Friday, September 4, 2009

sam 20







Hi all
it is my 20th monkey update birthday there will be lots of facts and funney things.




Most of the monkeys are arboreal, while some are also terrestrial.
Monkeys use vocalizations, facial expressions and body movements to communicate.
Grinning or pulling the lip is a sign of aggression in monkeys, along with head bobbing and jerking the head and shoulders forward.
Monkeys express affection and make peace with others by grooming each other.
Some of the monkeys have prehensile tails, which can grab and hold objects
Most of the monkeys are arboreal, while some are also terrestrial.
Monkeys use vocalizations, facial expressions and body movements to communicate.
Grinning or pulling the lip is a sign of aggression in monkeys, along with head bobbing and jerking the head and shoulders forward.
Monkeys express affection and make peace with others by grooming each other.
Some of the monkeys have prehensile tails, which can grab and hold objects

sam 19


Hi all
its time for another monkey update
Monkeys never catch cold.
Yawning of a monkey means that either he is tired or he is mad at something.
Monkeys never eat a banana as it is; rather they peel it first and throw away the peel.
Howler monkeys are the loudest monkeys and their howl can be heard as far as 10 miles away.

sam 18


Hi everyone


Its time for another monkey updata
Monkeys never catch cold.
Yawning of a monkey means that either he is tired or he is mad at something.
Monkeys never eat a banana as it is; rather they peel it first and throw away the peel.
Howler monkeys are the loudest monkeys and their howl can be heard as far as 10 miles away.
From Sam

sam 17

hi all

sorry ehrn i put up my story i put the un edited copy on here is the good one.

Monkey Mayhem

It was 1965 in the Amazon Rainforest. Russell the Monkey was playing on some vines in the Canopy. He was doing back flips and kicking all the coconuts out of the palm trees. As they fell to the ground, Russell saw that there was a cheetah right underneath the tree and in the way of the falling coconuts. Donk, Donk, Donk. 3 of the biggest coconuts hit the cheetah right on top of his head. Russell knew he was in trouble so he started to run away from the tree that the cheetah was climbing at a dangerous speed. Russell was all ready 5 trees ahead of the cheetah when it got to the top of the first tree it was climbing.

After 10 minutes of running Russell thought he would take a short cut.
“If I go this way, I don’t think that cheetah will fit through that hole.” The only flaw in Russell’s plan was that he did not know were the path led. But, without thinking of that, he pushed himself through the gap in the branches and ran off through the trees, towards the Inca Town.

‘I think I lost him,” said Russell while he tried to get his breath back. Then Russell turned around and looked at what was behind him. It was a whole squad of Inca hunters.
“Not good,” Russell said in a worried tone. All of the Incas looked really amazed. They had just heard a monkey say, “Not good”. A real, live, breathing monkey.
“Did that monkey just say something?” One of the strongest Inca warriors said in awe. “Even if it did we need to eat. Kill it!!!” said on of the other Incas.
Then all but one Inca ran at the monkey.

“Stooop!” shouted the one warrior who did not run at the monkey.
“This monkey is obviously a very rare monkey. We should let him live and run free,” said the warrior, John. The Incas did not listen to him they just kept on running after the monkey.
Russell did not know whether to run through the legs of the Incas and go to the man who was trying to help him or try his luck with the cheetah.

Russell had just made up his mind that he was going to try his luck with the cheetah when John picked him up and ran as fast as he could in to the forest.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t you cutting me up and eating me raw?” asked Russell “I think that you should be a free roaming monkey because I think you are a rare monkey. Am I right?” asked John
“I don’t remember ever meeting another monkey that could talk like me. I don’t even remember meeting my mother and father. So I think you might be right. I think I am a rare monkey,” replied Russell, sounding surprised.

After about an hour of running John stopped to take a breather.
“I think we’ve lost them,” said John as he struggled to get his breath back
“Thanks for saving me back there,” said Russell.
“Any time,” replied John .
“Since you think that I should be a free roaming monkey maybe you can help me get rid of a hunter that’s been chasing me for a very long time. For as long as I can remember in fact,” said Russell
“That will be fine with me but you will have to live with me for almost the rest of your life. When I helped you I betrayed my tribe. So now they will throw me out and treat me like an outcast for the rest of my life,” said John in a sad voice.
“I don’t think they will do that for all of your life, will they?” asked Russell.
“Yes they will. The only way they will respect me again is if I save the life of one of the tribe members,” replied John with a forced smile. “Anyway there is no knowing what will happen in the future, so there is no point worrying about it.”

John and Russell started to walk off when they heard a loud bang and a cry. They went to investigate the sound. When they saw it, they wished they had left a little earlier. There they saw a dead howler monkey on the ground with blood pouring out of a hole near his heart. There was a tall, skinny man standing over the dead monkey.
“Damn. Wrong monkey again. When will I get this monkey that can talk,” said the hunter “I will get that monkey or my name is not Ron Black the greatest hunter in the entire world,” said Ron in a large brave voice.

