Question

ln which country do equatorial forests occupy a greater area? What could be the reason behind it?

Answer 1

An evergreen forest is a forest consisting entirely or mainly of evergreen trees that retain green foliage all year round. Such forests reign in the equatorial region, between the tropics.

Equatorial evergreen forest is considered to be impenetrable because it does not allow sunlight to reach ground.
The main characteristics of this forests are:

Location:                                                                                                                    Tropicalevergreen forests are usually found in areas receiving more than 200 cm of rainfall and having a temperature of 15 °C to 30 °C. They occupy about seven per cent of the Earth's land surface and harbour more than half of the planet's terrestrial plants and animals. Tropical evergreen forests are dense, multi-layered, and harbour many types of plants and animals. The trees are evergreen as there is no period of drought or frost.
Vegetation and Soil in Equatorial Regions

In equatorial regions, the year round high temperatures and abundant rainfall support plant growth all year round. These areas usually have equatorial rainforests. These forests have very dense vegetation. Many different types of trees and other plants can be found growing in a relatively small area of rainforest. More species of plant can be found in a rainforest than in other type of plant community. Four square miles of rainforest may contain as many as 750 species of tree and 1,500 species of flowering plant. Rainforests cover only about 6 percent of the Earth’s surface. However, they contain about half of the world’s known animal species and provide about 40% of the world’s oxygen.

There are several layers of vegetation in a rainforest. The uppermost layer is made up of the crowns of the tallest trees. These trees are known as emergents. They are much taller than most trees in the rainforest and their crowns are exposed to the direct sunlight. Some trees such as the kapok may reach heights greater than 200 feet (61 meters).

The next layer is known as the canopy. The crowns of the trees in this layer are about 20 meters (about 65 feet) to 40 meters (about 130 feet) high. The crowns of the trees in this layer are tightly packed together forming a nearly unbroken cover for the forest floor. If you were looking down on a section of the rainforest from above, you would not be able to see the ground. Because of the cover provided by the canopy, very little sunlight reaches the lower layers of the rainforest.

Below the canopy is another layer known as the understory. Trees in this layer are only a few meters high. Here one can find trees which only grow to about 15 meters at maturity as well as young saplings which will eventually grow to reach the canopy. Sunlight here is limited.

Between the understory and the forest floor lies the shrub layer. It is composed of small plants such as ferns and small shrubs. Only about 1% or 2% of sunlight reaches this layer. Therefore, few plants are able to thrive there. The few plants which grow here must be able to tolerate low light conditions. It is easy to walk through the rainforest because the area near ground level is relatively free of vegetation. The diagram below shows the layers of the rainforest.


In rainforests, a layer of leaf litter can be found on the forest floor. Because of the moisture, high temperatures and the many decomposers, these leaves and any other organic matter decay very rapidly. Their nutrients are returned to the soil where they are taken up by plant roots. In this way, nutrients are recycled quickly and efficiently in rainforests.

In many tropical areas, chemical weathering has produced a reddish clay soil. The soil itself is not very fertile. However, in a rainforest, there is a continuous supply of leaves, animal droppings and other organic matter which are quickly broken down with the help of decomposers and incorporated into the topsoil. Because of this process, the soil in the rainforest is able to support the dense vegetation. However, once the vegetation is removed, the soil quickly loses its fertility.

Ways in which plant life has adapted to conditions in a rainforest:

The trees of the rainforest have adapted to the high temperatures and heavy rainfall in equatorial regions. The leaves are often dark green and thick to protect them from the intense sunshine. They often have pointed tips called drip tips which allow rain water to drain off quickly. Rainforest trees do not need thick bark to prevent moisture loss. Therefore their bark is usually thin and smooth.


There are other plants known as strangler figs. They start out by growing on a host tree.

Some of the main characteristics of Tropical Rain forests also known as Equatorial rain forests will give an idea about why it is considered impenetrable.

Answer 2

Congo is the equatorial country where a greater area of it is occupied by forests, this is due to the equatorial climate experienced in congo, the equatorial climate greatly favour the growth of such forests, the soils in Congo are fertile and encourage the growth of this forests, this forests are also there because of their conservation earlier on.