Equatorial rainforest

The jungle is one of the many types of can be found on planet Earth and one of its types is the equatorial jungle . Also known by the names of jungle or tropical rain forest , they are places that have an immense landscape where there are various types of climates with large amounts of rainfall , warm climates and extensive vegetation that is organized depending on the height. It is also considered as the main source of biomass for the entire plant as it has an immense variety of species.

Equatorial jungle characteristics

Among the main characteristics that can be found in an equatorial forest, the following are mentioned:

• The equatorial jungle is covering approximately 6% of the Earth’s surface .
• They are most frequently found in the intertropical areas .
• Their temperatures can vary considerably throughout the year.
• It has a type of equatorial climate .
• It has abundant rainfall without becoming cyclonic.
• They have high levels of biodiversity .

Types

Some types of equatorial rainforest are the following:

Congo Basin Forest

It is the largest forest located in Africa , it has an undulating topography and large areas full of swamps. Its most important river is the Congo . Its forests have moderate levels of nutrients and most of its lands have not yet been fully explored.

African rainforests

Specifically in the western part is this type of forest, they are a little drier lands, in their forests there are deciduous trees , it is very humid and due to the agricultural expansion it has problems of loss of species .

Madagascar forest

Its fauna used to be very abundant but due to the high growth and expansion of the population, this has been declining every day causing many extinctions of animals and plants.

Amazon

Considered the true lung of the world , it is the largest ecological system in the world and is responsible for producing around 20% of the Earth’s oxygen . Its most important river is the Amazon and it is the one that gives strength to the place. It has a great biodiversity and its forests live under a humid climate , with abundant rainfall and without a defined dry season .

Atlantic Rainforest

This equatorial rainforest is found along the strip of the Atlantic coast in Brazil and has a great variety of endemic species . It is one of the forests that lives under the greatest threat because the hand of man has invaded it. Its climate is varied and fluctuates between a tropical climate and a subtropical one .

Fauna in the equatorial jungle

Many of the animals that can be found in the Ecuadorian jungle are invertebrates , insects , arachnids, and worms . Its fauna is very rich and at least 3,000 different species of fish are also found in its rivers , not counting those that have not yet been discovered. The reptiles and snakes are very common as well as turtles and alligators . The mammals abound with its conditions and can be spotted jaguars, pumas, chimpanzees, manatees and hippopotamuses. It is considered that in the Ecuadorian jungle it is housed around thethirds of all biodiversity on Earth.

Flora

In this region the flora abounds and grows rapidly thanks to the amount of rain that falls in the place throughout the year. It is a fairly dense vegetation and it is estimated that there are around 750 species of trees and more than 1500 species of different flowers . For this reason, it is considered that this type of jungle provides around 40% of the planet’s oxygen , being known for this reason as the lungs of the earth . It is common to find in the soil a layer formed by leaves which, due to the high humidity, decompose very easily, quickly turning into nutrientsfor plants and for the earth. Its trees are adapted to withstand high temperatures and rains and are generally pointed in the highest parts to allow the rain to drain more easily.

Weather

The type of climate that occurs in the equatorial forest is infra-tropical and thermo-tropical pluvial . This means that the place experiences quite high temperatures throughout the year, sunny days and rainy nights.  The humidity that occurs in the place is quite high and there is also an intertropical convergence zone that produces abundant rains.

Temperature

Its temperatures range between 26 and 28 ° Celsius but in some areas it can even rise up to 35 ° C. In some higher parts of the mountains , the temperature can drop and reach 17 ° and 18 ° C.

Precipitation

The amount of rain that falls on the Ecuadorian jungle is one of its most characteristic factors and is necessary to be able to satisfy the vegetative demand that exists in the place. Its rains also make the equatorial forest have the adequate amount of humidity to carry out organic decomposition processes in its soils, which helps to keep them full of nutrients. The average rainfall in this type of area ranges from 1500 to 2000 mm and in some places it can even reach 3000 mm.

Location

This type of forest is located between 10 ° North and South latitude . They can be found in the Congo, on islands located in Southeast Asia, in New Guinea, off the coast of Brazil, throughout Central America, in Madagascar, Australia, and Indochina.

Economic activity

In the Ecuadorian jungle , agriculture , cattle ranching , logging and in many of them mining are practiced constantly and abundantly . These activities can sometimes cause many of its species to be in danger of extinction, mainly due to the indiscriminate felling of trees. They are also used to obtain drinking water in many countries and for this reason they also have an important role in sustainability . Some of its trees and plants are used to make different types of medicines and also for the extraction and production of food. like coffee and cocoa.

Importance of the equatorial forest

In addition to being the place where the greatest amount of the world’s biodiversity is found in terms of flora and fauna, the tropical forest is of the utmost importance for life because basically they are the lung that gives oxygen to the Earth and discards it time the large amounts of carbon dioxide in the environment. Another fact that makes it very important for humans is the amount of plants it has that can and are used in the manufacture of different types of medicines . They also help to maintain temperature changes in the world and mitigate global warmingcaused by the greenhouse effect .

Examples

Some examples are mentioned below:

• Amazonas Jungle
• Ecuadorian jungle of the Congo
• Forest of Malesia