FOREST BIOMES

Tropical Rainforests Why is it tropical? The rain forest contains more species of plants (and therefore animals) than any other biome There are so many plants in the rain forest that it accounts for 40% of the oxygen produced in the entire world It’s between the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn – next to equator 50% of the world’s species are in tropical rainforset

RAINFOREST LOCATIONS Rainforests only COVER 6% of the Earth’s SURFACE The AMAZON jungle is the world’s largest tropical rainforest

RAINFOREST LAYERS

Many ANIMALS! Very DENSE! EMERGENT LAYER: TALLEST trees (200 Feet!) Much SUNLIGHT! Animals such as Bats, eagles, and monkeys live here CANOPY LAYER: PRIMARY Layer! Many ANIMALS! Very DENSE! UNDERSTORY LAYER: LITTLE Sunlight! Animals devise UNIQUE ways to survive Many ANIMALS and INSECTS! FOREST FLOOR: Very DARK! NO PLANTS! DECOMPOSING material

The Canopy Canopy is the primary layer of the rainforest It absorbs up to 95% of all the sunlight The canopy is split in to an upper and lower portion The lower portion receives less light Most animals of the rainforest live in the canopy because that is where most of the flowers and fruits are located

Understory The understory is the portion of the rainforest that gets the least amount of sunlight Most plants are short and have broad leaves Why would plants be short and have wide leaves? Few animals live on the rain forest floor

Rain Forest Soil Think about what you know about the Rain Forest. Is the soil going to be rich with nutrients? Why or why not? Surprisingly, the soil in the rain forest has very few nutrients Most of the nutrients in a rain forest are in the plants, not in the soil This means that when they clear-cut to make farms, they can’t grow anything :(

RAINFOREST ANIMALS

Animals of the Rain Forest If you were an animal in the Rain Forest, what sorts of adaptations would you need in order to live? Think about all of the heat and water Think about where the food is Think about how many predators there are Let’s look at a few species and their adaptations to the rain forest

Animals of the Rain Forest This is a collared anteater What sorts of adaptations does it have to stay alive in the Tropical Rain Forest

Animals of the Tropical Rain Forest This is a Costa Rican Mantis Similar to our Praying Mantis What adaptations does it have to the rain forest?

Animals of the Rain Forest This is a poison dart frog What adaptations does it have? Anyone know how they got their name?

Tropical Rain Forest Animals This is a spider monkey What adaptations does it have to the rain forest? Prehensile Tail Opposable thumbs

Rain Forest Facts Rain Forests used to cover 20% of the Earth’s Surface, now it is only 6% Every minute of every day, 100 acres of Rain Forest are destroyed In a day we’ve cleared all of Philadelphia

Satellite Images

Threats to the Rain Forest Deforestation – Cutting down trees in a forest to clear the land Does anyone know why they are cutting down the Rain Forest? They want the land for logging, agriculture and palm oil. The countries that have rain forests are usually developing and poor They’ll do anything for money, even destroy their homes

Environmental Effects What happens when we cut down lots of trees? Mass clearing of land has greater global effects than most would think Floods Less Oxygen More CO2, which increases global warming Fewer Animal and Plant Species Fewer Medicines

SPEAK OUT!!! WHAT MIGHT YOU SAY IN A LETTER TO A COMPANY THAT DESTROYS THE RAINFORESTS? HOW ABOUT A LOCAL POLITICIAN WHO GIVES BREAKS TO THAT COMPANY? WHAT REASONS WOULD YOU GIVE THEM FOR SAVING THE RAINFORESTS? For the rest of the period, construct a letter to a company to persuade them to help save rainforests.

Types of Forests We have talked all about tropical rain forests, but there are three other types of forests as well: Temperate Rain Forests Temperate (Deciduous) Forests Taiga – a.k.a. Coniferous Forest

Temperate Rain Forest Just from the name, you know that there is going to be a lot of rain You also know that the temperatures will be moderate or “Temperate” Temperate actually means 30°-50° latitude.

Temperate Rain Forest

Temperate Rain Forest They are a very rare biome – often forgotten Only the green areas are temperate rain forests. (some ppl add Japan to this group) What can you see in common about their location?

QUESTION: The soil of a tropical rainforest is nutrient poor because it gets recycled so quickly Temperate rainforests do not recycle that quickly – too cool! Temperate rainforest soil is rich! Do you think that the temperate rainforest has nutrient-poor soil, like the tropical rainforest?

Temperate Rain Forest The Layers of the temperate rain forest are similar to the tropical rainforest Canopy: Douglas Fir, Sitka Spruce, Western Red Cedar, Western Hemlock Understory: Dog woods, vine maples Floor: Huckleberries, sword ferns, mosses, lichen, etc. Soil quality Good soil quality with lots of nutrients Nutrients are being used by decomposers and plants Plants grow ON PLANTS! Crazy!

