Notes

Tropical rainforest landscapes are found where there are both high temperatures and high precipitation. The sun’s rays that reach the Earth near the equator have a smaller area of the Earth and atmosphere to heat than rays reaching the Earth at higher latitudes. Therefore, it is hotter at the equator than at higher latitudes. Rainforests are also generally warmer at night, because the cloud cover and high humidity help to keep the heat in. Tropical rainforests have a hot climate right throughout the year with no summer or winter. High precipitation around the equator is mainly due to convectional rainfall and is often associated with thunderstorms. Convectional rainfall occurs when warm, moist air is heated when it moves over a hot surface on Earth. As the air is heated it expands and becomes lighter than the surrounding air. This causes it to rise. If the air continues to rise, condensation and precipitation occur. This combination of high temperatures and high precipitation influences the global distribution of the tropical rainforest landscape. Plants flourish in these rainforests, which support a huge number of plants and animals — perhaps as many as 90 per cent of all known species. Poison-dart frogs, birds of paradise, piranha, tarantulas, anacondas, Komodo dragons and vampire bats are all found in tropical rainforests.