Tropical%20Rainforest%20Biome

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Tropical Rainforest Biome
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• What Biomes are unique regions of the world
  where the climate controls what type of soil
  forms there, animals life there and plants grow
  there
• Where The tropical Rainforest in Amazon Basin
• What aspects Climate,
• Vegetation, Soils and Animals

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• Climate

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• 3 Largest Rainforsts, South America, Africa, Asia
• 5 degrees NS of equator
• Equatorial Climate
• Suns angle - 90 to 66
• Direct sunlight avg temp 27 - range 2
• Highest temp 35- lowest 24 due to constant
  cloud cover
• Feels hotter due to high humidity up to 88
• Transpiration increase water
• vapour and high temp increases
• airs ability to hold water

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• Rainfall always in excess of 2500mm up to 6600mm
  in sumatra
• Rain is in short heavy downpours
• Strong winds shake the canopy
• Short term flooding but quickly soaks away
• Amazon Basin Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia
  and Brazil
• Congo Basin, Indonesia, Northern Aus

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• Soil

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• Latsol Tropical Rainforest
• Poor nutrients due to leaching by heavy rains
• Red in colour due to oxidation of Iron
• Very short nutrient cycle
• Nutrients found in living plants decomposing
  plant litter ( O Horizon)
• High Humidity and insects, bacteria ad fungi
  convert to humus quickly
• Plants absorb instantly 99 of nutrient held in
  plant roots

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• 5-8 of sunlight reaches forest floor
  undergrowth deprived of energy source
• Secondary enrichment creation of small mineral
  rich deposits
• Chemicl weathering and percolating water
  concentrate amounts of precious metals e.g.
  Bauxite
• Formed by leaching, common elements removed e.g.
  Calcium, silicon etc. Aluminium extremely
  insoluble so concentrates at surface as bauxite
• Also occurs with Iron, soluble iron is washed
  down and concentrated as haematite

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• Plant Life (Flora)

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• 4 layers
• Emergent,
• Canopy,
• Understory,
• Forest floor

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• Emergent
• 80m,
• far apart,
• umbrella shape above canopy,
• smallpointed leaves as exposed to strong wind
• Straight smooth branchless trunks
• Butress roots (up to 9m) to support height
• Hardwoods e.g. Teak Mahogany

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• Canopy
• 20-40m
• Thick lianas and epiphytes like mosses and
  orchids
• Orchids get inorganic nutrients from air and
  rainfall and live perched on branch joints
• Plant have leaves that can gather water in
  downpours but have drip trips to discard it
  before it becomes stagnant
• Some leaves can turn towards sun to absorb
  maximum sunlight

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• Understory
• Less than 3 of light reaches
• Dark environment
• Limited growth
• Short, leafy, non flowering shrubs, ferns and
  vines
• Adapted to filtered light and poor soil

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• Forest Floor
• Such limited light less than 1 of light- little
  growth
• Poor thin soils
• Dense vegetation where gap in canopy trees have
  fallen
• Lianas cling to branches of young plants
• Only most vigorous plants survive

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• Large fleshy fruits develop on trunk rather than
  branch tips so animals can reach them
• Epiphytes are plants that live on stronger plants
  depend on air to bring them moisture and
  inorganic nutrients e.g. Orchids
• Lianas wood vines, start as small shrubs and
  grow up tree trunks make up 40 of canopy leaves

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• Fauna (Animal Life)

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• Highly diverse
• Chameleon,
• jaguar,
• gorilla,
• macaw,
• sloth,
• forest elephant

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• 100 species per hectare
• 6km2
• 1500 plant species
• 750 tree species
• 400 bird species
• 250 butterfly species
• 100 reptile sepcies
• Larget Animals on ground floor e.g. Gorillas,
  Anteaters, wild boars
• Insects, spiders, birds, monkeys,
  
• reptiles and amphibians life
  canopy

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• Adaptations
• Birds have big beaks to break nuts and tough
  shells e.g. Toucan Parrot
• Ability to live in trees
• 27 of worlds bird species live there
• Bright colour deflect heat and attract mates
  during mating season
• Loud vocalisation- easy to communicate in dense
  vegetation
• Diets heavy on fruit

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• Camouflage one adaptation of animals
• E.g. Like a leaf
• Moths and insects look dead or like leaves to
  hide in foliage
• Abundant insects that in danger from predators
  e.g. Stick insects and tree frogs
• Animals use colour to warn predators but some are
  bluffing
• Poison arrow frog and snakes
• bright colour means danger

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• Body structure
• Flying foxes flap between front and back legs
  that allow it to glide long distances
• Tail can wrap around trees for support (prehensil
  tail) e.g. Lemur
• Sloths are covered in green algae that make them
  very hard to see

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• Tree trunk environment
• Woodpeckers drill holes in dead trees easy and
  soft
• Holes used as nests
• Living trees also used as the sap acts as
  irritant for snakes trying to reach nest
• Monkeys and birds also use these holes
• Pollination
• Plants use nectar to attract insects to aid
  pollination
• Kapok have fluffy tops that are dispersed by the
  wind
• (Kapok is an emerger so it needs wide
• dispersal to survive)

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Yanomami Tribe

• 32,000 in number
• 9.6m hectares
• Live in communal houses that sleep up of 400
• Men hunt 10 of food intake
• Women farm 60 crops up of 80 of food intake
• Decisions by consensus often long debates

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• 1940s first contact with outsiders
• Measles and flu killed many
• 1970s miliary govt built road through land 2
  villages wiped out by disease
• 1980s 40,000 gold miner invaded and 20 of
  Yanomami died in 7yrs
• Now over 1000 gold miners working illegally
• Malaria is being spread and mercury is polluting
  rives
• Cattle ranchers invading and
• deforesting in eastern fringe