Rainforests are made up of four different layers which provide food, homes and protection for not only its inhabitants, but for this ecosystem itself. Each layer is unique and has its own variety of plants and animals.
1. Emergent Layer - This is the highest layer of the Rainforest made up of the tops of the tallest trees, which can measure over 200 feet above the ground. This layer takes the brunt of severe weather including intense heat, high winds and severe rainstorms. This layer receives the most sunlight and the least amount of humidity, because it soars over the average tree height. Some of the animals that make their home in this layer include the Harpy Eagle, the sloth, the spider monkey, the macaw, the Toucan, hummingbird, bats, snakes and butterflies.
2. Canopy Layer - This layer resides directly beneath the Emergent Layer. This dense layer is actually the main layer of the rainforest, home to 50 percent of all the plant species on the earth! Trees, competing for sunlight, grow a dense canopy that filters out the majority of the sunlight and keeps moisture levels high. This level provides a great deal of food and a cover for the two layers that are located below. "Air Plants" such as Orchids live in this layer. They get their name because their roots never reach the ground. They exist by attaching themselves to another plant. This layer is home to many of the animals mentioned in the Emergent Layer as well as jaguars, leopards, tree frogs, and a huge variety of insects.
3. Understorey Layer - This dense layer is located under the canopy and just above the forest floor. Very little sunlight reaches this layer, making it a great home for nocturnal animals. In fact, this layer only receives about 4 percent of the available sunlight. The trees of this layer range about 12 feet high, waiting for a chance to break though to the sunlight in the upper layers. Due to the lack of sunlight, these trees grow leaves that are extremely large, adding to the density of this layer. This dense, humid layer is home to a great variety of insects. Since there is very little air movement or actual rain drops making it down this far, the plants and flowers of this layer depend on insects and animals to pollinate their flowers.
4. Forest Floor - This bottom moist, dark layer of the Rainforest has very little plant life thanks to the other layers preventing the sunlight to reach the floor. The ground is mostly made up of decomposing vegetation which provides nutrients for the soil. Larger animals, such as Tigers and jaguars live in this layer along with insects, including Giant Anteaters, beetles, lizards, snakes, frogs and termites. The giant Anaconda also resides in this layer of the Rainforest.
