Download The Emergent Layer

INTERACTIVE
RAINFOREST
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Rainforest
The Four Layers
of a Rainforest
Emergent Layer
Canopy
Play Movie
*First, watch a movie about
the layers of the Rainforest.
Understory
*Then, click on a layer at the
right to see more!
*When you’re done exploring,
test your skills Here!
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Forest Floor
The Emergent Layer
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Rainforest
Emergent trees are spaced very widely apart and are 100 to 240 feet
tall. They have umbrella shaped canopies that grow above all the other
trees. These tall trees have straight, smooth trunks with few branches.
Click on the animals to learn more!
The Canopy
The canopy has 60 to 130 foot trees. So, light is easily available at the top of
Back to this layer. Most of the rainforest's animals live here. Many of these animals
Rainforest don’t have to go down to the floor because they can find their food here.
Monkeys, sloths, toucans, snakes, lizards, and many other animals live here.
The Understory
This layer is made up of the trunks of canopy trees, shrubs, and plants.
There is little air movement down here because it is crowded with plants!
Back to Animals in the understory are insects, snakes, lizards, and small mammals.
Rainforest Some larger animals, like jaguars, spend a lot of time on branches here
looking for prey. The cocoa tree can be found in this layer!
The Forest Floor
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Rainforest
Less than 2% of sunlight reaches the forest floor. A lot of litter falls to
the floor and is quickly broken down by decomposers like termites,
earthworms and fungi. The largest animals in the rainforest generally
live here, including gorillas, jaguars and anteaters.
Scarlet Macaw
Scarlet Macaws lives both in
the emergent layer and
canopy. They eat seeds, nuts,
flowers, and even unripe fruit
that other animals avoid. They
can fly up to 35mph and
usually travel in pairs or small
groups. This bird is an
endangered species because
rainforests are being
destroyed, and because
people have captured them
for pets.
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Rainforest
Emergent
Layer
Spotted Cuscus
These guys eat fruits and
small lizards. Their long,
strong tail helps them climb
up to the highest layer in
the rainforest. They are
slow like sloths, have red,
orange or yellow eyes, and
grow only to be as big as a
house cat. The cuscus is
part of the possum family,
and like the possum, is
nocturnal.
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Rainforest
Emergent
Layer
Leafcutter Ant
As the name says, leafcutter
ants cut off leaves of plants,
and use them in their nests.
These ants do not even eat
these leaves, they eat fungus
which is made when the leaves
die. Leafcutter ants are so
strong that they can carry up
to 20 times their own weight.
That amount of weight is like
one human carrying a whole
tone by their selves! These
ants live in huge groups of 3-8
million ants called “colonies.”
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Rainforest
Forest
Floor
Poison Dart Frog
At about 1 1/2 inches they can
be green, red, orange, yellow,
blue, or black, or any
combination of these colors.
Their skin contains toxins that
are bad tasting, making them an
unlikely meal for most animals.
If these poisons got into the
bloodstream of another animal,
it could cause: convulsions,
paralysis, and even death.
Poison-dart frogs do have one
known predator, the snake
Leimadophis epinephelus,
which is immune to their
poisons.
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Rainforest
Emergent
Layer
Butterflies and other
Rainforest Insects
This Long-Horned
Grasshopper has
leaf-like wings that
help it blend in while
it eats real leaves.
The Blue Morpho
Morphos taste with sensors on
their legs, and they taste-smell the
air with their antennas. Morpho
adults eat and sleep on the forest
floor and in the understory, but
they fly through all layers of the
rainforest.
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Rainforest
Stick insects, like this one,
grow to look like sticks,
leaves, and plant stems!
Because they blend in so well,
it is often hard to find them
crawling around the plants of
the forest floor!
Forest Emergent
Layer
Floor
Iguana
The iguana can be found in
all areas of the rainforest,
but mainly in the canopy. It
is an excellent swimmer and
will plunge into water when
it feels threatened. The
iguana lays eggs to
reproduce and their young
generally forage on the
forest floor eating
invertebrates such as
insects, worms and snail.
