How Cold Does It Get in the Rainforest?

Lilly from the Unites States wrote:

Does it ever get cold in the rainforest, what is the coldest temp there?

GLOBIO Traveling Teacher says:

Hi Lilly,

Yes, there are rainforest that can get very cold. Not all rainforests are warm or in the tropics, like the Amazon. Temperate rainforests grow in cool places like Alaska, and Tasmania, and on top of mountainous areas where most of the water comes from being in the mist and clouds much of the time. Some temperate rainforests even get occasional snow fall.

The most important thing a forest needs to be a rainforest is water, at least the equivalent of 200 cm (80 inches) a year. The temperature can be cold or warm.

Thanks for the great question,
GLOBIO Traveling Teacher

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How Many Animals Are in the Rainforest?

Kenda from United States wrote:
About how many different kinds of animals visit the rain forest every year?

GLOBIO Traveling Teacher says:

Hi Kenda,

That's a very difficult question to answer. The best estimate scientists have is there are over half a million (500,000) known creatures in the rainforests of the world.

There are several hundreds of thousands of different animals - birds, mammals, insects, fishes, reptiles - that live in the rainforest. In fact, every year scientists discover many new species - most are small like insects, but once in a while they discover something bigger like a cat or bat.

Thanks for the great question,
GLOBIO Traveling Teacher

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How do hibernating animals survive in winter?

Thivanks from Fiji wrote:
How do hybernating animals survive in winter?

GLOBIO Traveling Teacher says:

Hi Thivanka.

That's a great question, because it's kind of hard to imagine how hibernating animals survive the winter.

When animals hibernate, they sleep through the winter to avoid the cold weather and save energy. During the fall, animals that hibernate eat A LOT and gain lots of weight as fat. As winter approaches, the animals find a suitable place to hibernate. During hibernation they live off their body fat as they sleep for several day or weeks. The animals' breathing and heart beats slow down and usually their body temperatures drop to match the temperatures outside. Examples of hibernating animals are bears, frogs, bats, & raccoons.

To be more specific, the black bear is a good example of an animal that hibernates in winter. Black bears eat more than usual in the fall and can gain as much as 30 pounds per week. They also gather leaves, grass, and twigs to make warm beds. They use these beds to sleep on in dens, burrows, caves, hollowed-out trees, or rock crevices. While hibernating, their body temperatures can drop from a typical 99-101 degrees Fahrenheit to 88-95 degrees. A black bear's heartbeat also goes down from 60 to 90 times per minute to as few as 8 to 40 beats per minute. The black bear can go as long as 100 days without eating, drinking, urinating, or exercising while in the hibernation state.

Non-hibernating animals migrate or adapt to survive harsh, cold weather in winter.

I hope that information is helpful!

Thanks for the great question,
GLOBIO Traveling Teacher

Where Do Fishes Live?

Jada from United States wrote:
where do fish live and what types of fish are there?

GLOBIO Traveling Teacher says:

Hi Jada,

Fish live in almost every place on earth you find water. The easy places are in saltwater or marine habitats like the oceans, and in freshwater such as ponds, lakes and rivers. They live in tropical places and in cold icy places like under the ice in Antarctica.

What kind lives there depends on the place - there are over 29,000 types of fishes that science has discovered and named, but every year more and more are discovered. For more about fishes look at the Glossopedia article about Fishes by clicking on the picture below.


Thanks for the great question,
GLOBIO Traveling Teacher

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What Do Plants Produce Which Is So Important to the Composition of the Atmosphere?

Zeenat from the United States wrote:
What do plants produce which is so important to the composition of the atmosphere?

GLOBIO Traveling Teacher says:

Hi Zeenat,

Plants produce two very important gases that compose the atmosphere - oxygen (during the daylight) and carbon dioxide (at night). The oxygen plants produce is very important and insures life on Earth can exist. That's why plants are often times called the "lungs of the Earth".

You can learn more about plants in Glossopedia by clicking on the picture below.

Thanks for the great question,
GLOBIO Traveling Teacher

To learn more click here: