Journey through the rainforest

Transcription

1 Journey through the rainforest by Etruscan Primary School

2 Contents What is a rainforest? Rainforests of the world Why are rainforests important? Rainforest wildlife This book was made by the pupils in years 3 and 4 of Etruscan Primary School, Stoke-on-Trent It was made on 23 February 2012 with help from Rob Bowden. People and rainforests Threats to the rainforest Lifeworlds Learning

3 What is a rainforest? Emergent trees do not often grow close to each other as they need space for themselves. Different rainforests Did you know there a 2 types of rainforests the temperate and tropical? Tropical rainforests are found near the Equator,temperate rainforests are found along coasts in the temperate zone, such as pacific northwest of the USA. Both are endagered. High levels of rain mean that rainforests are damp and warm - perfect for rich plant life. What does the rainforest look like? This diagram shows the different levels of a rainforest. Rainforests are also known as tropical forests but are called rainforests because of their ridiculous amounts of rainfall. Rainforests cover about 6.25 million square km - about 5% of the Earth s land area. They once covered 14% of the Earth s land but many have been destroyed. Emergent trees grow higher than the Canopy trees of the rainforest. They are the biggest in the forest and can grow as tall as two hundred feet (60 metres). An emergent tree sticks up above the canopy level of the forest. Rainforests have annual rainfall of at least 100 inches (254 centimetres). that is deeper than the deep end of a normal swimming pool. Why is it called a rainforest? The reason that the rainforest is called the rain forest is because of the high amount of rainfall it gets per year. Rainforests are called the lungs of the planet for their role in absorbing carbon dioxide. These people show the size of the buttress roots of a giant emergent rainforest tree.

4 Rainforests of the world This map shows the equator area where tropical rainforests are found. Where are tropical rainforests? Tropical Rainforests are located around the equator, where the temperature stays between o C. The equator runs around the middle of the earth through lots of different countries. Above the Equator is the Tropic of Cancer and below the Equator is the Tropic of Capricorn. Between these two Tropics that s were you will find tropical rainforests. In these tropical areas the climate is hot and wet with heavy rainfall all year round. This is perfect for rainforests. Which countries are rainforests in? The rainforests in the world are in South America, Central Africa, and lots of parts of South East Asia. The biggest rainforest in the world is the Amazon which is found in South America. The second is in the Congo in Africa. In Asia there are rainforests in Burma, India, Malaysia, Borneo and on the island of Java. The Amazon rainforest is the largest and most important in the world. The Amazon rainforest covers an enormous area of South America and is mostly in Brazil. What height are rainforests found at? Land around the world is at different heights above sea level. At different heights above sea level there is different vegetation. Tropical rainforests are between 0 and 500 metres above sea level. The vegetation at this height will be tall trees and lush, dense plants. The size of rainforests 150 million years ago rainforest first grew, these ancient forests were packed with giant conifer trees that dinosaurs once ate. At that time they covered about 12% of the earth s surface. Today the total size of rainforests is only 5.3% of the earth s surface. Brazil has most of the rainforests about one third of the total area. The rest of the rainforest are spread all around the world in places such as Africa and South Asia.

5 Why are rainforests important? Wildlife and plants Rainforests are important because they provide a home for wildlife and many different plants. They have more plants and animals than any other habitat on Earth. M The Rafflesia flower is the biggest flower in the world and is one of the many species that need rainforests to survive. The Amazon river snakes its way through the Amazon rainforest. Rainforest plants and wildlife are important to the people living in and around them because they provide them with food, medicines and other useful things. Helping us to survive Rainforests are important because together they supply the world with about 40 per cent of the oxygen in the atmosphere. This is important as all living organisms need oxygen to breathe. Rainforests are also important because they take carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) from the air. CO 2 is one of the gases responsible for climate change. The rainforests help to reduce how much CO 2 is in the atmosphere. Rainforests take in CO 2 and give out oxygen. This helps all living things on Earth to survive. Many people live in the rainforests and use it to survive. These are called indigenous people. The tiger is one of the biggest animals to live in rainforests in Asia. IT is threatened by people clearing the forests for other uses.

