Miguel M. Block 1
Introduction
A Rainforest is Earth’s oldest living ecosystem. About ½ of the world’s plants and animals live in the rainforest. It used to cover 14% of the earth’s surface now it only covers 6% due to deforestation . Where is the rainforest? The rainforest is located in South America in Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana. The Amazon is in the northwest and southwest hemispheres. Its latitude and longitude range is 5o north-25o south and 70o west – 40o west.
Climate of the rainforest The climate here is humid and wet. The average temperature is 77oF. The climate zone is humid and the average rainfall is 180in.
Rainforest Layers Emergent Layer- This is the highest level in the level in the rainforest. The Trees reach from 180 to 200 feet in height. Birds, bats, butterflies and monkeys live in the emergent layer.
Canopy Layer- This layer is beneath the emergent layer. Limbs and leaves make a form of umbrella. Monkey and sloths live in this layer. Understory Layer- This layer is under the canopy. This layer provides camouflage for many species. Sloths, monkeys, and jaguars live in this layer. Forest floor- This layer is the ground layer. Almost no sunlight comes down here. Giant anteaters, beetles, frogs, lizards and snakes live in this layer. Kapok Tree The Kapok Tree grows up to 200 Ft. in height, 10 or 11 Ft. Diameter. Grows from forest floor to emergent layer. Its predator is Man. It is used in gum and jaw breakers.
Venus Fly Trap The Venus fly trap is a carnivorous plant, it lives in the forest floor. It has no predators. It’s used to catch insects.
Jaguar The Jaguar is tan or orange with black spots, there are also rare black jaguars. It lives in the understory layer. It has a short head and strong legs to catch prey. Its predator is human. Its Prey consists of armadillos, tapir, squirrels, birds and slugs.
Toucan The toucan is two Ft. tall with short necks. It lives in the canopy layer. It is an omnivore . They turn their heads and tuck their bills under the wings and tails. The Toucan’s predators are Humans, big cats, and the jaguar. Its prey consists of fruits, berries, smaller birds, lizards, bird eggs and rodents.
Food Web
This is a food web. It shows organisms that eat plants, animals, or both. It tells whether the animal is an herbivore , carnivore or omnivore.
The Yanomami tribe ‘. The Yanomami live in Brazil & Venezuela. Their population is 32,000. They’ve been living in the rainforest for thousands of years which means they are an indigenous tribe. Their territory is be ing shrunk down due to deforestation like mining, cattle ranching and farming. Their Brazilian territory is twice the size of Switzerland. Gold miners have transmitted diseases like malaria. The rivers and forest are getting polluted with mercury. Brazil could approve a bill that will let large scale mining run in indigenous territories. This could be harmful to many tribes including the Yanomami.
The Ticuna Tribe
The Ticuna territory is in the Colombia-Brazil frontier. Their population is 32,613. They are a very artistic tribe. They are good at basketry, wood and stone sculpture, and mask making. They also make bark cloth, a natural fiber that is paper like, they often paint on it. They incorporate the fabric in dolls and masks. They are one of the few Amazon tribes that paint. They have a rich culture. When a tribesman dies he/she is buried in a canoe. In the canoe they put stuff that the person will need in the afterlife. The ticuna are a isolated, nomadic group.
Saving the rainforest The rainforest is being deforested for mining, cutting trees for furniture and paper and also for farming and cattle ranching. People are conserving the rainforest by using its products without harming the fauna or flora , in other words, the wildlife. Ecotourism is when people travel to the rainforest to enjoy the exotic wildlife without harming it. Conclusion The rainforest is important because it contains about ½ of the world’s species of animals and plants. We should all join in and help save the rainforest. We can and we should, help even in the little things we do, like recycling or planting trees. We need to look into the future and wonder what would happen if the rainforest disappears. The decision is up to you. Will you help? If you are then we need to all work hard in saving the rainforest!
Sites used A special thanks to these websites for the useful information: For pictures: http://www.sodahead.com/united-states/isliberalism-killing-the-manly-man/question1279529/?page=38 http://www.amphi.com/teachers/crohrer/PeruA mazonAdventure2008.html http://www.interestingfacts.org/fact/toucanfacts http://virtualdesigns.biz/oats/the-ticuna-tribe
For information: http://indian-cultures.com/Cultures/ticuna.html http://www.survivalinternational.org/tribes/ya nomami
http://www.unique-southamerica-travelexperience.com/amazon-rainforest-animals.html http://www.tigerhomes.org/animal/layersrainforest.cfm
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/ rainforest/Edit560s6/www/animals/toucanpage .html http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/ mammals/jaguar/ http://www.unique-southamerica-travelexperience.com/kapok-tree.html http://mnnonline.org/article/9906