Let's go on an adventure in the Tropical Rainforest!

The Animals in the Layers of the Tropical Rainforests

Hello kids, today we will explore a Tropical Rainforest! We will see all of the beautiful and colorful animals that make up one tree in the rainforest. The types of animals that make up one single tree make up its own little ecosystem, because there are many layers to the rainforests. These layers consist of the forest floor, understory layer, canopy layer and the emergent layer from the bottom to the top (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Layers of the Rainforest (2)

FOREST FLOOR

 

Figure 2. Forest Floor (3)

While walking on the forest floor, you will notice a lot of green grasses and vines all around you. There is also a waterfall straight ahead and a river running down beside us. There are many different water dwelling animals that inhabit the rainforest. One of these is known as the tapir (Figure 2, top right corner), which kind of looks like a hippopotamus (3). There are also many types of beautifully colored birds that are flying around and walking along the floor. The last type of animal seen a lot in this layer are snakes (Figure 1, bottom). You always have to watch your step when walking through these areas because the snakes can come out of nowhere. According to Kranking, "the biggest anacondas (snakes) can be almost as long as schoolbuses" (3). This is a very large animal, but it is very good at disguising itself within its surroundings. Some other animals that occupy this area include many types of reptiles, mammals and butterflies (1).

Figure 3. Understory (3)

UNDERSTORY

The next layer above the forest floor is known as the understory. This area contains a lot of the animals found living in the smaller shrubs. This layer contains a lot of shrub species and tree species that do not occupy the canopy layer, along with leaf litter that falls from the trees (3). These include the spider monkeys, chimpanzees and other primates (Figure 3). Leaf cutter ants and other insects are also found in this layer. One important insect found in this layer is the honey bee. These are important insects that pollinate the flowering trees to get the pretty colored flowers we see all around (1). These animals are not fixed within the layers, they can usually easily move between the different layers.

Figure 4. Canopy Layer (3)

 CANOPY LAYER

This layer of the forest contains the widest selection of types of animals (1). The trees in this layer can grow from 60 to 150 feet tall (3). This area is more exposed to sunlight than the other areas because it is above them, but it also consists of very tall, shady trees. The sloth (Figure 4) is one type of mammal that is found in this layer. Some other animals are colorful, poisonous frogs and birds, such as toucans (Figure 4). Many of the animals that are found in this layer can move between the different trees found within the canopy, so they either fly around or crawl around the tree branches.

EMERGENT LAYER

Figure 5. Emergent Layer (3)

The last layer is called the emergent layer. This is the section of the rainforest on top of all the rest. The trees that are found in this layer can grow up to 250 feet tall and they develop certain leaves to protect them from drying out from direct sunlight (3). This area of the tropical rainforest is at the very top, so it shades the rest of the forest layers. There are a lot of types of birds and animals that can easily fly or crawl in these tall heights of the forest.


Now that you have walked through a tropical rainforest and saw all of the animals and plants, I hope you have gained an appreciation for how many different living things there are out there. Next time you see shows on television or hear anyone talk about tropical rainforests, you kids can say that you have visited and learned a lot of information about them!

For more information about our field trip, please watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEsV5rqbVNQ

References

(1) BioExpedition. (2015a). Tropical rainforest biome. Retrieved from: http://www.bioexpedition.com/tropical-rainforest-biome/

(2) Day 3: The layers of the rainforest (n.d.). http://the-amazon-rainforest.weebly.com/day-3.html

(3) Kranking, K. (n.d.) Visit a rainforest. Retrieved from National Wildlife Federation:
      https://www.nwf.org/Kids/Ranger-Rick/Animals/Mixture-of-Species/Visit-A-Rainforest.aspx