To help us get all the information we needed, we used the sources listed below:
http://www.ri.net/schools/West_Warwick/manateeproject/Rainforest2/climate.htm
http://study.com/academy/lesson/resource-partitioning-definition-theory-examples.html
http://lo2fosho.blogspot.com/2011/01/symbiotic-relationships-in-tropical.html
http://lo2fosho.blogspot.com/2011/01/limiting-factors-of-tropical-rainforest.html
http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/rforestP.html
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Day 8-
Rachel and I got to talking and we discovered that the nitrogen cycle is very important to organisms in a tropical rainforest.
Plants and animals need nitrogen for growth and reproduction. Herbivores specifically need it to be able to contain amino acids, nucleic acids, and proteins.
Although 78% percent of gas in the atmosphere is nitrogen, this nitrogen is not usable. Nitrogen has to be fixed before it can be usable. There are multiple ways it can be fixed.
In a rainforest there are plants that have nitrogen-fixing bacteria on their roots.
Another way to make nitrogen usable is from lightning. When lightning strikes it breaks nitrogen molecules which allows for atoms to combine with oxygen.
Both of these ways make nitrogen fixed and usable for plants and animals.
Rachel and I got to talking and we discovered that the nitrogen cycle is very important to organisms in a tropical rainforest.
Plants and animals need nitrogen for growth and reproduction. Herbivores specifically need it to be able to contain amino acids, nucleic acids, and proteins.
Although 78% percent of gas in the atmosphere is nitrogen, this nitrogen is not usable. Nitrogen has to be fixed before it can be usable. There are multiple ways it can be fixed.
In a rainforest there are plants that have nitrogen-fixing bacteria on their roots.
Another way to make nitrogen usable is from lightning. When lightning strikes it breaks nitrogen molecules which allows for atoms to combine with oxygen.
Both of these ways make nitrogen fixed and usable for plants and animals.
Day 7-
Wow! We cannot believe it is already day 7! So, today we found many different animals that had some interesting adaptations. We saw some toucans with large, long bills which allow them to eat fruit off of trees from branches that are far away and cannot support the bird's weight.
We also saw some sloths today that had some algae growing on their backs to camouflage themselves. Monkeys were also hanging from the trees to protect themselves and to gather food.
There were also some plant adaptations too.
Fungi was everywhere! They bury themselves under moist, warm plants to help them flourish. Strangler figs grow on trees and get their nutrients from their hosts. Orchids are also adapted to grow non parasitically on trees.
Day 6-
Today while Rachel and I were out exploring it started to pour down rain!
The rainforest is the biome that gets the most annual rainfall. There are thousands of diverse plants that grow here.
They have adapted to grow big flat leaves that help them catch water because the trees in the rainforest grow very tall and prevent a lot of water from reaching the ground. Thankfully, because of this we didn't get very wet!
The water cycle is extremely important to the rainforest. Transpiration is very important in the rainforest for the water cycle. Transpiration is when water is evaporated from the leaves of plants.
Transpiration allows for enough water to be evaporated to become condensation and eventually precipitation. This precipitation allows for the diverse variety of plants to grow and flourish.
Today while Rachel and I were out exploring it started to pour down rain!
The rainforest is the biome that gets the most annual rainfall. There are thousands of diverse plants that grow here.
They have adapted to grow big flat leaves that help them catch water because the trees in the rainforest grow very tall and prevent a lot of water from reaching the ground. Thankfully, because of this we didn't get very wet!
The water cycle is extremely important to the rainforest. Transpiration is very important in the rainforest for the water cycle. Transpiration is when water is evaporated from the leaves of plants.
Transpiration allows for enough water to be evaporated to become condensation and eventually precipitation. This precipitation allows for the diverse variety of plants to grow and flourish.
Day 5-
Today Rachel and I looked specifically at energy pyramids with organisms from the tropical rainforest. On the bottom are the producers. These are your exotic fruits and plants such as ferns. They get their food and energy from the sun by doing photosynthesis. The second level are your primary consumers. These are animals such as insects. The third level are your secondary consumers. These are animals such as parrots and sloths. The very top of the pyramid are your tertiary consumers. These are animals such as tigers and big cats.
The very bottom of the energy pyramid has 1,000 kcal of energy. As you go up you loose 10% of energy each time. By the time you get to the tertiary consumers you have lost 90% of the energy that you started with.
Today Rachel and I looked specifically at energy pyramids with organisms from the tropical rainforest. On the bottom are the producers. These are your exotic fruits and plants such as ferns. They get their food and energy from the sun by doing photosynthesis. The second level are your primary consumers. These are animals such as insects. The third level are your secondary consumers. These are animals such as parrots and sloths. The very top of the pyramid are your tertiary consumers. These are animals such as tigers and big cats.