Temperate Rainforest Animal Life Animals live on or near the forest floor Most food on floor Trees provide shelter

CREATE A VENN DIAGRAM TO HAND IN On one side is tropical; the other is temperate Things that should be in your venn: Climate details (precip, temp, seasons) Types of organisms (plants and animals) Layers Locations How the biome recovers from disturbances (succession)

Temperate AND Tropical Rainforest Tropical Rainforest Temperate Rainforest Temperate AND Tropical Rainforest Tropical Rainforest One long, wet winter/spring season with a dry, foggy summer Both wet and dry times of the year Two wet seasons, 2 dry seasons 5-16 feet of rain a year Lots of rain! 6-30 feet of rain a year Cool temperatures most of the year Warm temperatures most of the year

Located 30°-50° on the western coast Temperate Rainforest Temperate AND Tropical Rainforest Tropical Rainforest Located 30°-50° on the western coast Located in a 3,000 mile wide belt near the equator Mostly conifer trees, some broadleaf trees Huge amounts of plants Mostly broadleaf evergreens like palms, bamboo and tree ferns Largest biomass of any biome Huge amounts of animals Largest biodiversity of any biome

Canopies, understories, and forest floors 4 layers of the forest Temperate Rainforest Temperate AND Tropical Rainforest Tropical Rainforest 3 layers of the forest Canopies, understories, and forest floors 4 layers of the forest Emergent layer Most of the animals live on the forest floor Most of the animals live in the canopy Jungle-like appearance with epiphytes, ferns, and mosses Jungle-like appearance Jungle-like appearance with palms, tree ferns, and vines

Venomous snakes and other creatures Temperate Rainforest Temperate AND Tropical Rainforest Tropical Rainforest No venomous snakes Venomous snakes and other creatures Large predators are bears and cougars Has a food chain with predators and consumers Large predators are jaguars and large snakes Soil is rich Soil is poor Faster recovery from destruction Vulnerable to destruction Slower recovery from destruction

Temperate Deciduous Forest

Temperate Deciduous Forest Let’s break down the name: Temperate: means moderate (like temperate rain forest had moderate temps) – and location? Deciduous: A type of tree Anyone know what kind? Trees with broad, flat leaves that fall off when the weather gets cooler deciduous means, literally, fall off Forest: we all know is a place with lots of trees

Temperate Deciduous Forest

Climate Located between 30° and 50° north or south of the equator This makes for 4 distinct seasons, which can be very hot and very cold Think about our winters and summers

Climate – what do you think?

Climate

Plants Temperate Deciduous Forest has the same layers as the Temperate Rain Forest Canopy: Tallest Trees Understory: Small Trees and Shrubs Forest Floor: Ferns, Mosses, Herbs Can have more plants on the forest floor because more light gets through than in a tropical rain forest

Plants All the water helps to decompose dead organic matter and get the nutrients in to the soil Deciduous plants shed their leaves in the fall Save energy when there isn’t as much sunlight Leaves and seeds grow back in the Spring when there is more water and sunlight “April Showers bring May Flowers” Good example of this is flowers that have “bulbs”

Animals Animals in the temperate deciduous forest can eat almost anything Bears eat berries, nuts, fish and other animals: They are omnivores They have adapted to the seasons as well Bears and other mammals and insects hibernate in the winter Birds migrate south to warmer climates until the Spring

Taiga – northern coniferous forest that stretches across the Northern Hemisphere below the Artic Circle – why not Southern Hemisphere.

Taiga

Climate Which month(s) have an average temp above 10°C? June, July, Aug, Sept Which month(s) have a temp below freezing? Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, March Which month(s) have the most rain? June, July Aug; between 8-9cm

Climate Winters are long (6-10 months) and very cold (often below freezing) In the summer there is almost 24 hrs of sunlight, but almost complete darkness in the winter Greater precipitation in the summer

Plants Trees are mostly conifers Conifers have seeds develop in cones Their leaves are like needles Think of pine trees as a prime example Needles keep water in, which is important in the dry environment Needles (and shape of tree) also keep snow and ice off of the trees so they don’t break

Plants The soil is poor because the cold temperatures keep decomposers from working efficiently Plants can’t grow much in the winter because of such little sunlight

Animals Many birds migrate south for the winter to avoid the low temps Under ground animals burrow in to the earth to stay warm Other animals completely change their colors to blend in with the season

Snowshoe Hare - adaptations Look at the fur – brown in the summer; white in the winter Look at hind legs

How do wolves change rivers? (and what biome is Yellowstone park?)

Trophic Cascade An alteration in an ecosystem caused when a top predator limits the number or alters the behavior of the organisms lower than that predator in the food chain. Example: wolves of Yellowstone Opposite: biomagnification

Time For a Video!!

Which is which? 1 2 4 3

Forest Activity Fill in the paper from your notes!