Woodland Park Zoo Field Trip, Part 2

 Next, we went into the auditorium for a presentation on the similarities and differences of the temperate and tropical rain forests.

Here is the forest floor of the temperate rain forest: leaf litter, beetles, banana slugs, bees, ferns, rabbits and foxes are some of the life on this level.

Here is a shot of two layers of the tropical rain forest: forest floor with leaf litter, ocelots, jaguars,  frogs, anacondas and insects live on this level; the understory has bromeliads, poison tree frogs, and monkeys, to name a few.

Meanwhile, at the canopy level of the temperate rain forest, we see birds, bats and hawks populating the bushes.

In the tropical rain forest, we see a variety of trees in the canopy layer. Vines hang from this layer. Monkeys use those vines to travel. Snakes camouflage themselves in this layer. The sloths love to live at this level.

The canopy layer of the temperate rain forest does not have a lot of biodiversity. That means most of the trees are the same in this layer. Racoons, bats, hawks, and birds live at this level.

The last, and fourth layer, of the tropical rain forest is the emergent layer. These trees are so tall that they have to have buttress roots for stability. The toucans live here with the macaws and parrots. The temperate rain forest does not have an emergent layer.

The tanager bird lives in both habitats. These birds fly south, to the tropical rain forest, in the winter to stay warm. They fly back to the temperate rain forest in the summer to stay cool.

 

People also live in both habitats.