“Is that the hunter that has been chasing you Russell?” whispered John
“Yes. I think it is, but I have never seen him up so close.” replied Russell in a low voice “Come on lets get out of here before he spots us.” said Russell
“Too late he has seen me!!” shouted John.
John was right. Ron had seen them and he was now running back to get in his car. John had not seen the young, inquisitive Inca child that was hiding behind a bush watching the strange moving object. As the car took off, the young boy chased it and then when he was close he jumped in the back of the jeep.

John and Russell used their head start to their advantage and were now along way ahead of the hunter.
“Maybe we can make a trap so that when the jeep drives over it, it will fall in to a deep hole.” suggested John
“You know what? That’s a really good idea. We better get started on making it. I can dig really well so I will make the hole and you get some leaves or something like that to put over the top of it.” said Russell from inside a small hole. John did not reply. He was off finding a lot of leaves to cover the hole. With in a couple of minutes the trap was ready and just in time to, they could hear the motor of the jeep roaring towards the hole.

John and Russell had hidden by the time that the jeep got there. As soon as the jeep hit the leaves over the hole they fell away showing a deep dark hole. But when the jeep fell in to the hole, the little boy who was in the back of the jeep knew that he had to jump out so he did. He missed the edge of the hole and fell in. John had seen the little boy in the back of the car so he ran over to the edge to see if he was still alive. When he got to the edge he saw the boy was hanging on to a stick not far from the top of the hole. John grabbed his hand and pulled him up. And just as the boy got out of the hole the car blew up. A huge ball of fire shot up to the canopy. All of the trees that were above the hole caught on fire and it started to spread. “Hurry up Russell we have to get back to the village,” said John as he ran out of the fire.

After about a day of walking John, Russell and the young boy got back to the village. John and the boy went in to the emperor’s house in the village to plead for him to let John live in the village once more. John came out of the house, and then an hour later the emperor emerged and said,
“Since John saved an animal that we were trying to hunt, I have decided that he will not be welcome back in to the village even though he saved this young boy. One of our best warriors died because we did not have any food to eat that night,” John started to run away. When he got to the edge of the village he turned around and saw that the family of the little boy he had saved was following him. “We are coming with you John,” said the boy. John looked at the boy’s parents and they nodded. He looked behind them and they were lots more people following. The biggest man of the group yelled
“We think you should be able to live in the village again so we are coming with you. We will make our own village far away from here where people will never be kicked out of their homes.”
John was so happy he could not stop smiling.

“I know the best place to make a new village,” said Russell. He took the villagers to the place where the hole was. By now the fire had burnt down and there was now a really big burnt area with a deep hole in the middle of it. John, Russell and the rest of the villagers built a really big city. All of the people lived there for a very long time. After that Russell was never hunted again.

The End

From Sam

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Tania 18

Hi everyone,
Here are some great websites that I recommend:

http://www.rain-tree.com/
www.tooter4kids.com/Rainforest/Why_save_the_rainforest.htm
Cheers
Tania

George16 Description

Hi Everyone here is my description.



AnacondaIntroduction

Kingdom: Animalia

Class: Reptillia

Family: Boidae

Species: Eunectes Murinus

The Green Anaconda is the largest snake in the world. Being a member of the boa family it is a constrictor and lives in South America.

Characteristics

Green Anacondas are dark green with black spots.The spots on its side have yellow centres. An Anaconda is a carnivore and is a reptile of the boa family. It can live up to 10 years in the wild. The Green Anaconda is the largest snake in the world measuring up to 10 metres in length, 30cm in diameter, and up to 230kg. The largest Anaconda measured was 8.43m and 227kg. The female is larger than the male. Anacondas are slow on land but very sleek and stealthy in the water. Its eyes and nasal openings are on top of its head so it can wait for prey without much of its body out of the water. A Green Anaconda can stay underwater for up to 10 minutes.

Habitat

Green Anacondas live in the Tropical Rainforests of the Amazon and the Orinoco basins of South America. Anaconda’s can be found as low down as Argentina. It can be found in swamps, marshes, slow moving streams and at low altitudes.

Diet

Green Anacondas eat Wild Pigs, Deer, Turtles, Birds, Capybaras, Caimans and even Jaguars. It kills its prey by coiling its body around it and constricting it to death. An Anacondas jaws have stretchy ligaments so Anacondas can eat their prey no matter how big it is. Anacondas enemies are humans because they destroy the Anacondas habitat and poachers hunt them. Anacondas can go for weeks without food after a big meal.

Breeding

Green Anacondas reach sexual maturity at 18 months for males and 4 years or more for females. Breeding season is from April to October and gestation is from 115 to 135 days. The females have litters up to 40. Green Anacondas are ovoviviparous which means the eggs hatch while still in the female and it gives birth to live young. In mating some males form a breeding ball around the female that can last up to 4 weeks.

