Leaves are usually thick and have pointed " drip tips " to help rain roll off them. Tree trunks are wide and flared and tree bark is thin and smooth. Some trees have roots that are above the ground. The tropical rainforest is also home to bromeliads. These are plants that collect water in their centers. The water forms pools that can support miniature ecosystems! Many of these pools support bacteria, insects, crustaceans, tadpoles, frogs and even birds!
The rainforest is also home to epiphytes. Epiphytes don't grow in the soil. They grow on a host plant, usualy a tree, and get their nutrients from the moisture and dust in the air. Ferns, lichens, mosses, orchids, and bromeliads are all epiphytes. The tropical rainforest is also home to nepenthes or pitcher plants. These are plants that grow in the soil.
They have leaves that form a cup where moisture gathers. Pitcher plants capture insects in these cups! Rainforests What Are Rainforests? This beautiful Amazonian flora is known as the Hanging Lobster Claw.
This flower is bright in color and varies in its shape. Known for their characteristically long structure, heliconia plants range from 0. They require warm and humid conditions to grow, thus being prominent in the tropical regions of the world. Hummingbirds rely on Heliconia plants for food and nesting, and they are also the main pollinators of the plant.
Economically, the rubber tree is one of the most important trees in the Amazon rainforest for indigenous peoples. The rubber tree can reach a height of up to feet 30 m. The inner bark of the tree oozes latex when cut or damaged. Originally this plant was native to the Amazon rainforest, however, seeds were eventually illegally smuggled to Southeast Asia where the tree successfully propagated. They are also the largest family of flowers in the entire world about 30, different species.
Orchids grow in all shapes and sizes, and because of their adaptable nature, they grow in almost all climates around the world, except the cold! Amazon Orchids, like many flowers, depend on insects and birds for pollination. The conservation of the rainforest is vital for their existence. Make raw cacao part of your regular diet to benefit from natural energy, mental alertness, and focus.
If you have ever been on an Amazon River cruise or stayed in a jungle lodge , you may have seen these impressive Victoria water lilies during one of your jungle excursions. These water lilies are not your average flower — they grow up to 3 meters in diameter — imagine, you could lay down on one! They were named after Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.
The passion fruit flower is a vigorous vine that can cling on to almost anything and grow 15 to 20 ft. This plan does well in tropical climates and prefers the sun, however, the passion fruit flower does not like heavy heat. If there is too much heat, the passion fruit flower will start growing towards the shade. These beautiful plants are bright in color, varying from reds and oranges to blues and purples. These flowers grow on the ground or on other plants, and even on rocks.
Like the passion fruit flower, some of the bromeliad species also produce fresh, juicy fruit. Can you guess what it is? In order to do this, some plants grow faster, some have bigger leaves, and others evolve better defences against predators. Epiphytes are plants that live on other plants. Sometimes a single tree can be home to many different epiphyte species, together weighing several tonnes. Epiphytes even grow on other epiphytes!
The most common epiphytes are bromeliads. Bromeliads are flowering plants whose long leaves are arranged in a rosette.
They attach themselves to the host tree by wrapping their roots around its branches. The water is used not only by the plant, but also by many rainforest animals. Birds and mammals drink from the tank. Tadpoles grow there, and insects lay their eggs in the pond. Orchids in the rainforest are often epiphytes. Some have specially adapted roots that enable them to capture water and nutrients from the air. Other orchids have roots that spread out over the branch of the host tree, capturing water without needing to bury into the ground.
Its fruit is edible, and an important food in the Amazon region. Its fruit are eaten, and its wood used in building. Carnauba wax is used in car polish, lipstick, soap, and in many other products. It is even rubbed on surfboards to help them slip through the water faster! There are over species of rattan palm. They grow in African, Asian and Australasian rainforests. Rattans are vines; long plants which are unable to support themselves.
Instead, they wrap themselves around other trees. Hooked spines on their stems allow them to climb up the other trees towards the sunlight. Rattans are harvested and used in furniture construction. Photo: yakovlev. They have stilt roots that project out of the trunk above the ground see our Plants In The Tropical Rainforest article to find out more about stilt roots. The Amazon water lily is an aquatic plant that grows in the lakes and rivers of South American rainforests.
Its huge leaves can be up to 3 metres 9. There are rows of sharp spines on the undersides of the leaves. These deter rainforest animals such as manatees from eating them. The rubber tree, which was first found in the Amazon Rainforest, is now also grown in tropical areas in Asia and Africa.
These vessels are opened and the latex which runs out is collected in buckets.
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