The Tropical Rainforest is a-ma-zing, and if you’re learning about it at school, I’m sure you agree! It’s huge, and sometimes people call it the earth’s lungs, because without it, our planet would struggle to breathe.
So let’s look at our Top 50 Fascinating Facts about the Tropical Rainforest!
- The tropical rainforest biome covers less than 10% of the Earth’s surface but more than half of all terrestrial species live here
- Rainfall in tropical rainforests varies between 2000-5000 mm per year but tropical rainforests only have distinct wet and dry seasons
- In tropical forests, there are between 1-2 million different insect species which support a very rich food chain
- Tropical rainforests experience nearly 12,000 tropical storms per year, with tropical trees such as teak able to withstand hurricane-force winds
- There are over 1 million different species of tropical flowering plants
- Up to 2 billion people rely directly on tropical forests for their livelihoods – tropical fruit alone provides food and income for 80% of the world’s population!
- Over 100 million hectares of tropical rainforest are currently being destroyed each year due to deforestation
- There are over 3000 km of roots in one hectare of forest which form a complex mesh that makes soil more stable
- Orangutans build nests every night out of leaves intropical rainforest trees, giving themselves a safe and comfy place to sleep for the night!
- Tropical tropical trees such as balsa are lightweight yet very strong which means they make good building material
- In tropical forests, you can find over 1 million different species of flowering plants
- The Amazon tropical rainforest is home to approximately 390 billion individual trees
- There are over 30,000 tropical plant species in one hectare of tropical rainforest
- Tropical rainforests give us 20% of all the oxygen we breathe
- Humans first evolved in tropical rainforests
- Over 350 million tonnes of organic matter is recycled through decomposition within tropical ecosystems each year
- There are more than 50,000 different species of tropical butterfly
- There are over 3000 species of tropical fish
- Tropical rainforests cover only 2% of the Earth’s surface but tropical forests provide habitats for more than half of all land-based creatures
- There is even a tropical rainforest in Alaska!
- The oldest tropical trees in the world are between 800 – 2000 years old!
- It can take around 100 years for tropical trees to grow 1 cm
- Tropical rainforests act as a carbon sink which means they absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide
- African tropical rainforests create one fifth of the world’s oxygen
- More than 75% of medicines have been developed from tropical plant extracts
- The Amazon tropical rainforest produces approximately 10 billion tonnes worth of fruits, nuts and other useful products every year
- Over 400 million people depend on tropical rainforests for their survival
- African tropical rainforest lions are the smallest lions in the world
- Tropical rainforests play a crucial role in climate regulation
- There are over 200 different species of tropical tree per hectare
- Malaria is often found within tropical forests
- Sustainably harvesting tropical trees can create sustainable livelihoods
- Rainforest inhabitants use more than 275 different plants for medicinal purposes
- Tropical forest soils are very deep and rich, perfect for growing crops
- It would take only 1 football pitch sized area of tropical forest to supply enough oxygen to support 4 adults
- There can be as much as 450inches of rain in a single year in a tropical rainforest.
- Humans have used tropical plant extracts as medicine since 10,000BC
- Tropical rainforest soil is very poor in nutrients which means tropical forest plants have to be packed full of nutrients in order for them to grow
- There is more carbon in tropical forests than in the atmosphere
- It takes tropical trees 10 years to absorb 1 tonne of CO2 per year
- The Amazon is home to the most species of amphibian in the world
- Around 75 million tonnes of tropical fruit are harvested each year
- A total of 50,000 different insects have been identified within tropical rainforests
- 90% of all tropical rainforest animals are arboreal which means they spend their entire life living on or within tropical forests
- Fungi are often found within tropical forests
- Some tropical rainforest trees can grow up to 40m within 10 – 20 years
- Tropical rainforest leaves are used to make paper
- The tropical forest soils make tropical forests great for farming
- It is estimated that tropical forests harbour over two-thirds of all species on earth
- Tropical rainforests are home to one-third of the planet’s animals, including over 1 million different insect species!
Here’s a great video from NatGeo that we think you might like if you enjoyed these facts!