Tropical forests are located territorially at the equator and in the tropical zone of the globe. Their distinguishing feature is the multi-tiered and interweaving of vegetation branches among themselves. Because of this, being in such a forest, it is impossible to see sunlight. They are very rich in vegetation, especially all kinds of vines and epiphytes. Most of them are trees reaching heights of up to 40 meters. Plants are represented by more than one and a half thousand species, and there are more than 750 species of trees. The air temperature is 22-32 degrees year round, and precipitation falls from 1500 to 2000 mm.
No biome can boast such a variety of flora and fauna as rainforests. They are a storehouse of all kinds of plants, including medicinal ones, but because of the inaccessibility, many of these plants have not yet been studied by botanists. An interesting fact is that all the most valuable tree species come from precisely such forests.
The rainforests have given us many such plants and trees that we can’t do without, for example: bananas, coffee, citrus fruits, tea and Hevea. Unfortunately, more than half of the forests in the tropics have already been destroyed. The Congo basin and the adjacent territories to the Amazon, as well as the jungle of India, were very seriously affected by the intervention of the “master of nature” - man. Rainforests, which are more than 80 million years old, are being cut down with catastrophic speed today, and if people do not change their attitude to nature, then they can disappear forever.
The wildlife of the tropics is extremely diverse. About 100 species of mammals, the same number of reptiles, more than 400 species of birds, as well as rare amphibians live here. In the rainforests live hippos, elephants, rhinos, which are real giants of the animal world. And the monkeys! They are almost everywhere. People living in their neighborhood often suffer from the leprosy of these ubiquitous fidgets.
The unusual colors of hummingbirds can be found only in these places, and butterflies, almost the same size as them, pollinate tropical flowers. In the rivers you can find all kinds of crocodiles, a huge number of turtles and snakes, most of which are poisonous. Of the insects here you can find at almost every step ants and termites.
Tropical rainforests are common in the Amazon, in equatorial Africa, Indonesia, and Australia (Queensland). Up to 7000 mm of precipitation falls here per year, and the height of the trees reaches 60 meters. Tropical rainforests have from 4 to 5 tiers, each of which has its own inhabitants. A distinctive feature is that there are no bushes, and the trees have a very thin bark, the soil is covered with moss, but not everywhere. Decay processes occur very quickly due to high humidity. Nevertheless, all representatives of the flora and fauna feel great, because in the process of evolution they adapted to such living conditions.
In humid tropical forests live animals such as porcupines, possums, broad-nosed monkeys, sloths, armadillos. They live only in this biome, and most of them belong to rare species.
African rainforests are located in the Congo Basin and are also endangered. They are mercilessly cut down and planted with plantations, which the owners soon abandon due to depletion of the soil. More than 25, 000 plant species grow in these forests. African rainforests have many species of climbing animals and birds. These are gorillas, chimpanzees, baboons, monkeys, parrots, hoopoes. You can find in a large number of elephants and antelopes. The tropical forests of Africa are inhabited by the most undersized people - the pygmies. These unique representatives of homo sapiens learned to live in complete harmony with nature. They are engaged in hunting, gathering forest gifts and do not seek civilization. Their height reaches 1.4 meters, and they live in huts that protect them from rain. They are very characterized by constant migration.