An Anaconda is a great example of a rainforest animal that comes to my mind when I think of a rainforest.

Josh

hi here are my written up notes from yesterdays IDL.


Sustainability

We need to stop cutting our rainforests down and use it’s foods and sources carefully.

Plants

We need to make more national parks and keep our rainforests alive and safe.

Everyone should plant trees or donate money to Protect our rainforests.

10yer all gone

When people clear rainforests the old soil washes into Rivers clogging them with sticky mud.

We need make a change and fast because it’s predicted by 2050 their will be no rainforests left.

Josh10

sam 16


hi all


Its time for a nother monkey updata
Monkeys have an IQ of 174
Monkeys can weigh up to 100 pounds or 45 kgs
Monkeys can live in trees, grasslands, mountains , forests or on high plains

sam 15


hi all


Its time for a monkey update
Howler monkeys are named and known for the loud, guttural howls that they routinely use at the beginning and end of the day. They are the loudest animal in the New World and while their howl is not a piercing sound, it can travel for three miles through dense forest.

sam 14

Hi all

This is all of my narrative.

Monkey Mayhem

It was 1965 in the Amazon Rain Forest. Russell the Monkey was playing on some vines in the Canopy of the rain forest. He was doing back flips and kicking all the coconuts out of the palm trees. As they fell to the ground Russell saw that there was a cheater right underneath the tree and in the way of the falling coconuts. Donk, Donk, Donk. 3 of the biggest coconuts hit the cheater right on top of his head. Russell knew he was in trouble so he started to run away from the tree that the cheater was climbing at a dangerous speed. Russell was all ready 5 trees ahead of the cheater when it got to the top of the first tree it was climbing.

After 10 minutes of running Russell thought he would take a short cut.
“If I go this way I don’t think that cheater will fit through that hole.” The only flaw in Russell’s plan was that he did not know were the path led. But with out thinking of that he pushed himself through the gap in the branches and ran off through the trees, towards the Inca Town.

‘I think I lost him.” Said Russell while he tried to get his breath back. Then Russell turned around and looked at what was behind him. It was a whole squad of Inca hunters.
“Not good” Russell said in a worried tone. All of the Incas looked really amazed. They had just heard a monkey say “not good”. A real, live, breathing monkey.
“Did that monkey just say something?” One of the strongest Inca warriors said in awe. “Even if it did we need to eat. Kill it!!!” said on of the other Incas.
Then all but one Inca ran at the monkey.

“Stooop” shouted the one warrior that did not run at the monkey.
“This monkey is obviously a very rare monkey. We should let him live and run free.” Said the warrior, John. The Incas did not listen to him they just kept on running after the monkey.
Russell did not know whether to run through the legs of the Incas and go to the man that was trying to help him or try his luck with the cheater.

Russell had just made up his mind that he was going to try his luck with the cheater when John picked him up and ran as fast as he could in to the forest.
“What are you doing? Why aren’t you cutting me up and eating me raw?” Asked Russell “I think that you should be free roaming monkey because I think you are a rare monkey. Am I right?” Asked John
“I don’t remember ever meeting another monkey that could talk like me. I don’t even remember meeting my mother and father. So I think you might be right I think I am a rare monkey.” Replied Russell, sounding surprised.

After about an hour of running John stopped to take a breather.
“I think we’ve lost them.” Said John as he struggled to get his breath back
“Thanks for saving me back there.” Said Russell.
“Any time” replied John .
“Since you think that I should be a free roaming monkey maybe you can help me get rid of a hunter that’s been chasing me for a very long time, for as long as I can remember in fact.” Said Russell
“That will be fine with me but you will have to live with me for almost the rest of your life. When I helped you I betrayed my tribe. So now they will through me out and treat me like an outcast for the rest of my life.” Said John in a sad voice
“I don’t think they will do that for all of your life, will they?” Asked Russell
“Yes they will the only way they will respect me again is if I save the life of one of the tribe members.” Replied John with a forced smile “Anyway there is no knowing what will happen in the future, so there is no point worrying about it.”

John and Russell started to walk off when they heard a loud bang and a cry. They went to investigate the sound. When they saw it, they wished they had left a little earlier. There they saw a dead howler monkey on the ground with blood poring out of a hole near his heart. There was a tall, skinny man standing over the dead monkey.
“Dam. Wrong monkey again. When will I get this monkey that can talk.” Said the hunter “I will get that monkey or my name is not Ron Black the greatest hunter in the entire world.” Said Ron in a large brave voice.

“Is that the hunter that has been chasing you Russell?” Whispered John
“Yes. I think it is, but I have never seen him up so close.” Replied Russell in a low voice/ “Come on lets get out of here before he spots us.” Said Russell
“Too late he has seen me!!” Shouted John.
John was right Ron had seen them and he was now running back to get in his car. But John had not seen the young inquisitive Inca child that was hiding behind a bush watching the strange moving object. As the car took off the young boy chased it and then when he was close he jumped in the back of the jeep.

