Characteristics of a Tropical Rainforest

Diversity of plant species

Hot and Wet environment allow a great variety of
animals and plants to flourish throughout the year

Many different type of food that we eat can be
found in tropical rainforests which include
fruits such as bananas and mangoes;
spices such as pepper and cinnamon;
vegetables such as corn and pandan; and
nuts such as Brazil nuts and walnuts

Studies suggest that an area of 0.01 square
kilometres in the Amazon rainforest in South America
contains about 300 different plant species

Structure of tropical rainforest

Broadleaved,evergreen trees

Has 3 layers,

the Emergent Layer located at 50 m which is formed
by the crowns of 50 metres and taller trees.These trees
are called Emergent trees and have very tall straight
and smooth trunks with few branches

the Canopy Layer located at 30 m which has many trees
that grow to heights of 20 to 30 metres to reach for sunlight.
The crowns of these trees and form an almost continuous cover like an umbrella,blocking up to 90 per cent of the sun's rays from reaching the forest floor.The dense unbroken canopy also catches much of the rain as it falls

the Undergrowth Layer located at 20 m,it is dark because
much of the sun's rays are blocked by the canopy above.
The plants here have much larger leaves compared to
plants in the other layers to catch the sun's rays.Plants in this layer are small,thin and widely-spaced due to the lack of
sunlight.

Adaptation of plants

Bark and branches:
Many of the trees have tall,straight trunks with
branches spread out near the top of the trees.
This adaptation helps the trees to obtain the
maximum amount of sunlight

The smooth bark allows rainwater to flow easily
from the crown to the roots of the trees

Leaves:
The leaves are broad in order to capture sunlight
for photosynthesis.

The leaves have waxy,leathery or hairy surfaces.
These minimise the loss of moisture through
transpiration due to the high temperatures.

Some of the leaves have narrow,downward-pointing
tips of drip tips to allow water to run off easily.
This prevents fungi and bacteria from growing on
leaver\s

Fruits and Flowers:
The air is usually still in tropical rainforests.The
lack of wind makes it hard for seed dispersal and
pollination to occur by wind.Fruits and flowers are
hence colourful and strong smelling to attract
insects and other animals for dispersal or pollination

Root:
Buttress roots are large roots which grow from 1 to 5
metres above the ground.Trees in the rainforest are
tall because of the favourable climatic conditions for plant
growth and because of the competition for sunlight.These trees have buttress roots to support their heaver weight

The roots are shallow as the nutrients are mostly found in the top layer of the soil.The rapid decomposition of fallen leaves and branches provides the nutrients in the soil.

Water is available throughout the year,hence trees do not need to develop deep roots to search for underground water.