The rainforests of the world

The rainforests are dense forests that are located in areas that receive the highest rainfalls throughout the year. The rainforests are also home to more than 50% of the animals and plants available in our world. Because of the dense foliage, sunlight often does not penetrate to the ground level, leaving the forest floors pretty clear and walk able.

The rainforests developed on earth mainly due to what scientists call the monsoon trough, a weather pattern of winds converging to form a heavy rain band over certain locations. The rainforests can get up to 78mm of rain in the rainy season.

The rainforests are divided into two types based on their locations. The rainforests located in the tropics are called tropical rainforests. These include rainforests in South East Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, South America, Central America and the Pacific Islands.

Similarly the rainforests in the temperate regions are called temperate rainforests. These can be found in North America, Europe, East Asia, South America (Chile), Australia and New Zealand.

Common to all the rainforests is the dense forest. The Rainforests are actually divided into four layers based on the pattern and size of the trees. The top most layer consists of very tall trees called emergent that grow anywhere between 45 to 80 meters high. This layer, called the emergent layer for obvious reasons, is home to many birds in the rainforests like the eagle.

Below this layer comes the actual canopy of the rainforests formed by densely populated trees that grow up to 45 meters high. This layer is the richest in terms of flora and fauna, with exotic orchids like plants, insects and small animals etc. Because of height and density this layer has only been explored marginally by scientists.

Below the canopy, up to where the sunlight reaches, is the understory layer. It’s a world of shrubs and smaller tree with bigger leaves which make for the perfect hunting ground of predators like the big cats and snakes.

And the lowest layer is of course the floor of the rainforests. This is another world in itself, full of swaps crawling with snakes and crocodiles, exotic colorful plants, carnivorous plants, fungi, rats and other small animals. And do not forget the rainforests are also home to more than hundreds of tribes that have no connection to the outside world.

With only two seasons to boast – wet and dry – the rainforests are evergreen and do not wither away naturally without human disturbance or change in weather, both of which are becoming more and more rampant in recent years. Excessive deforestation has caused the rainforests to dwindle from occupying 15% of the earth to 7% at the present. Along with the rainforests, we are losing hundreds of plants with medicinal properties, animal and insects that play a major part in earth’s ecological balance. With the threat of global warming looming ahead, the fate of the world’s rainforests is now doubtful.