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Rainforest
Canopy
Spider Monkey
Spider monkeys grow up to two
feet, not including their tail. This
long tail is used like a hand to
grab onto branches. They climb
and swing in both the canopy
and emergent layers. These
monkeys got their name
because when they hand from
trees, it looks like the have
many arms/legs just like a
spider! They travel in small
groups, and eat fruits, nuts, and
seeds. Spider monkeys have
even been seen shaking vines
to make their predators fall off!
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Rainforest
Canopy
Howler Monkey
Howlers live in family
troops made up of a
father, three or four
mothers, young males
and females, and babies.
Their howl can be heard
up to three miles away!
They eat lots of fruits and
leaves, which they get
their main source of
water from. Monkeys use
a lot of energy to digest,
so that is why they
lounge around in trees.
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Rainforest
Emergent
Layer
Red Eye Tree Frog
This little frog (2-3 inches) is
neon green with bits of color
all over. It’s legs are blue and
their feet are red or orange.
Their toes act like suction
cups for climbing! These tree
frogs eat small insects,
moths, grasshoppers, and
sometimes even smaller
frogs! When they sleep, they
blend in because their big red
eyes are closed and they are
just green, However, when
they pop open their big, red
eyes, they scare their
predators away!
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Rainforest
Understory
Gecko
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Rainforest
Geckos are the only lizards
that make noise. They got
their name because the noise
they make is a tiny squeaking
that sounds like “gecko.”
They have big eyes and great
vision. If a gecko is caught by
its tail, it can release its tail
and grow another one back!
These lizards are good
climbers because of their
sticky, Velcro-like feet that lets
them attach to whatever they
climb. Because of these feet,
they climb back and forth
from the forest floor to the
understory.
Understory
Boa Constrictor
Boa Constrictors live in the
understory, canopy, and on the forest
floor! They smell with their tongues
and hear through the vibrations on
the ground. Most boas are between
6.5 and 13 feet in length. They will
wait for days near their prey's home,
waiting for the perfect time to attack
it. They eat rats, lizards, and other
small mammals. After eating a large
meal, Boa’s can go for weeks without
eating!
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Rainforest
Canopy
Gorilla
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Rainforest
Gorillas spend much of their
time eating! They consume
large amounts of stems,
leaves, flowers, and fruit.
Their arms are longer than
their legs, and often used to
help them “knuckle-walk.”
Gorillas are very smart and
some have been taught to
communicate with humans.
They live in groups of 6-7
gorillas called “bands.”
Although gorillas are very
large, they rarely threaten
other animals. In the wild,
Gorillas live to about age 35
but in captivity they can live
to be about 50 years old!
Forest
Floor
Armadillo
The armadillo’s arms, head,
body, legs, and tail are all
protected by the hard, bony,
plates. They will spend most of
their time burrowing
underground and because of
this, their sense of smell is
much better than their hearing
or vision. Armadillos eat
insects, bird’s eggs, roots, and
some fruits. In one meal they
will eat up to 40,000 ants! Like
many animals of the rainforest,
the armadillos is loosing it’s
habitat because of rainforest
destruction.
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Rainforest
Forest
Floor
Kinkajou
The kinkajou is related to the
raccoon. They have red-ish brown
or tan fur with a very long tail.
These animals eat almost anything
from flowers and fruits to birds and
small mammals. They even have a
long, thin tongue they use to get
honey from bee hives! Their claws
help the kinkajou reach and eat
fruit. They communicate with other
kinkajous by their scent and
grunting sounds. Like many
animals of the rainforest, the
kinkajou’s tail helps it climb and
hold on!
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Rainforest
Understory
Jaguar
Like the Scarlet Macaw,
Jaguars are also
endangered because they
are losing their home, and
being hunted by humans.
Unlike the house cats we
know, Jaguars are actually
very good swimmers. They
eat birds, reptiles, eggs,
alligators, and other small
mammals. They stay lower
in the rainforest so they
can prey on other animals
on the ground.
