Rainforests are magical places, bursting with life. In a rainforest there are many different types of plants, animals, and fungi. Rainforests are also home to many people around the world.
Rainforests are important for all of us on planet Earth. They help provide the air we breathe, they play a part in our water cycle, and they are the source of many medicines we use.
Journey through the rainforest
Let us explore some rainforest landscapes and habitats. Notice that water is important in rainforests. And trees and other plants grow closely together.
This is old-growth tropical rainforest in Sabah’s Imbak Canyon, Malaysia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThis is the Kinabatangan River in Malaysian Borneo. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerFlooded forest in the Amazon. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerHere, the mist is rising from the Amazon rainforest in Peru. Rainforests generate much their own rainfall through the process of transpiration. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerClouds over a tributary of the Amazon. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerRainforest in Madagascar. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerLowland tropical rainforest in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA waterfall in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest, which is home to critically endangered mountain gorillas. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
A blackwater lake in the Peruvian Amazon. Tannins in the water from decaying leaves make blackwater highly reflective, almost like a mirror in some cases. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
Indigenous peoples live in rainforests, which supply their shelter, food, and medicines.
Shaman, or traditional medicine-men, use plants to heal people. But shaman are disappearing as the Amazon rainforest is cut down. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerDani man in Indonesian New Guinea. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
Rainforests are biodiverse, meaning that they are home to many types of plants and animals.
Here are some plants that live in the rainforest:
Living dipterocarp tree in Sumatra, Indonesia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThe interior of a strangler fig in China’s Yunnan Province. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA cacao pod in the Amazon. Cacao is used to make chocolate. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA yellow flower in Vietnam’s Cuc Phong. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
Here are some mammals that live in the rainforest:
An Indri lemur, the largest lemur species, in Madagascar. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA mother Sumatran orangutan carries its baby in Gunung Leuser National Park. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThis is a male silverback gorilla in Gabon. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA bat in the Amazon rainforest. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA three-toed sloth in Panama. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThis is a borugo (Agouti taczanowskii), a large Amazon rainforest rodent. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
Many types of birds live in the rainforest. Some of them have striking colors:
Knobbed hornbill from Sulawesi, Indonesia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerMale cock-of-the-rock birds in the Amazon. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA male green kingfisher in Costa Rica. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThe harpy eagle is the world’s largest bird of prey. It lives in Latin American rainforests. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerBlue-and-yellow macaw in Peru. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
The rainforest is home to many kinds of reptiles, too:
A green iguana in Colombia. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler This Uroplatus fimbriatus gecko is found in Madagascar’s rainforest. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA panther chameleon in Eastern Madagascar. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler Asian Vine Snake in South Kalimantan, Indonesia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerMonitor lizard (Varanus salvator) emerging from a tree hollow in West Malaysia. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
And let’s not forget amazing rainforest amphibians:
Glass frog in Costa Rica. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerStrawberry poison-dart frog (Oophaga pumilio) in Costa Rica. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerClown tree frog (Dendropsophus leucophyllatus) in the Colombian Amazon. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
The rainforest is also home to fascinating insects. Here are just a few:
Pink katydid in the Amazon rainforest. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerPraying mantis in the rainforest in Suriname. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA leaf insect in Madagascar. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerThis interesting caterpillar lives in Bolivia. Photographer: Rhett A. ButlerA colorful grasshopper in Costa Rica’s rainforest. Photographer: Rhett A. Butler
Thanks for visiting the rainforest!
We hope you come back soon and check out more facts and fun on Mongabay Kids.
