Biotic and Abiotic Structure and Function of Tropical Rainforest

Biotic and Abiotic Structure and Function of Tropical Rainforest

Introduction

An ecosystem can be defined as a biological community that involves the interaction of organisms with their physical environment. There are many kinds of ecosystems that include grasslands, coral reef, estuary and deserts. Each ecosystem has its own significance. However, with a wide range of diversity in the plant and animal species, it is considered as the most important type amongst the other types of ecosystem

Discussion

Geographical Location of Tropical Rainforests

The ecosystem roughly occurs within 28 degrees north or south latitudes of the equator. It can be said that they are located between the Tropic of Capricorn and Tropic of Cancer within the equatorial zone. Extremely high temperature and constant high rainfall are the two basic characteristics of the ecosystem.

Example

These are commonly found in Mexico, Australia, Asia, Africa, South and Central America, and on many islands of the Caribbean, Pacific, and Indian Oceans.

Structure of Tropical Rainforests

Abiotic Components

The temperatures range is around 70-90 degrees. The soil of the rainforests has most fasting working decomposers. The forest floor, receives only 2% and the Canopy layer receives only 5% of the sunlight. The rain water and the surrounding oceans are the water sources for these forests (Corlett & Primack, 2011).

Biotic Component

The rainforests are home to approximately 15 million types of animals and plants. The anteater, jaguars, lemur, humming birds, red snakes, scorpions and bats are some of the many species that these forests shelter. The most important plant species include banana trees, bamboo, rubber trees, avocado plants, coffee beans etc (Corlett & Primack, 2011).

Functioning of the Tropical Rainforests

The trees in the rain forests are categorized into; Canopy that includes the tallest trees, around 100 and 200 ft; Understory that contains a ...