Rainforest

Introduction to the Rainforest

Climate: Seasons do not change in tropical rainforests. The average temperature is about 80 degrees year-round. Tropical rainforests are the wettest places on earth and rain averages 100 to 400 inches a year.\ There is no dry season, and rain falls just about every day. The climate that the Rainforst has is labled as an Equatorial climate: A climate with no defined summer or winter. Sources: Mary Ciucci, Colleen McCartney, and Amy Warren. //Rainforest Climate//, University of Richmond; 1997. Thinkquest Team, //Climate in the Tropical Rainforest.// 1999 Anthony Pelone/Dan Stollman Where Tropical Rainforests are located: Central America, The Amazon, Central Africa, Southern Asia, and Australia. Source: MT and PK Productions, //Learning about Rainforests.// Dan Stollman

Threats facing the rainforest: The biggest, and only, threat to the Rainforest is the ranching logging, and razing expansions that permanently destroy areas of the rain forest, and already more then half of them have been lost forever. The reasons for this are mainly economic, since demand for tropical timber is high and the trees themselves sustain many uses such as furniture, electricity and medicine. While some forests are under protection, humongous sets of acres are destroyed every year (about the size of 21 million football fields). To make things worse, rainforest soil wears out quickly, so plots of rainforest land are wasted thanks to impatient farmers. Anthony Pelone Sources: The Nature Conservatory, //Rainforests at Risk// National Geographic, //Rain Forest Threats.// 1996-2009

A picture that represents the rainforest:

Source: Clementoni, //Rain Forest//. Puzzle House, 1998-2009.

Anthony Pelone Spider Monkey Scientific name: Ateles geoffroyi Life Cycle: When the baby is born, it is dependent on its mother for about a year, living on milk and eventually solid foods. It lives with the mother until it is between 4-5 years old and becomes independent. It lives in the wild for about 27 years. Reproduction Cycle: A female spider monkey can give birth between the ages of 4 and 5 years old, and males are sexually active around the same age. The female is pregnant for a period that lasts between 226-232 days, and one baby is born. Eating Habits: They eat the soft parts of fruits and their seeds, along with leaves, flowers, roots, and honey. While mainly herbevourous, they might eat insects and bird eggs. Three Interesting Facts: Sources: //Spider Monkey//, The Honolulu Zoo Animal Pictures, Ossian; Jungle Walk. Anthony Pelone

Bromeliads Scientific Name: Vriesea ensiformis Life Cycle: Bromeliads grow in a spiral formation that are known as rosettes. After blooming, they produce offspring that will continue to grow, but the original Bromeliad remains as it is. The offspring feeds off the mother plant until they can survive separately; the mother will live on for a generation. Eating habits: Like all flowers, bromeliads absorb water, but they also gain their nutrients from minerals that are in the air and water. Reproductive cycle: Bromeliads are asexual, and produce offspring by themselves when they bloom. Three interesting facts: 1. Bromeliads are very popular plants to keep at home. 2. Certain animals such as tree frogs and mosquitos use the bromeliad as a home. 3. Most bromeliads are native to Americas, but some are found in rain forests. Sources: (picture) Smitsonian National Zoological Park Chapman, Polly. //Beautiful Bromelaids//, Ledger Dispatchl, November 2004. Howard, Frank. //Bromeliad Biota//; The University of Floria Portland Nursery

Anthony Pelone

Katydids Scientific Name: Tettigoniidae Life cycle: Katydids hatch from eggs, and have the appearance of an adult. As they grow older, their exoskeletons are shed and continue to molt. As they molt into adulthood, they grow wings and live for about a year; they cannont live through the winter. Eating Habits: They mostly eat leaves, but are known to eat parts of flowers and dead insects. Occasionally, they hunt slow moving insects and insect eggs. Reproductive Cycle: Females mate in the summer and lay eggs in the ground, which last through the winter and hatch in spring. Three Interesting Fats: 1. Grouped males will call out together for females. 2. They have excellent camoflague for avoiding protection, and spend most of their time in bushes. 3. Katydids are hard to detect, but their loud calls give them away. Sources: BioKIDS, //Katydids//, University of Michigan; 2002-2009 Ramsey, Damon. //Katydids//, Chambers Wildlife Rainforest Lodges; Tropical North Queensland, Austrailia.

