What is a Rainforest? Rainforests are very dense, warm, wet forests. They are havens for millions of plants and animals. Rainforests are extremely important in the ecology of the Earth. The plants of the rainforest generate much of the Earth's oxygen. These plants are also very important to people in other ways; many are used in new drugs that fight disease and illness.

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Animals of the Rainforests An incredible number of animals live in rainforests. Millions of insects, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals call them home. Insects are the most numerous animals in rainforests. Tropical rainforests have a greater diversity of plants and animals than temperate rainforests or any other biome. In temperate rainforests, most of the animals are ground dwellers and there are fewer animals living in the forest canopy.

Rainforest Animal Sounds

 What happens when Rainforests are cut down?

Last Songbirds Songbirds, which help farmers in the U.S. by eating insects, can no longer winter in tropical forests.	Forest People Forest people lose their homes, their culture, and sometimes their lives. Their knowledge of the forest is lost.	Changed Climate Burning huge areas of rainforest releases carbon, causing changes in wind currents and rainfall around the world.	Extinction Thousands of species of rainforest animals and plants are lost forever.
Undiscovered Medicines Plants that might provide new medicines and products become extinct before they can be studied.			Changed Water Cycle Without the rainforest to soak up rain and release it slowly, floods and droughts become more common.
Scarce Products Rainforest products become scarce and expensive.	Gene Pool The main gene pool on earth is largely lost. Scientists could use the gene pool to develop new products and improve the world's basic food crops.	Greenhouse Effect Burning the forest adds to the greenhouse effect. Carbon dioxide traps heat in the lower atmosphere. This may cause global warming.	Soil Erosion Soil becomes eroded, dry, and sour. The land becomes a desert.

 

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