Dry-Land Environments – Rain Forests
Our Earth has many different environments. Some of these are water environments and some are dry-land. Each environment has its own climate, animals, and plants. The dry-land environments include deserts, grasslands, rain forests, and forests. Let’s investigate rain forests!
Rain Forests
Rain forests are found in the Earth’s tropical regions near the equator. The climate is very warm and rainfall is plentiful. Tropical soils are red and yellow but they are not rich in nutrients. Because of this, the roots of plants grow near the surface where they get nutrients from the remains of dead plants and animals.
Plants
The warm climate and heavy rainfall of the rain forest creates an environment that plants love. It is home to more kinds of plants than anywhere else on Earth. The trees grow very tall in the rain forest so that their leaves can get sunlight. The tops of these trees join together to form a canopy of leaves like a huge umbrella. Under the canopy, on the rain forest floor, smaller trees, shrubs, palms, mosses and ferns grow in the humid shade.
It’s Elementary!
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SOL 3.6, Part 6 Living Systems
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Dry-Land Environments – Rain Forests
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Animals
The rain forest is also home to many animal populations. A population is a group of living things, like gorillas, that live together in one place. More kinds of animals live there than anywhere else on Earth. It is filled with snakes, lizards, frogs, insects, fish, birds, and mammals. Most of the animals live in the tree top canopy of the forest. Food is easier to find there than on the forest floor. This leafy environment is full of insects like the monarch butterflies; birds like the colorful toucan and macaw; mammals like the chimpanzee and the gorilla; and reptiles like the vine snake and the iguana.
Beneath the canopy is a cool, shady environment called the understory. Animals in the understory include insects like beetles and bees, snakes, lizards, and small tree climbing mammals. Some larger animals, like jaguars, spend most of their lives on branches in the understory, looking for prey.
The floor of the forest is also full of life. Insects and spiders like the tarantula fly and crawl through the dense mosses and ferns. Fearsome fish like the piranha also live in the rain forest. They swim in the rivers and streams that flow across the forest floor. Some of the largest animals in the rainforest also live here, including gorillas, anteaters, jaguars, and people!
The plants and animals that live in the rain forests form a community. A community is all of the populations that live together in one place.