Tropical Rain Forests PDF
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Summary
This document describes tropical rain forests, their location in various countries, and the characteristics like high rainfall and biodiversity. It also details the adaptations of various animals in these forests, such as the Toco Toucan, big cats, elephants, red-eyed frogs, and monkeys, highlighting their structural and behavioral adaptations to the rainforest environment.
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## Tropical Rain Forests - **Location** : Found in India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil, Republic of Congo, Uganda and Nigeria. - **Characteristics:** - High rainfall results in poor soils because of leaching of soluble nutrients. - Home to two-thirds of all living animal and plant species on...
## Tropical Rain Forests - **Location** : Found in India, Malaysia, Indonesia, Brazil, Republic of Congo, Uganda and Nigeria. - **Characteristics:** - High rainfall results in poor soils because of leaching of soluble nutrients. - Home to two-thirds of all living animal and plant species on earth. - Hundreds of millions of undiscovered plant, insect and microorganism species. - Average temperature of 20-25°C. - Annual rainfall exceeding 2,000 mm. - **Examples:** - Amazon jungle is the world's largest tropical rain forest. - Central Africa holds the world's second largest rain forest. ## Adaptation By Animals Of The Tropical Rain Forests - **Toco Toucan:** - Large, orange colored 20 cm beak. - Large black spot near tip. - Uses the beak to skin fruit and scoop water. - **Big Cats (Lion, Tiger, Leopard):** - Predominant predators of rainforests. - Flexible and strong bodies for running, jumping and climbing. - Short intestines specialized for digesting meat. - Sharp teeth, ideally suited for tearing flesh. - Hunt at night, able to see six times better than humans. - **Elephant:** - Adapted to the conditions of the tropical rainforests. - Nose and upper lip fused to form a trunk with 150,000 muscles. - Functions of the trunk: - Grasping shrubs and food. - Placing food in mouth. - Breaking tree branches. - Breathing (acts as a snorkel.). - Sucking and drinking water. - Bathing. - Detecting odors. - Poor eyesight, but elephants can smell water from great distances. - Can hear sounds from distances greater than 1.5 km. - **Red-Eyed Frog:** - Adapted to rainforest conditions with long limbs perfect for climbing. - Sucker pads on feet for clinging to wet leaves and branches. - Provides better traction on various objects. - **Monkeys:** - Some monkeys have long prehensile tails for grasping branches. - Long arms and legs help them to swing from branch to branch. - Fingers and toes act like hooks, for gripping branches. - **Lion-tailed Macaque:** - Shiny black fur with long grey white hair around the face. - Long tail with a tassel at the end resembling a lion's tail. - Communicates using 17 different vocal patterns. - Possesses cheek pouches, extending down the neck. - Used to store food, equivalent to the size of their stomach. - Gather food quickly. ## Climate and Adaptation - **Climate** : The average weather in a particular region over a long period of time. - **Adaptation** : A trait that makes an animal suited to its environment. - **Examples of adaptation:** - **Moving in large groups:** A behavioral adaptation. - **Thick fur coat of a polar bear:** A structural adaptation - Adaptations often occur over a long period of time.
