Climate and flora and fauna in amazon basin
Answers
-------------------------------
The Amazon River basin has a low-water season, and a wet season during which, the rivers flood the adjacent, low-lying forests. The climate of the basin is generally hot and humid. In some areas, however, the winter months (June–September) can bring cold snaps, fueled by Antarctic winds travelling along the adjacent mountain range. The average annual temperature is around 25 degree and 30 degree Celsius with no distinction between summer and winter seasons.
plant life
-------------
Plant growth is dense and its variety of animal inhabitants is comparatively high due to the heavy rainfall and the dense and extensive evergreen and coniferous forests. Little sunlight reaches the ground due to the dense roof canopy by plants. The ground remains dark and damp and only shade tolerant vegetation will grow here. Orchids and bromeliads exploit trees and other plants to get closer to the sunlight. They grow hanging onto the branches or tree trunks with aerial roots, not as parasites but as epiphytes. Species of tropical trees native to the Amazon include Brazil nut, rubber tree and Assai palm.
animal life
---------------
Mammals
More than 1,400 species of mammals are found in the Amazon, the majority of which are species of bats and rodents. Its larger mammals include the jaguar, ocelot, capybara and South American tapir.
Reptiles
The green anaconda inhabits the shallow waters of the Amazon and the emerald tree boa and boa constrictor live in the Amazonian tree tops.
Many reptiles species are illegally collected and exported for the international pet trade. Live animals are the fourth largest commodity in the smuggling industry after drugs, diamonds, and weapons.
Fish
About 2,500 fish species are known from the Amazon basin and it is estimated that more than 1,000 additional undescribed species exist.This is more than any other river basin on Earth, and Amazonia is the center of diversity for Neotropical fishes.About 45% (more than 1,000 species) of the known Amazonian fish species are endemic to the basin.The remarkable species richness can in part be explained by the large differences between the various parts of the Amazon basin, resulting in many fish species that are endemic to small regions. For example, fauna in clearwater rivers differs from fauna in white and blackwater rivers, fauna in slow moving sections show distinct differences compared to that in rapids, fauna in small streams differ from that in major rivers, and fauna in shallow sections show distinct differences compared to that in deep parts.
plz mark me as brain list
FLORA :
Hummingbird, Toucans, Amazon Kingfisher, Hyacinth Macaw, Blue-fronted Amazon are some of the bird species that are present here. And animals like Sloth, Capybara, monkeys, ant-eating tapirs, poison dart frogs are present all over the rainforests of Amazon. The list does not end here! You get a glimpse of the grandest of the reptiles as well.
Crocodiles and snakes like Pythons and Anacondas are common here. Apart from these aquatic animals like the Piranha and Giant Otter can be sighted in the river basin. The list of fauna and flora in Amazon Basin is endless.
CLIMATE :
Amazon basin is situated in the equatorial region which is hot and humid all through the year. Days and nights both are equally hot and wet. Nights are comparatively less hot but the humidity level remains unchanged. Due to the humid conditions here, it rains almost every day.
FLORA :
The Amazon rainforest has a huge live collection of flora species. Botanical experts say that in 2.5 acres of the forest you can find 700 different species of trees and twice that number of plants. One of the most awesome things you will notice is that the forest has a high density of trees and they are very tall. Many trees reach 130 meters high (some species reach 200 feet), and under they form a shadowed place where at times is hard to see the sun. The high canopy of the Amazon rainforest is a very unknown place even for most botanists and until recently very few researches have even explored this hard to reach area of the forest. The high canopy is also the home of thousands of still undiscovered species of insects and birds.
Although it may be hard to believe, the soil of the Amazon rainforest is very poor in nutrients. If you show a report listing the nutrients of that soil to a botanist he or she will probably say that nothing but a cactus will grow in that. This is an astonishing fact since there are huge trees and lush vegetation all over the place. The Amazon rainforest soil holds only 20% of the nutrients in the forest; the other 80% are in the trees and plants themselves. The explanation is rather simple; the Amazon Region has a dry and a wet season. In the wet season the water level of the Amazon River rises dramatically, and in some places it reaches 15 meters higher than dry season. This means that in the rainy season a huge portion of the forest gets flooded. This works like a great mechanism for exchanging and transporting nutrients and is crucial for the whole forest. The Amazon rainforest soil works like a sponge and even being not very nutrient rich, it can hold enough nutrients to help maintain the trees until the next rainy season.