John and Russell used their head start to their advantage and were now along way ahead of the hunter.
“Maybe we can make a trap so that when the jeep drives over it, it will fall in to a deep hole.” Suggested John
“You know what, that’s a really good idea. We better get started on making it. I can dig really well so I will make the hole and you get some leaves or something like that to put over the top of it.” Said Russell from inside a small hole. John did not reply, he was off finding a lot of leaves to cover the hole. With in a couple of minutes the trap was ready and just in time to, they could hear the motor of the jeep roaring towards the hole.

John and Russell had hidden by the time that the jeep got there. As soon as the jeep hit the leaves over the hole they fell away showing a deep dark hole. But when the jeep fell in to the hole the little boy that was in the back of the jeep knew that he had to jump out so he did. But he missed the edge of the hole and fell in. John had seen the little boy in the back of the car so he ran over to the edge to see if he was still alive. When he got to the edge he saw the boy was hanging on to a stick not far from the top of the hole. John grabbed his hand and pulled him up. And just as the boy got out of the hole the car blew up. A huge ball of fire shot up to the canopy. All of the trees that were above the hole caught on fire and started to spread. “Hurry up Russell we have to get back to the village.” Said John as he ran out of the fire.

After about a day of walking John, Russell and the young boy got back to the village. John and the boy went in to the Empires house in the village to plead for him to let John to live in the village once more. John came out of the house, then an hour later the Empire emerged and said.
“Since John saved an animal that we were trying to hunt us I have decided that he will not be welcome back in to the village even though he saved this young boy. One of our best worriers died because we did not have any food to eat that night.” John started to run away. When he got to the edge of the village he turned around and saw that the family of the little boy he had saved was following him. “We are coming with you John” Said the boy. John looked at the boy’s parents and they nodded. He looked behind them and they were lots more people following. The biggest man of the group yelled
“We think you should be able to live in the village again so we are coming with you. We will make our own village far away from here where people will never be kicked out of their homes.”
John was so happy he could not stop smiling.

“I know the best place to make a new village” Said Russell. He took the villagers to the place wear the hole was. By now the fire had burnt down and there was now a really big burnt area with a deep hole in the middle of it. John, Russell and the rest of the villages built a really big city. All of the people lived there for a very long time. After that Russell never got hunted again.

The End

From Sam

sam 13

Hi everyone

This is a web page with lots of acts to do on rain forests

http://abcteach.com/directory/basics/science/habitats_biomes/rain_forest/

From Sam

pheynai 5




Hi everyone here are some rain forest animals and plants here they are and maps the maps show you were the rain forest are

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

George15 Flora

Hi Everyone here is my Flora.

There are many plants in a tropical rainforest. More than two thirds of the world’s plant species live in tropical rainforests. There are still many plants unnamed while others are a common sight in a rainforest.

Rainforest plants are very important for human and animal survival as they take in carbon dioxide and in a process called photosynthesis, they provide themselves food and the gas that is released is oxygen which keeps the humans and animals alive.

Rainforest plants also provide food and shelter for other animals. The plants live in a humid environment and there are many species which would be rare in a more temperate climate. There is huge competition on the forest floor which has led to plants living on other trees and even strangling other plants to death for survival.

Bromeliads

Bromeliads have thick, waxy leaves that form a bowl shape in their centre for catching water. Some types of bromeliads can hold 6 litres of water. They are also related to the pineapple family. Bromeliads are little ecosystems in themselves as they provide a home for frogs, tadpoles, salamanders, snails, beetles and even mosquito larvae. When those animals die, they decompose and give the plant nutrients.

Epiphytes

Epiphytes (air plants) grow everywhere in a rainforests but can be found mainly on the trees. Lots of different epiphytes can grow on the same tree such as orchids, cacti, bromeliads, aroids, lichens, mosses and ferns. Epiphytes start their life in the canopy of the rainforest by seeds or spores that have been carried there by the birds and the wind. An epiphyte grows on a host but does not take nutrients from its host like a parasite.

Saprophytes

Saprophytes act as the rainforests decomposers keeping the soil fresh with lots of nutrients. Saprophytes work very efficiently and can break down dead animals and vegetation in one day. Decomposition in Temperate rainforests can take up to 6 weeks because it is colder and less humid. Lots of Saprophytes are microbes so you can not see them with the naked eye.

Buttress Roots

Most of the soil in a rainforest isn’t very nutritious because many of the nutrients are on the surface; therefore most of the rainforest trees have small roots. Some very tall trees have adapted to this and they have grown roots that come out of the side of the trees trunk and forge into the ground which then stabilizes the trees and enables the tree to gain extra nutrients from the soil.