Anthony Pelone

Tiana Weldon Name-Chimpanzee Common Name- Chimp Genus-Pan Species-troglodytes Life Cycle- Chimpanzee live Africa, rainforest,woodlands,grassland,and trees. The life cycle of the chimpanzee is embryo-young animal adult.Chimpanzee are about 3 to 5 feet tall and weigh from 99 to 176 pounds. They have black hair, infants have pink faces which turns darker as they age, they also have a white tail tuft. Adult chimpanzee are often bald and chimpanzee don't own tails. Newborns are helpless at birth and usually stick with their mother. They ride on their backs and stick to their lil bit of hair. Reproductive Cycle- Chimpanzee reach puberty when they are about seven years of age, and the females mature about three to four years later after the female gives birth they can not breed for three to four years and can reproduce up to the age 40. The life span of a chimpanzee is about 60 years. Eating Habits- Fruits,young Leaves,Insects, Ants,Stems, Bark, Buds &Blossoms, Honey, Seeds, Nuts, Galls, and resins. Once in the blue moon they will hunt small games such as monkeys and pigs. Three Interesting Facts: [] By:Tiana Weldon- Chimpanzee Scientific Name: Panthera Onca || Reproduction Cycle: The jaguar is belived to mate throughout the year in the wild. The female will go through a 37 day estrous cycle where they will then give birth to a usual four cubs. Life Cycle: The cubs are born blind but gain sight after two weeks. The cub will remain with the mother for about 1 to 2 years until they will have to learn to fend for themselves. The jaguar has a lifespan around 12-15 years. What they eat: The jaguar is a carnivore and will only eat meat. They have been known to have eaten 87 different species. Some of these species are deer, dogs, foxes, anacondas, mice, monkeys, and turtles. 3 interesting facts: || 1. Jaguars can have different melanism in their species and can vary from a spotted jaguar, a black jaguar, and a white jaguar. 2. The jaguar has a very powerful bite that is strong enough to crack a animals skull in one bite. 3. The jaguar is at the top of its food chain and greatly helps to regulate the population levels of its prey. Sources: Wikipedia Dan Stollman
 * chimpanzee are listed as endangered species
 * Chimp communties are made up of 15-100 members
 * Chimps forage on the ground
 * [[image:800px-Jaguarwater.jpg width="338" height="270"]]
 * Common Name: Jaguar



 scientific name 
 * Rafflesia Arnoldii

Life cycle:The plant is a parasite. It is totally dependent on a vine called tetrastigma. Rafflesia has no roots, stem or leaves of its own, so it drains nourishment from the vine it lives on, and is physically supported by it. Before it flowers, it consists of strands of fungus-like tissue that grow inside the vine. Eating habits:Some tropical rainforest plants are carnivorous They have a cavity filled with either sweet or terrible smelling nectar that attracts insects, especially ants and flies. Inside, the sides are steep and lined with downward pointing hairs. Insects enter and lose their footing or are prevented from leaving because of the hair. Reproductive cycle:in the center of the flower is a large cup with a spiked disc in it underneath the disk are either stamens or stigmas depending if the plants male or female the flower must attract flies and beetles to go inside and under the disk so they can take the pollen away to another rafflesia flower so that new plants can be formed. intresting facts: 1. the plant is a parasite 2.the plant is a carnivore 3.largest plower in the world. sources:kidcyber.com mike mcdowell.