6 Rainforest wildlife Birds like parrots live in the emergent layer. Where does wildlife live? In the Emergent layer of the rainforest, you can find eagles, bats, monkeys and butterflies. These animals are suited to this layer of the rainforest because bats butterflies and eagles have wings and the monkeys have room to swing about. In the Canopy layer of the rainforest, the animals you can find are snakes, toucans and treefrogs. Tree frogs like the shade and damp of the forest. These animals are suited to this layer of the rainforest because toucans will have a nice shaded shelter, treefrogs and snakes like a gloomy, damp home. In the Under story you will find animals including Jaguars, red eyed tree frogs and leopards. What makes the animals suited to this layer is, jaguars and leopards have a dark place to hunt their prey and tree frogs get plenty of water. In the Forest floor layer of the rainforest, the animals you will find are anteaters and gorillas. What makes the animals suited to this layer is, the anteater can suck up the ants down in the ground and the gorillas because they can have a big space to walk around. Gorillas live on the forest floor Deforestation and wildlife Deforestation is the cutting down of trees. Animal s habitats are being destroyed by deforestation and some species may not survive. Deforestation can also affect the land of the forest causing eroison and damage to the environment that animals need. This is a Blue Morpho butterfly. Orangutan s live in Indonesia and are under threat from deforestation in their habitats. This is a Toucan. Scientists have not discovered every animal in the rainforests yet.

7 People and rainforests People survive in the rainforests by using them to find food to eat. They do this by looking in trees and bushes for berries and for things like honey from bees. People also eat rainforest animals and catch them by hunting. They want to save the rainforest because it looks after them, so they care for it and only take what they need. This man is climbing a tree to collect honey. People grow crops in areas of cleared rainforest. This is rubber which is collected from trees by some rainforest people to sell or use. These are tribal people who live in the rainforests and survive by using the rainforest. These rainforest people are preparing to hunt with their bows and arrows. What kind of people live in the rainforest? Tribal people are natives of the rainforest. These kinds of people are very different to the city people. Their lifestyle is not the same way as city people - there are no shops, electricity and cars for example. What do rainforest people do? Rainforest people use the forest for their needs. As well as hunting they may use it for other things like making clothes and using forest materials like wood and plants to make their homes. This man is making a canoe from a rainforest tree.

8 Threats to the Rainforest Cutting down the forests When the rainforest is cut down it is called logging. The people cut down the tree so that they or their governments can make lots of money. After the loggers cut down the trees they put the wood on the lorry and then take it to the factories. They use the wood to make furniture, build houses and for burning as a fuel. Some of the wood is sold to different countries. Loading logs cut down from the rainforest to be taken for export or to a factory. One and one-half acres of rainforest are lost every second. A giant tree is cut down. Loss of habitat Loss of Habitat means that the rainforest is destroyed and organisms that live in the rainforest reduce in numbers. The animals and organisms need to find a new residence and food source because they will have to move to a different part of the forest. It is important that you don t destroy the habitat because eventually the rainforest will be unable to support the species that are already there. Burning the forests Rainforest communities burn small patches of land to grow crops. They grow crops such as pineapples, mangoes, nuts, bananas, coffee, rice and potatoes. They use some for themselves and also sell some produce. Fire is used to clear rainforests for people to grow things, but can also destroy forests. Farming in the forests Landowners may burn forests to create areas for farming. Rainforest products include rubber, coffee, sugar, palm oil as well as timber including mahogany and teak for furniture. Seven per cent of the world s paper pulp also comes from rainforests. Climate change Scientists have agreed that the climate of the world is changing. This means that there has been a change in temperatures, rainfall and sea levels. Lots of carbon dioxide is very bad for our world but rainforests can help. The Amazon rainforest has been described as the lungs of our Planet because it continuously recycles carbon dioxide into oxygen. Nearly half of the Threats to wildlife world s species of plants, animals and microorganisms Humans are a threat to will be destroyed or many animals that live in threatened over the next rainforest. Many species 25 years due to rainforest of parrots have become destruction. extinct because hunters have killed them all. Due to logging the jaguar has had the habitat it lives in destroyed. Food sources for many animals are becoming more scarce so it is harder for the animals to survive. These are palm nuts used to make palm oil. Top Tips to save the rainforest! Turn down the heating to help reduce climate change. Recycle to save the world s resources. Re-use furniture so that we don t run out of wood. Use recycled paper to save trees.