Rainforest Fundamentals

Rainforest, You Are a Mystery!

Rainforests are the heart of this planet

When I was a child, I read a lovely story in one of my textbooks about the Amazon rainforest. It was about the big tall trees and the wildlife. At that time, I was in 3rd grade. But still, I can remember how happy I felt after reading that article.

The story featured an incredible photo where a giant bird was flying, and in its claw, there was a monkey hanging. As a child, that photo was a complete mystery for me.

“Can this bird eat me too?” I wondered.

What is a rainforest?

Rainforest is a type of forest where rain falls abundantly throughout the year, and it is crowded with tall evergreen trees and rich biodiversity.

There are two types of rainforests —

Tropical rainforest
Temperate rainforest

Tropical rainforests

Tropical forests occur where there is no dry season and average precipitation of at least 60 mm a month. They are found in Southeast Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, South America, Central America, Australia, and the Pacific Islands.

You will be surprised to know that these rainforests are called the “world’s largest pharmacy” as more than one-third of natural medicines get discovered there. Moreover, you will find 80% of the world’s documented species in these tropical rainforests.

But the shocking news is tropical rainforests fall victim to human greed and aggression and are being destroyed continuously. Though it used to cover 14% of the earth’s land surface, now that is reduced to only 6%.

Temperate rainforests

These are the types that grow on mountain ranges where precipitation occurs due to westerly winds. These areas experience drier summers though they experience heavy rainfall. And these rainforests have less biodiversity than tropical rainforests.

They are spread in North America, Europe, East Asia, South America, Australia, and New Zealand.

Some biggest rainforests

Let’s know the names of some popular and biggest rainforests.

Amazon Rainforest (South America)
Congo Rainforest (Africa)
Valdivian Temperate Rainforest (South America)
Daintree Rainforest (Australia)
Southeast Asian Rainforest (Asia)
Tongass National Forest (North America)
Pacific Temperate Rainforest (North America)
Sundarbans Reserve Forest (India & Bangladesh)

Rainforests provide water, air, food, shelter, medicine to thousands of species and keep the world livable. Tropical rainforests contain more than 30 million species of plants and animals. They are considered our best natural defense against climate change and global warming.

There are many interesting facts about rainforests as well. Do you know that it can take ten minutes for a falling raindrop to travel from a rainforest’s thick canopy to the floor? Isn’t it unbelievable?

Another surprising fact is 80% of the flowers in the Australian rainforests are not found anywhere else in the world.

Moreover, rainforests play a crucial role in maintaining the limited supply of the earth’s fresh water. They release oxygen to keep the planet functional and absorb carbon dioxide as well. They are the lungs of this planet.

Despite all these, we are continuously destroying the rainforests. We are logging, clearing trees for agriculture and cattle ranching, mining to extract oil and minerals, and mindlessly burning the plants and wildlife into ashes.

A scientific study reveals that rainforests that once served as the earth’s carbon sinks now release more carbon than they absorb. And it’s happening because of deforestation and forest loss caused by humans.

Don’t you think it’s your duty to speak for the rainforests? Because without them, we will be no more on this lovely earth.

Thank you for reading.

References

If you are a lover of the environment, nature, and wildlife, you may enjoy the following articles published in The Environment.

You can also share your love and concerns for this lovely planet. Just click the below image and write for The Environment