Scientific Name: Thersites mitchellae Common Name: Mitchell's Rainforest Snail Reproduction Cycle: Not much is known about its breeding habits but researchers have found that it lays small white eggs below the surfaces of leaf litter. Life Cycle: The rainforest snail lives on the lowland of the rainforest and usually seen on the allusive soils. Researchers have had trouble in the past studying the snails since it is now classified as extremely rare. It usualy shelters during the day and is active at night. Eating Habits: The rainforestt snail is herbivorous and feeds on leaf litter, fungus and lichen. 3 interesting facts: 1. The rainforest snail helps to maintain a moist microclimate and a source of leaf litter. 2. It has a large shell up to 55 mm wide and 50 mm high. 3.Since the rainforest snail is extremely rare it has been classified an endangered species. Dan Stollman Sources: Australian Government: Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts

Harpy Eagle __(Harpia harpyja)__ The Harpy Eagle can be found in and near the rainforests of Central and South America. Their diet consists of sloths, monkeys, and other small mammals.  They live in large areas of the rainforest and the clearings next to them. Harpy Eagles will grow to be approximately 35 - 41 inches. The female Harpy Eagle will lay 1 or 2 eggs in a 2 - 3 -They are considered to be one of the most powerful and largest eagles in the world. -They can only fly with prey with half there weight. -They are highly manuevarable fliers. -Brandon Heil

Leafcutter Ant __(Genus: Atta and Acromymex)__ Leafcutter Ants are located in Southwestern United States, Central and South America. They cut pieces of leaves or grass with strong jaws, then use the plant matter to grow their own fungus which they eat.  Leafcutter Ants live in nests in forests and agricultural areas, mostly in tropical areas. These ants range in size from .1 to .65 inches. The queen ant lays eggs in the nest, the eggs eventually hatch and become larvae. The larvae pupate and become adults. -They consume a 5th of the area they are found in. -They actually don't eat the leaves they cut. -They have powerful jaws that vibrate thousand times a second. -Brandon Heil

<span style="font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;">Strangler Fig <span style="font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;">Scientific Name: Ficus watkinsiana <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Times New Roman,serif;">Stranglers begin life in the forest canopy. When animals drop or excrete the seeds of a strangler fig, the seeds germinate and grow into an epiphyte (or plant that lives on other plants). It merely uses the host tree to get closer to the sunlight and rain, and finds nutrients in decaying leaves and soil caught in nooks of the host tree's branches. This is a case of commensalism: one organism benefits while the other is unaffected. Once the fig has established itself on the host tree, it begins to send down root tendrils, which can either dangle freely or wrap around the host tree's trunk. These roots grow at an average pace of 5 meters per year, and can take several years to reach the ground, depending upon the height of the host tree. When the roots reach the soil and begin taking in nutrients from it, the plant becomes known as a hemi-epiphyte <span style="font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Calibri,sans-serif;"> -Figs are one of the most important plant species of a rainforest ecosystem. <span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia,serif;">-There are close to 1,000 different species <span style="font-size: 11pt; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Georgia,serif;">-Figs are considered a "keystone" species because they are so important to the animals of the rainforest. -Brandon Heil <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> <span style="font-size: 240%; font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;"> <span style="font-family: Impact,Charcoal,sans-serif;"> Toucan **Genus:** Pamphastos <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> **
 * Species:** Toco

Classification:** Kingdom Animalia, Phylum Chordata, Class Aves, Order Piciformes, Family Ramphastidae, Genus Ramphastos, Species //R. sulfuratus//. Interesting facts: ** + Toucans usually live in pairs or groups called flocks. + Their nests are in holes in trees. + They talk to each other using toad likes noises. <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"> Chris Peirce** [] []
 * Anatomy:** The toucan is about 20 inches (50 cm) long. The toucan's enormous bill is up to one-third of its length. The bill is brightly colored, light-weight, and edged with toothed margins. It has four toes on each foot; two toes face forwards and two face backwards. Males are slightly larger than females, but their coloration is similar.
 * Diet:** Toucan eat mostly fruit, but also eat bird eggs, insects, and tree frogs. Toucans swallow fruit whole and then regurgitate the seeds; this disperses viable (living) seeds in the forest.
 * Reproduction:** Females lay 1 to 4 white eggs in each clutch (a set of eggs laid in one nesting period). The eggs are laid in a hollow tree cavity. Both parents incubate the eggs, and both parents feed the chicks.
 * <span style="font-family: Georgia,serif;">

Coconut Tree

Life Cycle
 * Genus:** Cocos
 * Species:** Nucifera