Tropical Rainforest.

EMERGENTS: Giant trees that are much higher than the average canopy height. It houses many birds and insects. CANOPY: The upper parts of the trees. This leafy environment is full of life in a tropical rainforest and includes: insects, birds, reptiles, mammals, and more. UNDERSTORY: A dark, cool environment under the leaves but over the ground. FOREST FLOOR: Teeming with animal life, especially insects. The largest animals in the rainforest generally live here.

Emergent Level -Emergent layer of the rainforest is a layer of trees stretching 50 to 60 meters above the forest floor.

Canopy -This layer supports most of the rainforest animals. -The canopy offers such an abundance of shelter that many of the animals living in this layer never need to descend from it. -Insects hum and nibble on plants, reptiles slither along the branches and trunks of trees, monkeys chatter back and forth as they swing through the branches, and brightly colored birds dart among leaves.

Understory - Made up of the trunks of canopy trees, shrubs, plants and smaller trees. - Many of the plants living in this level have adapted to growing in the shade and don't need much light.

Tropical Rain Forests Tropical rain forests are found in a belt around the equator, where temperatures and rainfall are very high all year round There is very little variation between the seasons They will have an even distribution of rainfall annually Warm temperatures with less variation during the year The best known rain forests are found in tropical regions between the Tropics of cancer and Capricorn

Tropical Rain Forests Tropical rain forests are found in a belt around the equator, where temperatures and rainfall are very high all year round There is very little variation between the seasons They will have an even distribution of rainfall annually Warm temperatures with less variation during the year The best known rain forests are found in tropical regions between the Tropics of cancer and Capricorn

The Amazon Rainforest One of the most well known rainforests is the Amazon Where is the Amazon? South America The Amazon rainforest is the largest rainforest in the world It covers an area about two thirds the size of the US Two thirds of the Earth’s fresh water can be found there

Blue and Gold Macaw -The crown of his head is green and its belly is golden yellow and have long tails. - The Blue and Gold Macaw eats nuts, seeds, and fruit.

-The toucan lives in canopy of the rain forest. - The toucan has a very big bill. Its bill is rainbow colored. -It has blue legs and feet. -It colors help it hide from predators. Toucan

-In the Rainforest they live at the top of the tallest trees, which is in the Emergent layer (emergent layer is high-up above the canopy.) - The Blue Morpho has blue wings with a brown border. -The Blue Morpho’s colors blend in it’s surroundings. Blue Morpho Butterfly

- Howler monkeys have brown, black, or reddish fur and blend in with the trees. - The Howler monkey eats fruit, leaves, flowers, and nuts. Howler Monkey

Jaguar -It is black with black spots called rosettes and has a muscular body. - It eats turtles and Gray Snappers. - It is the king of roaring cats.

Sloth -Sloth’s hair is specially designed to allow algae to effectively colonize. -Sloth’s are covered with tan to greyish brown hairs. - The sloth primarily eats leaves and fruit.

Where are tropical rainforests located? Tropical rainforests are located close to the Equator between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. This means that it is always hot – between 70 and 85o F.

THE FOREST FLOOR Very little sunlight reaches the forest floor so few plants can grow. However, there are thousands of species of insects such as ants, beetles and termites crawling around. This agouti paca lives on the forest floor along with other animals such as jaguars, anteaters and snakes.

Poison Dart Frog

Bromeliad Bromeliads have bright orange, red, blue or purple flowers. Their leaves catch the rain like buckets. Some small frogs, snails, salamanders and crabs may live their entire lives on a bromeliad.

Blue Morpho Butterfly

Why are rainforests so important? Rainforests are home to more than half of the world’s plant and animal species. Some animals can only be found in the rainforest

The rainforest plays a big role in the Earth’s climate! Trees use carbon dioxide and provide oxygen – just the opposite of people. By using a lot of carbon dioxide each day, rainforests keep the temperature, humidity, rainfall and wind levels of the Earth stable. If there is too much carbon dioxide, those things might change

Medicines There’s a reason why rainforests are called the “world’s largest pharmacies”! We have already developed medicines such as those used to fight cancer, diabetes and heart diseases from rainforest plants. More cures might be found here one day! Bark from the Cinchona tree has been used to produce Quinine, a drug used to prevent and treat malaria. Cinchona comes from South America.

Do you eat bananas? Do you know someone who drinks coffee? Do you use anything made of wood? All of these things originated in the rainforest!

Why are rainforests disappearing? It is hard to balance the needs of people and the protection of rainforests. With the world’s population growing every day, there is more and more pressure on forests. Many rainforests are cut down for land to live on or to create products that we all need, such as beef or paper. But wait – we can still have our rainforest and eat our chocolate, too.

By asking your parents to choose products that are made in a way that is safe for the forest and for people, you can help save the rainforest -- and all the plants and animals we depend on and love.

References Websites: Allin, Lisa. "Welcome to the Rainforest." 12 Feb "Sloth Industry, Sloth Info." Feb "Yahoo!." Feb Col, Jeananda. Enchanted Learning "Rainforest." Feb Books: Marent, Thomas. Rainforest. DK ADULT : Pratt, Kristin Joy. A Walk in the Rainforest. CA: Dawn Publications, Bergen, Lara, and Corey Wolfe. The Rainforest Race (Go, Diego, Go! Ready to Read). Simon Spotlight/Nickelodeon, Castaldo, Nancy F.. Rainforests: An Activity Guide. Chicago Review Press, 2003.