Lianas

Ninety per cent of the world’s vines grow in tropical rainforests. Lianas are a climbing vine species that are found throughout tropical rainforests. They have thick stems and can grow up to 914 metres! They begin their life on the ground and use the trees for support and they climb up to the light they need to live. They attach themselves to the trees and sometimes wind themselves up the trunk.

Carnivorous Plants

Some plants eat other animals or insects for food. They attract them with a cavity filled with nectar. Animals that try to eat the insects are attracted as well. Some of these are the Rafflesia (smells like rotting meat and can grow to 9.14m) and the Venus Fly Trap (the most famous).

Orchids

Orchids are one of the most abundant species of flowering plants. There are more than 20 000 known species of orchids. They are very common in moist tropical regions. Often the orchids in a tropical rainforest are epiphytes. They vary a lot in shape, colour and size but still have the same pattern of three petals.

Strangler Fig

Most stranglers are a part of the fig family. The seed of a strangler fig starts as an epiphyte, it then sends down roots to the forest floor, where it surrounds the tree and starts to suffocate it. When the tree dies it is only a hollow log with a strangler around it. A Strangler Fig uses the tree as its host so it avoids competition for food on the forest floor.

I think Flora is very important to the world’s ecosystems especially within tropical rainforests.

Tania 17

Hi all,
Did you know the Amazon Rainforest is the largest rainforest in the world.It is of great significance for the climate of the rest of the world because it absorbs very large amounts of carbon dioxide.As more of the rainforest is cut down the less it willbe capable of absorbing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

Cheers Tania

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Josh9


here are written up notes on
rainforests People.

People of the rainforests have been living there for thousands of years.


Hunt by Blowing poison darts from their blow pipes. People of the rainforests in Africa sometimes hunt elephant and buffalo. These people usually hunt monkeys, birds and rodents they collect fruit, honey, birds eggs and insects.

Agriculture 50 different crops like pineapple, banana and nuts.

People of the rainforests are small, they grow to about 140 cm.

These people look at rainforests as there home.

Threat

The people of rainforests are threatened by the clearing of rainforests.

Dance

These people have made up there own dances.

Lots of these people die from introduced Diseases from settlers like measles.

They only live to about 40 years of age.

I think the way that people of the rainforests hunt is really interesting.

George 14 Carniverous Plants

Hi Everyone here is some really cool info about carniverous plants.

Some plants are adapted to obtain nutrients from animal matter. The best known of these is probably the Venus fly trap, but more impressive is the pitcher plant Nepenthes rafflesiana, found in southeast Asia. This plant grows to 30 feet tall and may have pitchers 12 inches in length, usually crammed full of digested insects.


Pitcher plants also eat small mammals and reptiles that attempt to steal the insects from the pitcher.

Found at:
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/carniverous.html

Bradley 12 Stacks of Facts

Hi everyone!!
I have found some more facts that I thought were yet again quite interesting. A few people might have one or two of them posted already but the blog is getting too big to look for them.

The trees of a tropical rainforest are so densely packed that rain falling on the canopy can take as long as 10 minutes to reach the ground.

A typical 10 square kilometre patch of rainforest contains as many as 1,500 flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 400 species of birds and 150 species of butterflies.

Rainforests are found on every continent across the Earth, except Antarctica

More than 20 percent of the world oxygen is produced in the Amazon Rainforest.


I got these facts from http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/Homework/Grainforest.htm


And this web site is also really good. It shows you some of the animal life in the rainforest at night. Go spot lighting at

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/features/00/earthpulse/rainforest/index_flash-feature.html


Cheers


Bradley :-)









Monday, August 31, 2009

Bradley11 gliding sensation

Hi Everyone!!
Some animals of the rainforsts have a special way of getting around the tree tops to under ground tunnels. But there is one animal that caught my eye. The flying squirrel Is a very special animal. Between it`s arms and leggs there is a great strech of skin. When these animals jump from the trees they open there arms and legs, the skin unfold allowing for more wind resistance. I have made a small movie of how the skinn works

Cheers
Bradley :-)

Josh8

I think the way that People of the rainforests hunt is really interesting.

Friday, August 28, 2009

George14 Narrative

Hi Everyone I have finished the draft on my narrative.

It's about a 13 year old boy called Rick who gets lost in the Amazon rainforest while exploring with his father John........

Josh7 description

Here is my description of an animal.



Green Tree Python

The green tree python is located in mostly canopies of the tropical rainforest in New Guinea and far North Queensland.

This python is light green with blue and white spots. It sometimes has a white or yellow stripe down its back. This snake is usually about one and a half metres in length but can get up to 2.20metres

This snake waits in the canopy for prey to come close, then springs upon it stunning it, and constricts till the prey is dead. When it eats and when it swallows it whole, when it has large food like a big rodent, it can dislocate its jaws to swallow it. This python mostly hunt their prey during the night using its heat pits. It eats reptiles, birds, rodents and bats. This snake is hard to spot because of its camouflage which helps it hunt. It sometimes uses its tail to lure its prey closer to itself.

