1. Tropical Rain Forest -
Man-land relationship

2. The natural TRF –
How does it look like?

3. Rich diversity of plant species
How does a tropical rainforest look like?
Evergreen
Layered structure
Rich diversity of plant species
What characteristics of the tropical rainforest can you identify in this photo?
(Credit: David Woodfall / WWI / Still Pictures)

4. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
1 Evergreen
Tropical rainforests are evergreen. They grow continuously throughout the year
An aerial view of the tropical rainforest in Brazil
(Credit: Jim Zuckerman/Corbis)

5. Tropical rainforests generally consist of _______ layers.
What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
2 Layered structure
Emergent layer
Canopy layer
Tropical rainforests generally consist of _______ layers.
Young tree layer
five
Shrub layer
Undergrowth and ground layer

6. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
3 Trees with special characteristics of roots and leaves
(Credit: Gary Braasch/Corbis)
Broad-leafed
Buttress roots above the soil
Leaves with thick waxy surface and drip-tips
Shallow roots in the soil
(Credit: Jacques Jangoux/Photo Researchers, Inc.)

7. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
Tropical rainforests are famous for their rich and luxuriant plant species.
Trees are mostly hardwoods.
Apart from trees, there are many other plants in a rainforest.
(Credit: Panorama Stock Photo Co. Ltd.)

8. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
A Epiphytes
Small shrubs or herbs attaching themselves to trunks and branches, e.g. orchids
Grow in canopy layer and capture sunlight
Harmless to the host
Have aerial roots to capture moisture from the air
(Credit: H. Brehm / Blickwinkel)

9. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
B Climbers
Woody plants that climb along the trees to reach the canopy layer for sunlight, e.g. lianas
(Credit: Pietro Cenini/Panos Pictures)

10. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
C Saprophytes
(Credit: Ron Hayes/World of Stock)
Plants that feed on dead or decaying organic matter such as dead leaves and old wood, e.g. fungi
Found in places where sunlight cannot penetrate (e.g. forest floor)

11. What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
D Parasites
Do not produce their own food
Grow on other host plants and live by taking nutrients from the host plants, e.g. ‘corpse flowers’
‘Corpse flower’
(Credit: COMPOST/Peter Arnold Inc.)

12. Eventually block the sunlight and kill the host tree
What are the characteristics of tropical rainforests?
4 Rich diversity of plant species
E Stranglers
Start their life as epiphytes and send roots down to the ground, e.g. strangling fig
Eventually block the sunlight and kill the host tree
Strangling fig
(Credit: F. Poelking/Blickwinkel)

13. What is the climate of tropical rainforests?
1 Temperature patterns
High annual mean temperature, about _____°C 27
Located at low latitudes, tropical rainforests receive ( low / high ) input of solar radiation.
Hot throughout the year

14. What is the climate of tropical rainforests?
1 Temperature patterns
High annual rainfall, usually over _______ mm
Intense sunlight during daytime causes __________ rain in the afternoon.
2,000
convection
Rainstorm in a rainforest

15. This reflects their adaptation to the equatorial climate:
How do tropical rainforests look like?
Why do tropical rainforests look like this?
This reflects their adaptation to the equatorial climate:
Plants grow luxuriantly under high temperatures and with abundant rainfall
1 Evergreen
Competition for sunlight results in different layers of plants
2 Layered structure

16. How do tropical rainforests look like?
Why do tropical rainforests look like this?
Buttress roots: strong mechanical support for tall trees
Shallow roots: take nutrients up from the topsoil
Leaves have a thick waxy surface and/or drip-tips: to shed excess water from leaves
3 Trees with special root and leaf characteristics
A hot and wet climate results in a rich diversity of plant species
4 Rich diversity of plant species

17. What animals can we find in tropical rainforests?
Mammals
Birds
Reptiles
Amphibians
Insects

18. Where do animals live in the rainforest?
The animals tend to live in a particular layer in the rainforest.
Drag the animal on the left onto the layer it lives.
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19. What animals can we find in tropical rainforests?
(Credit: Frans Lanting/Corbis)
Many rainforest animals use different ways to protect themselves.
Special structure: in order to escape
Camouflage: in order to hide
(Credit: Michael & Patricia Fogden/Corbis)
Bright colour: to indicate poisonous
(Credit: Rhett A. Butler/mongabay.com)

22. 2 Layered structure Emergent layer Height: up to _____ metres 50
Tall, straight and smooth trunks
Umbrella shape for full exposure to sunlight

23. 2 Layered structure Canopy layer Height:
ranging from _____ to _____ metres 20 35
Oval-shaped crowns
Close and continuous canopy blocks sunlight from penetrating down to the forest floor

24. 2 Layered structure Young tree layer Height:
seldom exceeds _____ metres 15
Conical-shaped crowns
Trees die easily due to insufficient sunlight

25. 2 Layered structure Shrub layer Height: less than ____ metres 5
Mostly woody shrubs
Heliconia is found in the shrub layer in tropical rainforests

26. 2 Layered structure Undergrowth and ground layer
Only little undergrowth, e.g. mosses and fungi
Little availability of sunlight
Mushrooms are a kind of fungus found on the forest floor