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Rainforest
Understory
Anteater
Anteaters have very small
mouths, long, thin tongues,
and a very long snout.
They actually have very
bad vision, but they sense
of smell is great. Anteaters
eat only insects, usually
ants and termites but
sometimes other insects,
too. They catch the bugs
by flicking their tongue in
and out of their mouths
which they can do as fast
as 160 times per minute!
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Rainforest
Forest
Floor
Test your rainforest
knowledge using
your math skills!
Click on a quiz below
Find The
Difference
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Rainforest
Multiplication
and Division
The Amazon
Rainforest gets
100 feet of rain
each year!
If New Hampshire gets 4 feet of rain
each year, how many more feet does
the rainforest get compared to New
Hampshire?
104
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Rainforest
96
94
400
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
12
÷2
Math
solution
Letter
substitution
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Rainforest
7
x1
15
÷3
2
x1
1-D
2-A
3-N
4-O
5-R
6-S
21
÷3
6
÷3
7-T
8-U
9-Y
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
1-D 4-O 7-T
2-A 5-R 8-U
3-N
6-S 9-Y
12
÷2
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Rainforest
Math
solution
6
Letter
substitution
S
7
x1
15
÷3
2
x1
21
÷3
6
÷3
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
12
÷2
Back to
Rainforest
7
x1
Math
solution
6
7
Letter
substitution
S
T
15
÷3
2
x1
1-D
2-A
3-N
4-O
5-R
6-S
21
÷3
6
÷3
7-T
8-U
9-Y
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
12
÷2
Back to
Rainforest
7
x1
15
÷3
Math
solution
6
7
5
Letter
substitution
S
T
R
2
x1
1-D
2-A
3-N
4-O
5-R
6-S
21
÷3
6
÷3
7-T
8-U
9-Y
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
1-D 4-O 7-T
2-A 5-R 8-U
3-N
6-S 9-Y
12
÷2
Back to
Rainforest
7
x1
15
÷3
2
x1
Math
solution
6
7
5
2
Letter
substitution
S
T
R
A
21
÷3
6
÷3
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
12
÷2
Back to
Rainforest
7
x1
1-D
2-A
3-N
4-O
5-R
6-S
6
÷3
15
÷3
2
x1
21
÷3
Math
solution
6
7
5
2
7
Letter
substitution
S
T
R
A
T
7-T
8-U
9-Y
Scientists divide the rainforest into zones
based on the living environment. What is
another name for “zone?”
Letter Code:
12
÷2
Back to
Rainforest
7
x1
1-D
2-A
3-N
4-O
5-R
6-S
6
÷3
15
÷3
2
x1
21
÷3
Math
solution
6
7
5
2
7
2
Letter
substitution
S
T
R
A
T
A
7-T
8-U
9-Y
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Quizzes
To find the difference, subtract:
Amazon
Rainfall:
100
New Hampshire
Rainfall:
4
_______
96
The rainforest gets 96 more
inches of rain than New
Hampshire!
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Rainforest
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Quizzes
References
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Rainforest Alliance: Species Profiles.
www.rainforestalliance.org/resources/forest-facts/species-profiles/poisondart.frogs.html
Cadbury: Spotted Cuscus.
http://www.cadbury.com.au/yowie/rainforest/wl3.htm
Earth’s Birthday Org: Rainforest Exploration: Kids.
http://www.cadbury.com.au/yowie/rainforest/wl3.htm
Teach-nology. Rainforest: Spider Monkey. http://www.teachnology.com/worksheets/science/rain/read2/
Enchanted Learning: Boa Constrictor, Scarlet Macaws, Gorillas, Jaguar,
Anteaters, Geckos, Kinkajou
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/reptiles/snakes/Boa.shtml
Wellington Zoo. Primate Fact sheet: Spider Monkey.
http://www.wellingtonzoo.com/animals/animals/primates/spider-monkey.html
Nashville Zoo. Red-Eyed Tree Frog. http://www.nashvillezoo.org/redeye.htm
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Rainforest