.

The green tree pythons usually mate from September to December but sometimes all year round. The female find a place to lay her eggs rather on the ground or in a tree hole. Female snakes lay between 6 and 30 eggs. Once the female snake has laid her eggs, she lays on them to incubate them. The mother guards her clutch of eggs with her life. Shivering to keep her body temperature up, she only leaves the nest to eat. It takes 45 to 50 days for the eggs to hatch. The young are coloured orange, yellow or blue which attract hungry predators. That’s why they go up into the trees as fast as they can. They are green by the time they reach the age of two years.

This python is fascinating because of its laziness and cunningness when hunting its prey.

Young green tree python

George13 Improved Maps

Hi Everyone after seeing everyone's maps I improved mine.


Sam 12











Hi Everyone he is my world map and Australian map
From Sam




Thursday, August 27, 2009

George 12 World map

Hi everyone here is my world map.

Tania 16

Rainforests are the home for millions of different animals. Animals are found in each section of the rainforest. It is thought that Tropical Rainforests contain half of the world’s known species.
While all rainforest have the same types of animals – rainforests in different countries have different species.
My favourite animal that lives in overseas rainforests are Spider Monkeys. Spider monkeys live in the tropical rain forests of Central and South America. Here they usually stay in the canopy away from their predators (jaguars, pumas, ocelots, and large snakes) that live on the floor of the rainforest.
The spider monkey has a brown body with black hands and feet. It has a long tail that it uses to move from branch to branch as it has no thumbs. Its tail also helps it balance when it is standing up. It is between 30 – 60 centimetres in height and weights around 6 kilograms.
Spider monkeys eat nuts, fruits, leaves, bird eggs, and spiders.

Spiders monkeys usually live in groups and communicate with many calls, screeches, barks, and other sounds.The female spider monkey only has a baby every two to five years. They look after it for a year often carrying it on their backs. The mother looks after the baby for twelve months often carrying it on their backs.
The spider monkey is in danger because Indigenous people hunt them for food and logging is destroying their homes.

Another animal in Amazon Rainforest is the African Dwarf Crocodile. They are between 90 and 180 cm long!! This little crocodile is in danger because of losing its habitat. The skin of the animal is useless in the leather trade, so it is not poached

Central and Southern American rainforests have colourful birds like our parrots. Macaws are the largest of these. They eat nuts, fruits, and seeds with their sharp, hooked bills.

Some Australian Rainforest Animals. (picture to link)

Ulysses Butterfly
The Ulysses Butterfly is one of the largest and most beautiful butterflies in the Australian Rainforest and lives mainly in the mountains. It has bright blue wings that are surrounded by black on the edges of its wings.

King Parrot
The male King Parrot has a bright red body and head with deep green wings and blue on its chest. It is more colourful than the female who does not have the red head. They are found in trees at the edge of the forest where they eat seeds, berries, other fruits, nuts and nectar. Sometimes they also can be seen walking on the ground eating fallen seeds and fruit.
King parrots are usually seen in pairs as the male finds a mate and stays with her for life.

Giant Green Tree Frog
The Green Tree Frog is an amphibian that lives in the canopy but mates on the ground in water. They are larger than most Australian frogs (about 10 centimetres long). They eat cockroaches, spiders, flies, crickets and sometimes mice. The Green Tree Frog blend into the colours of the rainforest plants (camouflaged) with its green skin and bulging orange and red eyes.

Green Tree Python
It has bright green scales with a yellow belly. It lives only in Tropical Rainforests. Like most pythons it kills its prey (small mammals and birds) by wrapping its body around it. It has shape fangs but it is not poisonous.

Tiger Quoll

The Tiger Quoll is twice as large as other Quolls and it has white spots along their tail. It has bright eyes, a pointed snout with a moist pink nose and sharp teeth. Their fur is and is red-brown to dark brown and white and they have a long tail.
They live in rainforest in caves, hollow logs, burrows and hollow trees.
They are carnivores eating gliders, possums, rabbits and even small wallabies, bird’s eggs and dead animals and are mainly nocturnal.

Red Necked Pademelon
A Red Necked Pademelon is a marsupial. It is a small kangaroo that feeds on the edges of the forest. Their fur is soft and thick, grey brown on the back and a white chest. Its ears are large to help it hear the sounds of predators. If they sense danger they will thump their back legs on the ground to warn other Pademelons.

There are just a few of the many animals living in rainforests. Some haven’t even been named identified yet.
References
http://www.australianfauna.com/kingparrot.php
http://www.environment.gov.au/biodiversity/threatened/publications/tiger-quoll.html
spiderhttp://spidermonkeys.com/Facts.html
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/spider-monkey.html

Bradley 10 Rainforests of Australia and The world.



