Plants of the Rain Forest
"Bromeliads are related to the pineapple family. Their thick, waxy leaves form a bowl shape in the centre for catching rainwater. Some bromeliads can hold several gallons of water and are miniature ecosystems in themselves providing homes for several creatures including frogs and their tadpoles, salamanders, snails, beetles and mosquito larvae. Those that die decompose and furnish the plant with nutrients. One bromeliad was found to contain several small beetles, crane flies, earwigs, a frog, a cockroach, spiders, fly larvae, a millipede, a scorpion, woodlice and an earthworm"!
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/bromeliads.htmlhttp://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/images/plants/neobunch.jpg
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/bromeliads.htmlhttp://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/images/plants/neobunch.jpg
"Epiphytes, or air plants, grow everywhere but can be found mainly on the branches, trunks, and even the leaves of trees. The name 'epiphyte' comes from the Greek word 'epi' meaning 'upon' and 'phyton' meaning 'plant'".
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/epiphytes.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/DirkvdM_epiphytes.jpg
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/epiphytes.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/DirkvdM_epiphytes.jpg
"Lianas- `Ninety per cent of the world's vine species grow in tropical rainforests. Lianas are a type of climbing vine found throughout tropical rainforests. They have thick, woody stems and come in various lengths (up to 3,000 ft) and varying shapes. They begin life on the forest floor but depend on trees for support as they climb upwards towards the sunlight they need for survival. They do this by attaching themselves to trees with sucker roots or tendrils and growing with the young sapling, or they climb by winding themselves round the tree's trunk".
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/lianas.html
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f7/LianaIndia.jpg
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/lianas.html
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"Saprophytes are the organisms that act as the rainforests decomposers, competing with the heavy rainfall which constantly washes away nutrients on the forest floors. Some fungi, called mycorrhizals, are examples of plant life that carry out this function. Decomposers work extremely efficiently and, together with the warmth and wetness which helps accelerate decomposition, can often break down dead animals and vegetation within 24 hours. Decomposition in montane forests, which are colder and less humid, however, can sometimes take up to six weeks".
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/saprophytes.html
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http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/saprophytes.html
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Carnivorous Plants- some plants are adapted to obtain nutrients from animal matter. The best known of these is probably the Venus fly trap, but more impressive is the pitcher plant Nepenthes rafflesiana, found in southeast Asia. This plant grows to 30 feet tall and may have pitchers 12 inches in length, usually crammed full of digested insects.
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/carniverous.html
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/images/trighr1b.jpg
http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/carniverous.html
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