscienceforkids.com/all-about-toucans/
Baker, W., & Livesay, L. (n.d.). Tropical Rain Forest [PowerPoint slides]. Retrieved February 13, 2014, from
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCoQFjAA&url=htt
p%3A%2F%2Fhsfs2.ortn.edu%2Fmyschool%2FNGanguly%2FAPES%2520PowerPoint%2FBiomes%2520%25202nd%2FRainforest%2520powerpoint.ppt&ei=Uoj9UsmeE7OmsQTX9IGACQ&usg=AFQjCNG4SCEsS7
udwKVrDNnBYQJDXFbWGg&sig2=dtFh-9Weh7hwdQBGwE4IpQ&bvm=bv.61190604,d.cWc
ETE Team (Ed.). (2004). Topic Overview: Forests. Retrieved February 12, 2014, from K4 Modules: Biomes
website: http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/k4/biomes/Boverview2.html
Gaby Gollub, FONZ. (n.d.). Strangler Fig [Image]. Retrieved from
http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/photogallery/amazonia/14.cfm
Onishu, N. (2000, January 5). Tropical Rain Forest. Retrieved February 12, 2014, from Lesson 7 : Major
Biomes website: http://education.kings.edu/dsmith/Lesson%207.html
Rainforest. (2004). Retrieved February 13, 2014, from Kids Do Ecology: World Biomes website:
http://kids.nceas.ucsb.edu/biomes/rainforest.html
strangler fig. (n.d.). In Encyclopædia Britannica (Ed.), Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved February 13, 2014,
from http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/568081/strangler-fig
Toft, R. (2014). Two-Toed Sloth [Photograph]. Retrieved from
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/two-toed-sloth/
Works Cited: (2)
Tropical Forests. (n.d.). Retrieved from WWF Global website:
http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/ecoregions/about/habitat_types/habitats/tropical_forests/
The Tropical Rain Forest. (n.d.). Retrieved February 10, 2014, from
https://www.marietta.edu/~biol/biomes/troprain.htm
University of California Museum of Paleontology. (2006). Tropical forest. Retrieved February 10, 2014, from
The Forest Biome website: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/forests.php#tropical
Wheeling Jesuit University. (2005, April 28). Tropical Rainforest. Retrieved February 10, 2014, from Earth
Floor: Biomes website: http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforest.html
Woodward, S. L., Dr. (2012). Tropical Rainforest. Retrieved February 12, 2014, from Biomes of the World
website: https://php.radford.edu/~swoodwar/biomes/?page_id=100