Rain Forests at Risk T here is no other place in the world quite like a rain forest From the leaf litter on the ground to the tops of the trees towering above the forest is teeming with a fantastic display of plant and animal life On the floor of the forest among the ferns and buttress roots of the trees you will find thousands of species of insect centipede millipede and earthworm A few yards up strangler figs and lianas coil their way around the tree trunks creating aerial walkways for animals such as giant spiders tree frogs lizards and snakes High in the warm wet layer of the canopy a multitude of flowers fruits and seeds provide food for species including bats birds and monkeys Toucans live on the fruits of figs palms and passion plants Their continued existence is threatened by the destruction of the rain forests 4
The rain forests of the world are being threatened because they are cut down and burned by people who want to use the land for other purposes The rain forest is a truly incredible habitat supporting an enormous wealth of life But is this all about to be lost In the distance strange noises can be heard It is the sound of trucks and bulldozers making their way through the forest It is followed by a deadlier noise the sound of a chainsaw Soon the trees will start falling The plants that lived among them and the animals that lived on them will die Many will die out completely because they are found nowhere else on Earth The rain forests of the world are disappearing The rain forest has an enormous diversity of plants including many unique fern liana shrub and tree species 5
What Is a Rain Forest R ain forests are forests with tall trees a warm climate and lots of rain In most rain forests it rains nearly every day There are two types of rain forest tropical and temperate Tropical Rain Forests Tropical rain forests are found around the equator between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn They have rainfall from 60 100 inches 150 250 cm a year and the average temperature never drops below 64 F 18 C Temperate Rain Forests Temperate rain forests are found close to the ocean usually on the west coast of continents They have an annual rainfall of more than 55 inches 140 cm and an average temperature of between 39 54 F 4 12 C Tortoise beetles are found in rain forests throughout the world Rain forests are hot or mild places with lots of rain This stream flows through a temperate rain forest in Alaska 6
Central Africa holds the world’s second-largest tropical rain forest The island of Madagascar to the east of the continent is home to many unique plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth The rain forests of Asia stretch from India and Burma in the west to Malaysia and the islands of Java and Borneo in the east This map shows the location of the tropical and temperate rain forests in the world The forests once covered more than twice this area The Amazon Basin contains the world’s largest tropical rain forest It is home to the greatest variety of plants and animals on Earth In the Americas temperate rain forests are found between southeastern Alaska on the coast of British Columbia Canada to central California and in Chile and the south of Argentina They are also found in parts of Europe Taiwan China Japan southeastern Australia and southwestern New Zealand 7