The very bottom of the energy pyramid has 1,000 kcal of energy. As you go up you loose 10% of energy each time. By the time you get to the tertiary consumers you have lost 90% of the energy that you started with.
Day 4-
Today Rachel and I wanted to take a closer look at all the different plants and animals in the rain forest and see where they would be on a food web.
There are so many different plants and animals in the rain forest and they all play a special role. There are five major groups on a food web. They are are producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer, and decomposers. An example of a producer in a tropical rainforest is a fern. An example of a primary consumer is a bee. An example of a secondary consumer is a sloth and a tertiary consumer a tiger.
Today Rachel and I wanted to take a closer look at all the different plants and animals in the rain forest and see where they would be on a food web.
There are so many different plants and animals in the rain forest and they all play a special role. There are five major groups on a food web. They are are producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer, and decomposers. An example of a producer in a tropical rainforest is a fern. An example of a primary consumer is a bee. An example of a secondary consumer is a sloth and a tertiary consumer a tiger.
Day 3-
In just three days we have experienced so much! We were curious as to what density dependent and independent factors were in the Tropical Rainforest biome!
Have you ever heard of Density Independent and Dependent factors? Well, they are very common in many different biomes.
Density Dependent factors are factors that are changed due to population of a certain species or a combination of species. Some examples include predators hunting more of a specific prey in an area due to increase in a population or a food supply of a species declining.
Density- Independent factors are factors that are NOT changed due to the population of a certain species or a group of species. Some examples of these are deforestation caused by humans and natural disasters such as earthquakes and tropical storms.
Here is a picture of the deforestation we have seen, which is a density Independent factor.
Day 2-
Wow! In just two days we have seen lots of competition between plants AND animals!
Many industries and furniture companies are cutting down rainforest trees which is decreasing the size of the rainforest.
We also have seen many hummingbirds sucking nectar from the flowers and plants in the rainforest which is causing lots of competition between them.
Some lizards were spotted competing to gather bugs for food too. The lizards prey in different spots to gather food and compete with one other.
Here are some of the relationships we have seen today:
There have been many symbiotic relationships seen. Many beautiful types of fungi are protected by leaf cutter ants. The ants eat the pests and mold off the fungi. This is a great example of a mutual symbiotic relationship.
Also, we have seen parasitism with strangler fig growing on trees! The fig takes all the nutrients out of the tree, but the fig benefits and the tree does not.
Commensalism is shown through bromeliads that grow on higher branches of trees. This doesn't damage the trees, but allows the bromeliad to grow!
Lastly, we have seen a great amount of trees competing for sunlight! The trees here are very tall and are occasionally trapped under the canopy of tree leaves.
Wow! In just two days we have seen lots of competition between plants AND animals!
Many industries and furniture companies are cutting down rainforest trees which is decreasing the size of the rainforest.
We also have seen many hummingbirds sucking nectar from the flowers and plants in the rainforest which is causing lots of competition between them.
Some lizards were spotted competing to gather bugs for food too. The lizards prey in different spots to gather food and compete with one other.
Here are some of the relationships we have seen today:
There have been many symbiotic relationships seen. Many beautiful types of fungi are protected by leaf cutter ants. The ants eat the pests and mold off the fungi. This is a great example of a mutual symbiotic relationship.
Also, we have seen parasitism with strangler fig growing on trees! The fig takes all the nutrients out of the tree, but the fig benefits and the tree does not.
Commensalism is shown through bromeliads that grow on higher branches of trees. This doesn't damage the trees, but allows the bromeliad to grow!
Lastly, we have seen a great amount of trees competing for sunlight! The trees here are very tall and are occasionally trapped under the canopy of tree leaves.
Welcome! We are traveling on a journey through the Tropical Rainforest! We are so glad you are keeping up with us through our blog!
We just arrived and the climate is mostly hot and wet, and very humid. The average temperature is 80 degrees Fahrenheit year round and the average humidity is 85%. According to the signs about the forest, the tropical rainforest receives an average of 90 inches of rain a year! We have occasional thunderstorms rolling in pretty often also. The plants here are very green and lively because of this weather!
Here is a picture we took on our first day in the forest!
We just arrived and the climate is mostly hot and wet, and very humid. The average temperature is 80 degrees Fahrenheit year round and the average humidity is 85%. According to the signs about the forest, the tropical rainforest receives an average of 90 inches of rain a year! We have occasional thunderstorms rolling in pretty often also. The plants here are very green and lively because of this weather!
Here is a picture we took on our first day in the forest!
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