Tropical Rainforest
By: Imari Jones & Alex Cook
Climate
- The climate is typically the same all year.
- It is warm and lush, It will be 70 to 85 degrees and stays that way day and night.
- When it rains,the rain will fall from the trees and evaporates as rain somewhere else.
- The amount of rain that falls a year is from 80-400 inches.
- So it is pretty wet year round.
Bromelia
- Are related to the pineapple family.
- Leaves are thick and waxy and form a bowl in the middle of the flower that can hold rainwater.
- Can be used as small ecosystems for animals like frogs, salamanders, snails, beetles, and many other living things.
- When the things that are living inside the plant die decompose and provide the plant with nutrients.
Strangler
- Most stranglers are a part of the fig family.
- The seed of a strangler fig starts as high up in the trees, then sends down long roots that grow to surround and suffocate the host tree leaving the a strangler with a hollow core.
- Uses a preexisting tree to use as a host and gather all the light and nutrients that is needed.
Pitcher Plant
- It is similar to Bromeliad plants.
- The Pitcher Plant leaf is actually disguised as a trap that holds liquid used to drown insects.
- The size of the plants vary from 4-5 inches to 24 inches.
- Certain species of frogs and mosquitos can live in the liquid without being harmed by the plant.
Macaw
- They are usually found in South and Central America
- They are on the endangered species list because their numbers are declining from people capturing them as pets, and destruction of rainforests.
- They have sharp hooked beaks which are for eating nuts,fruits,and seeds.
- Their feet have a strong grip so it can grasp easy.
Toucan
- They are found in the South and Central America.
- The toucan is very important to the rainforest because they help to disperse seeds from the fruits and berries they eat.
- Also In there diet they eat small birds and lizards.
- Their bill is used to squash berries and other fruits.
Sloth
- They are also in the South and Central America.
- They are extremely slow moving animals.
- Some sloth's stay in the same tree for years.
- Their claws and long arms allow them to hang upside-down on the trees.
- They have very slow metabolism so they don't each much food.
- They usually eat fruit,leaves,buds,and young twigs.
Soil Conditions
- Many years of weathering and relentless rainfall have washed most of the nutrients of the soil.
- The soil of Tropical Rainforest contain less organic matter and most organic material is found in the living plant and animal material.
- When a tree dies in the tropical rainforest all the plants absorb the nutrients before it has a chance to be washed away.