Hi Everyone
Here are my maps that I drew for the world and Australia.
Cheers
Bradley:-)

Bradley 9 Scary Trekking

Hi everyone!!
In the rainforests there are many deep crevices and holes. It Is important for rainforest people to conquer these obstacles with speed. So they invented rainforest bridges. They cut down medium trees and tried them all together with Liana vines. Then they put more vines until the bridge could support the weight of a person. I have done a small diagram of what a rainforest side view looks like.
How ever just to make you say no I planted a few fake booby traps.
You might have to double click on it to see it bigger.
Cheers
Bradley:-)

joshua2

Rainforests are forests with an abundance of trees and other plant life. They contain many different animal species. Rainforests flourish in areas that have high rainfall. High rainfall is necessary to help promote plant growth and create a lush environment. There are four different layers that make up a rainforest. These are – the emergent layer, the canopy, the understorey and forest floor. There are three different types of rainforest and they are Tropical, Sub-tropical and Temperate rainforests.

The green tree python is located in mostly canopies of the tropical rainforest in New Guinea and far North Queensland.

This python is green with blue and white spots it sometimes has a white or yellow stripe down it’s back.

This snake waits in the canopy for prey to come close then springs upon it stunning it then constricts till the prey is dead. When it eats and when it swallows it's hole when it has large food like a big rodent it can dislocate it’s jaws to swallow it.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

George 11 Conservation and Destruction of Rainforests

Hi Everyone here is a really interesting website about destruction and conservation of Rainforests.
http://www.rain-tree.com/facts.htm

Tania 14


Here is My Australia map.

Tania 13 Flora

Rainforest Flora
There is a great variety of plants in the rainforest. More than two thirds of the world's different plants are found in tropical rainforests.
Rainforest plants have to struggle to survive because there is limited light, space and food. Many plants have different ways to help them survive. These include using other plants for support, having brightly coloured flowers or scent t and growing special root systems.
A species of plant that uses another plant for support is Epiphytes. These plants live on air but grow on the trunks, branches and leaves of trees. Some epiphytes include orchids, cacti, bromeliads, lichens, mosses and ferns. They begin their life in the canopy from seeds or spores carried there by birds, animals or winds.
Bromeliads have thick, waxy leaves that have a round shape in middle for holding water. It also gives a home for several creatures including frogs, tadpoles, snails and beetles. When these animals die they provide nutrients for the plant.
One type of epiphyte is an orchid. There are many different varieties of orchids (up to 20,000 known species). Orchids have different shapes, colours and size but all orchids have three petals. Not all orchids are epiphytes - usually only the ones in tropical areas. In the temperate areas they usually grow in the soil. Orchids are usually brightly coloured to attract animals to help them pollinate.

Some plants like the Strangler Fig live on other trees but end up killing it. A Strangler Fig starts to grow like an epiphyte but lets down its roots. When the roots touch the ground the fig quickly starts to grow until it kills the other tree.

Lianas (climbing vines) are tangled, woody climbing plants that use other plants for support. They come in a variety of lengths and sizes. Unlike epiphytes they start to grow on the forest floor and climb upwards towards the sunlight using the trunks of other trees for support. When they reach the top of the canopy they often spread to other trees or other lianas. Ninety per cent of the world's vine species grow in tropical rainforests.

Another way rainforest plants have changed to their environment is by having different root systems. Some very tall trees have buttress roots. These are roots which grow out from the bottom of the trunk. They can be over four metres above the ground. Without these huge roots to support their size and weight the trees would over balance. These soils big roots also mean that there is a wider area form which the tree and get food.
Mangroves have different roots, their roots point up out of the ground. They grow in wet, muddy soil at the water's edge where there are tides or flooding.

The curtain fig has a root system that covers a wide area and looks like a curtain.
Some trees in a rainforest protect themselves by being poisonous or having stinging parts. The Stinging tree in Australia grows to a height of up to 30 metres. It large, bright green leaves have holes from insects and it has fine spines that are poisonous. The Lawyer Cane is also has needle sharp spikes.

Saprophytes don’t need the sun. They turn dead and decaying matter into nutrients for other plants to use. Some are so small that they can’t be seen with the naked eye. Saprophytes include mushrooms and other fungi. Carnivorous plants are special plants that get their food from animals. The Venus fly trap has tiny hairs in the middle and when an insect or spider crawls along the leaves and touches these hairs the trap closes. Another carnivorous plant is the pitcher plant which is found in Southeast Asia. This has a tube that fills with liquid to make a trap.

Plants in the rainforest are very important because they give shelter and food for rainforest animals. They also help the environment by using carbon dioxide and replacing it with oxygen. Many of the different species of plants in the rainforest are also used in medicines.

References


http://pro.corbis.com/images/WK017569.jpg?size=67&uid=834766FA-1125-4B65-B9A9-51942E071607
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/saprophytes.html
Jones Stephen Rainforests
Paris Steve Australian Forests and Woodlands

Tania 12 World map


Here is my world map
Do you like it??

