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What is a rainforest?
A rainforest is a hot and humid woodland area
that receives substantial rain annually - more
than 200 centimetres and sometimes double
this amount.
Equator
Where do we find rainforests?
Rainforests are habitats located around the
tropics (an invisible zone around the equator)
and in parts of the following continents: Africa, Asia, Australia, Central and South America. The largest rainforest
in the world is the Amazon rainforest, which is located in South America. If it were a country, it would be the ninth
largest in the world - it covers over 1.4 billion acres (5,500,000 square kilometres).
What are the two different types of rainforests?
They are two types of rainforests – temperate and tropical. Temperate rainforests lie between the tropics and the
polar circles of Earth. They are found in several regions around the world: such as south-eastern Australia, western
North America and New Zealand. Tropical rainforests are found in the tropics, between the Tropic of Cancer and
the Tropic of Capricorn. The sun consistently shines every day all year long, which results in a stable (hot and
humid) environment.
Why are rainforests important to us?
Rainforests only cover about 6% of our planet’s surface, but over half of the world’s species of plants and animals
live in this type of habitat. The rainforest is also very important for us all as trees produce oxygen, which we need
to breathe in to survive. Sometimes, the Amazon rainforest is referred to as ‘the lungs of the Earth’ and it is
reported to produce 16-20% of the Earth’s oxygen.
Why are they called rainforests?
Most rainforests receive at least 200cm of rain each year, but many receive up to 450cm annually.
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In some places, they receive 2cm or more of
rain on a daily basis. In comparison, the UK
usually receives about 160cm of rain a year. It
is consistently warm and rainy in rainforest
regions, which helps plants to grow quickly.
The temperature is roughly 21 to 30 degrees
Celsius. Within the tropics there are only two
seasons a year – the wet and dry seasons.
The four layers
of the rainforest
The rainforest is made up of several, unique
layers. Different plants and animals live and
grow in each layer.
The forest floor Lives here:
This is the ground layer of the rainforest and its floor. It has poor soil as it is Insects, larger
so humid. There is no sunlight, so it is hard for plants to grow. The ground animals that
can be hard and bare. It will be made up of fallen vegetation. cannot climb
The understory layer Lives here:
This layer is above the floor and below the canopy. There is a little bit more birds and
sunlight here than on the floor, so ferns and vines grow on tree trunks. their nests
This is where most birds have their nests.
The canopy layer
Lives here:
This is the top layer of the rainforest, where most of the trees are found. most
Leaves and branches from all the trees join together, which creates the rainforest
canopy (similar to an umbrella). This layer can be as high as 100 metres animals
above the ground.
The emergent layer Lives here:
This layer is used to describe anything which grows above the canopy layer. many birds,
Some trees grow taller and above the canopy, so that they can reach direct bats and
sunlight. butterflies
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Who and what live in rainforests?
Over 50,000,000 people live in the rainforest regions around the globe. There are some cities within the rainforest
region, for example Manaus in Brazil. Most of the rural dwellers live in tribes. These people are self-sufficient and
sustainable – which means they live off the land and do not need contact with the outside world in order to survive.
They build their own shelter and accommodation. The Korowai people of New Guinea live in tree houses up to 45m
off the ground. Many tribes do not have any contact or communication with the outside world. 500 years ago,
there would have been 10,000,000 different tribes in the Amazon. Now, there are only 400 tribes left. Each tribe
has its own culture, identity and language. Rainforests are also very unique habitats for animals – over half of the
overall world’s species live within rainforests.
Vegetation of the rainforest
The global rainforests contain more than two-thirds of the world’s plant species and there are around 300 different
types of trees. Many of the foods we all enjoy eating come from the rain forest, for example chocolate
is derived from cocoa beans, pineapples also grow here and the beans that make coffee. The rainforest isn’t just
useful for food production – we can also find rubber (which is used in many ways) and many plants, which are used
in vital medicines to help cure humans from illness. Approximately 25% of medicines originate from plants grown
in rainforests.
Type of rainforest: Animals who live there: Type of food that grows there:
black bear; racoon; cougar;
maple syrup; berries such as
puma; grey wolves; snow
Temperate leopards, elk; kangaroos
blackberries; mushrooms and
wildflowers
and wombats.
Type of rainforest: Animals who live there: Type of food that grows there:
orangutan; leopard; sloths;
jaguar; chimpanzee; gorilla; cocoa beans; coconuts;
Tropical many species of monkeys; pineapples; bananas; cinnamon;
parrot; toucan; poison dart coffee and nuts
frog.
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Deforestation and its impact on wildlife
From this this report, it becomes clear the rainforests are very special and essential for everyone’s health and
survival. Unfortunately in many areas, rainforest trees are being cut down to make room for different types of land
use – for example, farming or motorways. Around the world, palm oil production threatens the future of
rainforests, especially in south-east Asia. Logging companies cut down trees to sell wood to make buildings and
furniture. War is also having an impact on the rainforest, for example in Sierra Leone. When rainforests are
destroyed, so is all the precious plant and animal life, including human life.
Rainforests used to cover about
14% of the Earth’s surface,
but due to deforestation it is now thought they only
cover around 6%. Some scientists warn rainforests won’t
survive for more than the next 40 years.
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