Competition and Relationships

Mutualism is when both organisms benifit from something they both do to stay alive. There are many examples of mutualism in the rain forest, but the best example is between the capuchin monkeys and the flowering trees. The monkey feeds on the nectar of the flowers and when doing so it collects pollen on its face. Eventually, when the monkey feeds off of other flowers it is also transfers the pollen in the process. The monks benefits because he receives the nectar and the flowers benefit because they are reproducing.

Parasitism is when one organism benefits but the other is harmed. In the rain forest there ia a parasitic relationship between the leaf cutter and the phorid fly. When the ant is collectiong leaves is when the fly attacks. the fly plants its egs in the ants head, after the eggs hatch they new born flies borrow and feed on the ants body, thus killing the ant.

Commensalism is when one organism benefits and the other does not but it is also not harmed. The army ants walk all over the rain forest floor as the antbird flies above following the swarm of ants. The antbird follows the swarm of ants feeding on what ever the ants leave behind for the birds.

In the rain forest plants compete for sunlight so that have energy to grow and go through photosynthesis. Plants also compete for water to grow and go through the process of photosynthesis. 

Climate Information

In the tropical rainforest there are two distinct seasons, winter and summer. In the winter season the temperature rarely drops below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius. During the summer season the temperature rarely gets above 80 degrees Fahrenheit. What makes this biome so mild is having the ocean on one side and contains on the other. The ocean water releases hate during the winter making coastal areas warmer and absorbs heat in the summer making the coastal areas cooler. The tropical rainforests have long wet winters and short dry summers.

Food Web and Energy Pyramid

A food web is a diagram that shows the flow of energy within a certain ecosystem. This is an example of a food web of a few organisms in the tropical rainforest. It starts withe the producers: The orchids, seeds, banana, cocoanut, and bamboo trees. Then it moves to the next trophic level which are the primary consumers: the macaws, fruit bats, monkeys, and grasshoppers. Next are the secondary consumers: The vampire bats, iguanas, and frogs. Lastly there are the terry consumers: the python, and the jaguar. An energy pyramid is a diagram in the shape of a pyramid that shows the loss of 90% of the original energy as you move up the food chain. This is an example of an energy pyramid:

(and yes i did draw this using Microsoft paint)

Citations Page

citations Page

http://www.rainforestconcern.org/rainforest_facts/why_are_they_being_destroyed/

Nitrogen Cycle

Nitrogen Cycle in the Tropical Rainforest

Nitrogen is a necessary element for all living things. In the tropical rainforest the nitrogen cycle goes like this: Firstly the nitrogen in the atmosphere has to be fixed so that it can be used, so tiny nitrogen fixing bacteria in the soil and in the nodules in plants roots. When a plant dies it puts nitrogen back into the soil and water, or when an herbavore or carnivore dies or poops, the nitrogen is also returned. Then the Plants absorbs the nitrogen back in from the soil and the cycle starts again. Until denitrifying bacteria return it to the atmosphere. Where it all starts again.

Water Cycle

The Water Cycle in the Rain Forest

The water cycle in the rainforest is actually very similar to the water cycle everywhere else, except for that when it rains in the tropical rainforest some of the water is intercepted by the flag in the trees at the canopy level. Lets say the cycle starts when it rains, so it rains and some of the  water is soaked into the ground and some of it is intercepted by the foliage on the canopy. Then the water that was soaked in to the ground in absorbed by the plants, and the water that was intercepted by the tree foliage is either soaked into the plant or in transpires back into water vapor and condenses into rain the next day. 

Human Impact

Human Impact on the Tropical Rainforest

Humans have had much impact on the tropical rainforests.  According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, over 18 acres of tropical rainforests are lost each year (roughly the size of the counrty Panama).  Deforestation has been going on in tropical rainforests around the word for over the past 50 years. People are tearing down the trees and destroying the ecosystem for many different reasons. A few reasons are: to make room for cattle farming, logging, mining, and for the oil beneath the ground. Because rain forests are so biodiverse, and full of lots of huge trees they are a big target for the logging industry. They can cut down the trees and export the resources around the world for profit. The oil industry has also greatly affected the amount of deforestation in the rainforests. They search for oil deposits beneath the ground, and build pipelines underground for transportation of the oil. This is incredibly damaging to the forest. Over 20% of the oxygen on earth is produced by the tropical rainforests around the world, so cutting them down is not only damaging that ecosystem but it is also taking away some of the air we breathe.

Plant and Animal Adaptations in the Tropical Rainforest

Plant and Animal Adaptations

Animals that live in the tropical rainforest are very well suited to life in the trees. many of the organisms have adaptations they use to eat a food source that not many other organisms eat, to cut down on competition. Here are some examples of animals and plants in the tropical rainforests and their adaptations.
Animal Adaptations
1. Toucans have developed large beaks to crack open the hard shells of different nuts. This is a useful adaptation because the toucans can eat the nuts that no other animals are able to eat.
2. Red Eyed Tree Frogs have soft skin to absorb water through it, causing it not to have to drink a lot of water.
3. Golden Lion Tamarins have narrowly shaped hands with long fingers, and clawlike nails. They use these to probe the bark on trees for insects.
Plant Adaptations
1. The Pincher Plant can emit a sweet smell that attracts different insects that will crawl into their inside to try and find the smell, and eventually the insects will actually be digested.
2. Lianas are a vine in the tropical rainforest, they root themselves in the ground and climb higher on the surrounding trees to reach available sunlight.
3. The Strangler Fig starts out as a epiphyte high in the trees, carried there by birds and monkeys who eat the fig fruit. The seedling sends down its roots to the ground, where it begins to surround the host tree. It quickly grows and suffocates the host, leaving an enormous upright strangler with a hollow core.