Joshua 1

It's my first post for the unit. Mr Dredge is here. Look forward to posting each day.

Tania 11Location

Where are Rainforests found?

Rainforests can be grouped as Tropical Rainforest, Subtropical and Temperate depending on the latitude and altitude.

Tropical rainforests are found between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn in areas of high rainfall. They cover about 5 percent of the earth’s surface and are found in the Amazon Basin, Central America, Central and West Africa, South East Asia, South East Madagascar and the coastal parts of North East Queensland.



Rainforests in Australia.

In Australia, Rainforests are found along the east coast and some parts of Victoria and Tasmania. The Tropical Rainforests are north of Townsville (Queensland) where there is high rainfall all year. To the south of Mackay to Sydney is the area of Sub- Tropical Rainforests. Temperate Rainforests are found where it is cooler, in other areas of NSW, Tasmania and Eastern and Southern Victoria.

Bradley 8 Tropical Trivia

Hi Everyone
Here are some pretty cool facts I found at http://www.globio.org/glossopedia/article.aspx?fa=y&art_id=6 It`s a very good web site.

About one-quarter of all the medicines we use come from rainforest plants.

The largest catfish in the world lives in a tropical rainforest river in Vietnam. It weighs over 300kg.

The world’s only species of flying snake and lizard live in the Borneo rainforest.

Rainforests have 170,000 of the world's 400,000 known plant species.

Cheers
Bradley

Bradley 7 Plants water and survival


Hi Everyone.

I have done an experiment. People that are living in the rainforests as well as explorers often can run out of water. If this happens they can usually find a close stream or river. But if the unexpected happens and they cant find this they turn to the trees. The video will show you why .




Cheers Bradley

George 10 Map of Australia

Hi Everyone, here is my traced map of Australia with the rainforests.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Josh5

In the fork of a tree in the canopy where there is some dirt and moisture, the strangler fig seed germinates and sends long skinny roots down the trunk of the tree to the forest floor. The vine grows really big and wraps around the tree.

sam11

Hi everyone

Here is another fun fact


Some rainforest monkeys are omnivores, eating both animals and plants.

More than 2,000 different species of butterflies are found in the rainforests of South America.

The forests of Central Africa are home to more than 8,000 different species of plants.

Flying animals of Asian rainforests include frogs, squirrels and snakes

Form Sam

sam 10

Hi everone

Here is a nother fun fact


An area of a rainforest the size of a football field is being destroyed each second.

Giant bamboo plants can grow up to 9 inches a day.

The trees of a tropical rainforest are so densely packed that rain falling on the canopy can take as long as 10 minutes to reach the ground.

In the moist rainforests of South America, sloths move so slowly that algae are able to grow in their fur

George 9 Description

Hi Everyone I am doing my description on a Green Anaconda.

George8 Parts of the Rainforests

Hi Everyone here is my Parts of the Rainforests writing.

Parts of the RainforestThere are four main Strata (layers) of a Tropical Rainforest - the Emergents, Canopy, Understory and Forest Floor. Each of these is very different in many ways such as the temperature, type of flora and fauna, the humidity and the height of the layer.

Emergents

The Emergent level is the tallest part of a Rainforest. It is made up of the tops of the tallest trees. The trees are much higher than the normal trees in the canopy. Emergent trees range from 60m to 80m tall. The emergent level is home to many species of birds such as the Scarlet Macaw, Proboscis Monkey, Pygmy Glider, Eagle, Parrot, Vulture and many more. Some of these examples are found in Australian Tropical Rainforests.

Canopy

The Canopy is made up of the tops of the normal trees in a Rainforest. It ranges from 20m to 60m in height. The canopy is full of life with the Toucan, Scarlet Macaw, Howler Monkey, Orang-utan and the Sloth. The Canopy is very thick and because of that not much light at all gets into the undergrowth. Many animals live in the canopy since there is lots of food.

Understorey

The understory is a very dark, hot, damp place. It contains trees that tolerate low light. Along rivers, roads and cut areas the sunlight can be strong enough to make the understory very dense. Some of the animals that live in the Rainforest understorey are Iguana, Boa Constrictor, Fruit Bat, Leaf Cutter Ants, Spider Monkey and Butterflies.

Forest Floor

The forest floor isn’t crowded. It does not have much sunlight reaching it at all. It is very hot and the humidity levels are high. Small plants such as ferns and mosses live here. Dead vegetation and animals rot very quickly. Tall trees that reach up into the emergent layer have huge buttress roots to keep them upright as the soil is not very good in tropical rainforests. Lots of animals live on the forest floor including the Tapir, Army Ants, Scorpion, Anteater, Matamata, Turtle, Piranha, Caiman, Arapaima, Anaconda, Jaguar and Giant Millipede. Many decomposers live on the forest floor. Insects eat

the decaying plants and animals it recycles the forest waste and provide nutrients for the flora to use.