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Tropical Rainforests - Coggle Diagram
Tropical Rainforests
Case Study - Malaysia
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Selective logging of mature and commercially viable trees over a 40-year cycle to ensure that trees had time to re-establish themselves. This is known as a Selective Management System.
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Permanent Forest Estates have been created by the government where no change of land use is allowed.
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Deforestation Causes
Farming - large areas are cleared for pastoral farming. As the global demand for meat has increased many cattle farms have opened in the Amazon Basin for beef farming. Arable farming is also responsible for the loss of tropical rainforest as many farmers are clearing land to grow cash crops, such as soya beans.
Logging - tropical rainforests are cut down so that valuable trees like mahogany can be accessed and sold for timber to make furniture. Other trees are cut down for making paper products.
Mining - the Amazon Basin is rich in natural resources such as iron ore, copper, tin, aluminium, manganese and gold. This has led to the development of mines which results in the clearance of tropical rainforest. The Carajas mine in Brazil is the world's largest iron ore mine.
Roads - the construction of access roads for farmers, loggers and miners results in large parts of the tropical rainforest being destroyed.
Hydroelectric power (HEP) - The creation of HEP stations in the Amazon Basin has resulted in large areas of forest being flooded to create the reservoirs and dams. The flooding of the Balbina dam in Brazil resulted in the loss of 920 square miles of tropical rainforest.
Population - population growth has resulted in the loss of tropical rainforest as land is cleared to build houses and infrastructure.
Plant Adaptations
Lianas - these are woody vines that have roots in the ground but climb up the trees to reach the sunlight. Their leaves and flowers grow in the canopy.
Tree trunks - these are tall and thin to allow trees to reach the sunlight. The bark on these trees is smooth to allow water to flow down to the roots easily.
Drip tips - plants have leaves with pointy tips. This allows water to run off the leaves quickly without damaging or breaking them.
Buttress roots - large roots have ridges which create a large surface area that help to support large trees.
Epiphytes - these are plants which live on the branches of trees high up in the canopy. They get their nutrients from the air and water, not from the soil.
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Climate
Very wet with over 2,000 mm of rainfall per year.
Very warm with an average daily temperature of 28°C. The temperature never drops below 20°C and rarely exceeds 35°C.
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Animal Adaptations
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The spider monkey has long, strong limbs to help it to climb through the rainforest trees.
The flying frog has fully webbed hands and feet, and a flap of loose skin that stretches between its limbs, which allows it to glide from plant to plant.
The toucan has a long, large bill to allow it to reach and cut fruit from branches that are too weak to support its weight.
Impacts of TRF
Soil erosion
Once the land is cleared of rainforest vegetation the soil is left bare. When it rains, the nutrients in the soil are washed away. The nutrient cycle stops because there are no plants or trees shedding leaves to replace the nutrients in the soil. The soil is no longer able to support plant life because it is not fertile. The roots of plants and trees no longer hold the soil together so it is easily eroded.
Loss of biodiversity
Many different species of plants and animals die because of deforestation. As plants and animals are closely connected through the food web, deforestation this reduces the biodiversity, or variety of species found in the tropical rainforest.
Climate change
The trees and plants of the Amazon Basin absorb carbon dioxide during the process of photosynthesis. If there are fewer trees and plants, due to deforestation, then less carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere. In this way deforestation contributes to global warming and therefore climate change.
Economic development
The creation of mines, farms and roads - which caused deforestation - has also led to economic development. The money created from these enterprises allows a country to generate foreign income, which can then be used to pay off debts or be invested in further development projects.
Plants + Animals
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The wide range of plant species supports many different animals, birds and insects.
Species have adapted to the conditions of the rainforest, eg trees and plants have shallow-reaching roots to absorb nutrients from the thin fertile layer in the soil.