Save Amazon Rainforest Canopy, Animals and Plants

The lowest floor of the Amazon forest is dark because only two percent of the sunlight filters through the top to reach there. Naturally very few plants grow here. The forest floor, however, is very rich in nutrients due to rotting vegetation and the bodies of dead organisms. The hot and humid temperature swiftly breaks down the composition into nutrients that get absorbed in the soil.  The earthworms and millipedes decompose the minerals and add to the richness of soil.

The middle layer is devoid of sunlight too, in many ways it resembles the lowest floor of the forest with perhaps 5 % of sun rays reaching here. This shadowy and dark floor has plants that grow large, broad leaves to survive with the sunshine and collect as much as possible.

Understandably both these layers are thick with vegetation and micro-organisms.

Next comes the layer that envelopes the rainforest, this is the canopy. You can guess – this is the layer where the real action of the tropical rainforest is. The leaves have drip tips allowing the rain water to flow. Leaves in the canopy are thick and dense and contain the 80 % of filtered sunlight. The health and wealth of the rainforest lies in the canopy.

That’s not all. There is a layer above the canopy which breaks through it and reaches about 200 feet, close enough to touch the clouds. Amazing isn’t it. Trees which rise to the topmost layer are gigantic and massive. Many of these precious trees are supported by huge buttress roots.

Every layer in the forest has a story and every forest layer embodies a life that thrives on the conditions of this particular layer. Animals in the top layer and the canopy need never go to the bottom layers because their survival requirements are fulfilled here.

Now if you do not pay attention to the nature, its soft humming sound and pristine, serene surroundings, the nature comes back strongly. I guess, the humankind should understand who is the boss, for instance; giant hurricanes, Katrina, Tsunami, volcanoes erupting, draughts and river floods are just to name a few of nature’s wrath . Nature gives it back quite ferociously with a power that the mankind cannot boast off and equal.

However; synchronize and flow with nature and it will reward you. The rewards are almost instantaneous, look at the river, hear the sound of the soothing waterfall or just pay attention to the humming bee; you will definitely understand.  Aren’t they gracious? Look at the azure sky changing its colour from blue to yellow and from yellow to red and finally dark blue to jet black at night with thousands of twinkling stars, look at the evergreen forests, snow draped mountains, you will have enough reasons to thank the nature. Can any manmade object be ever beautiful as the supreme yet gentle nature?

The rainforest Amazon animals provide an interesting study of the evolution of the animals and plants. The Amazon River wildlife preserves one of the world’s largest fresh water fish. The beautiful rainforest provide a canopy to many species that grow underneath the canopy of these dense rainforests, rare herb medicines are also found in this part of the rainforest. Aren’t we threatening the Amazon River that is a home to many fish and rare species with rapid urbanization?

The amazing Amazon rainforest are famous due to the amazing Amazon River, the life force of the strategically placed rainforest. The wonderful Amazon River begins in the Peruvian Andes, and circles its way east over the northern half of present South America.

It ultimately falls in the Atlantic Ocean at Belem, Brazil. The gigantic river is about 4,080 miles long, the longest in the world, only comparable to Nile River. The Amazon drainage basin covers millions of square mile area and lies mainly in the countries of Brazil, along with some other countries.

Curious to know more about the Amazon River?

Approximately 16 percent of the entire world's river water flows through the Amazon delta and the huge resource of fresh water has 28 billion gallons of water flow into the Atlantic every minute. The sea-shore gets diluted of the salinity for more than 100 miles offshore by Amazon River. The Amazon rainforest watershed is home to the world's highest level of biodiversity housing rainforest Amazon species on both the earth and the water.

Around 40 to 75% of all species in the world's habitats owe it to the rainforests. The wonderful tropical and temperate rainforests are saving and nurturing many millions of rainforest Amazon animals, species of plants, insects, Amazon rainforest vegetation and microorganisms that remain undiscovered even today. Tropical rainforests are rightly called the "jewels of the Earth", and the world's largest bio-degraded natural eco-system that regenerates most of the oxygen through photosynthesis required to sustain life on earth.  

The river Amazonia receives a great part of about 9 tremendous feet of Amazon rainforest rainfall throughout the year. The nature’s recycling system returns 50 percent of this rainfall to the atmosphere through the foliage of trees as pristine filtered water. Wondering where from the river get its water power? Much of the Amazon River’s water originates from the snow which melts in the high altitude Peruvian Andes. Amidst the months of June and October, the water level of this royal river rises by 30 to 45 feet.  When there is a flood and it is there every now and then; tens of millions of acres of rainforest are covered by water as the flood advances, reaching as far as 12 miles from the edge of the river.

The amazing history of the river tells us a story about the passage of time when it flew westwards. The great South American plate when moved into another tectonic plate and the present Andes Mountains slowly rose up and blocked the flow of the river, the huge river system backed up and mammoth freshwater lakes were formed. Resulting with the changed course of the Amazon River, the environment of the Amazon basin changed dramatically. After almost 10 million years ago, the river Amazon at last found its way eastward towards the Atlantic Ocean.