The tropical rain forests of the world are still frontiers being explored and understood. Yet the days of these wild places are numbered. Growing pressures to harvest their products and cultivate the land are reducing undeveloped rain forests to smaller and smaller areas; and with the land goes the rich plant and animal life that depends on it.
A habitat is a division of the natural landscape usually defined by its plant communities, since animals are dependent, either directly or indirectly, on plants for their survival. Some of the factors that influence an area’s habitat are availability of water, the shape or contour of the land, elevation, soil, underlying rock types, and climate, including temperature, precipitation, exposure, and wind. |