The Rainforest
By Chloe Tobin
Contents !!!!
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Where are rainforests located
The importance of rainforests
Rainforest layers
The forest floor and the understory
The spider monkey
The toucan
The monarch butterfly
Why do rainforest trees grow so tall
Did you know
Huli tribe
Rafflesia
Bromeliads
Passion flower
How do forest floor animals find food
Did you know
conclusion
Where are rainforests located
• Tropical rainforests are located near the equator.
The map below shows the location of the worlds
tropical rainforests, rainforests only cover about
6% of the worlds surface yet, it is home to over
half of the worlds plants and animals.
The importance of rainforests
rainforests
*help stabilize the worlds climate
*provide a home to many plants and animals
*maintain the water cycle
*protect against flood drought and erosions
*are a source of medicines and food
*support tribal people
*are an interesting place to visit
rainforest layers
• There are four layers in the rainforest
They are the forest floor, the understory
The canopy and the emergent layer.
The forest floor is 0 feet above the ground.
The understory is 0 to 60 feet above the
ground The canopy is 60 to 130 feet and the
emergent Is 130 to 160 feet above the
ground.
The forest floor and the understory
• The forest floor: only two percent of light that reaches the canopy
can get threw the forest floor, so the forest floor is dim. this dim
light slows the growth of many light demanding plants. when a tree
falls down everything is different because the extra light allows a lot
of lianas and herbs to grow. Rates of growth are incredible
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The understory:plants that survive in the understory include dwarf
palms and species like the ginger family. these plants can grow up
to 12 feet in length. Many plants in the understory rely on insects
for their food. this layer has the largest amount of insects.
Spider monkey
Spider monkeys are found in the tropical rainforests of central
and south America as well as in regions far north as Mexico
these monkeys prefer wet forests rather than dry regions and
are mostly found living in the upper canopy, almost never
coming near the ground. spider monkeys eat 90% fruit and
some nuts ,seeds, and insects spider monkeys get there food
in small groups early in the mornings.
The Toucan
• The toucan is a brightly coloured bird commonly found in
central and South America. Toucans are birds with
variety in colour as well as size. They are bright in colour
having red blue yellow or orange. There bill is
approximately half the size of their body. They live in
trees in groups of six or seven birds. They have big
claws to help them balance on trees.
Monarch Butterfly
Monarch butterflies are species of poisonous butterflies that
feed on milkweed plant. they are mainly found in North
America. they appear beautiful and have bright coloured
scaly wings. Their predators fall sick if they eat them due
to the poison pilots have reported monarch butterflies
flying as high as eleven thousand feet
Why do rainforests trees grow
so tall.
• rainforest trees are so tall because they grow to reach
the sunshine high up in the forest canopy. the warmth
and the moisture of the rainforests regions allows the
trees to grow quickly. rainforests trees such as teak can
grow about to about 50 metres tall or as high as a
lighthouse many different fruits and nuts grow on the
trees these are eaten by a great variety of animals.
Did you know that???
A animal called the sloth looks green
because tiny plants called algae grow
on its fur Sloth's live in the rainforests
in South America, and the green colour
helps them to blend in with green
leaves around them Sloth's crawl very
slowly among branches using large
hooked claws. they feed on leaves and
fruit and only climb to the ground once
a week to go to the toilet.
The Huli Tribe
• The huli are one of the many tribes that live in
remote highland forests of Papua new
guniea.They live by hunting, gathering plants,
and growing crops. Men and women live
separately ,in large group houses. The men
decorate their bodies with coloured clay and
wear headdresses for ceremonies. The latest
estimates put their population at around
150,000 they have lived in their current area for
about 1,000 years.
The Rafflesia
• The rafflesia is about one meter
wide and weighs about nine
kilograms. It is the worlds largest
bloom. It is also one of the rarest
and most endangered plants. this
flower is a great example of how
fragile some areas of the rainforest
are. the rafflesia is a disembodied
flower. strands of fungus like tissue
are its only body outside the
flower. The rafflesia has an odder
that smells like rotting meat. it
attracts flies and beetles into the
plants. when it is fully grown it
lasts only one week
The Bromeliads
• Bromeliads are related to the pineapple
family. Their thick waxy leaves form a
bowl shape in the centre for catching
rainwater. Some bromeliads are can hold
up to seven gallons of water and are
miniature ecosystems in themselves
providing homes for several creatures
including frogs and snails.
Bromeliads
Passion Flower
• The passion flower lives throughout the
tropical and semitropical zones from South
America to North America. There are over
200 species of passion flower with the
most common found in the Amazon region
the passion flower is a hardy woody vine
growing up to thirty feet in length. it has
striking large white flowers with pink or
purple centres and great edible fruit.
Pink And Purple Passion Flowers
How do forest-floor animals find food
• Some animals that live on the forest floor
such as agoutis, follow monkeys and
parrots to find food. they gather the fruits
and nuts that accidentally fall to the
ground. Agoutis are relatives of guinea
pigs and have big, strong front teeth to
gnaw open nuts that many other animals
find too hard.
Did you know
• Leaf cutter ants chew off pieces of
rainforest leaves and then carry them
back to their nest. They feed on the
fungus that grows on the rooting
leaves.
Conclusion
• I really enjoyed doing my project about
the rainforest. I have learned a lot of
interesting plants animals and tribes. I
think the rainforest is a truly amazing
place.
thanks for watching