Tropical Rainforest

I am a world humming with life, where the air is warm and damp like a giant hug. If you stand very still inside me, you can hear the constant drumming of raindrops on my giant leaves, even when the sun is out. Listen closely for the distant call of a howler monkey or the buzz of a thousand hidden insects going about their day. My trees are so tall and grow so close together that their leaves weave a green roof, or a canopy, high above your head. Because of this, sunlight has to work very hard to reach my floor, and it arrives in shifting patterns that dance on the ground. I am an ancient, breathing world, full of secrets and wonder, older than any story you have ever been told.

I am the Tropical Rainforest, and I circle the Earth's middle like a lush, green belt. My story began a very long time ago, right after the dinosaurs disappeared around 66 million years ago. I have been growing and changing ever since, becoming home to countless living things. I am not just one big forest; I have different layers, just like a tall building has different floors. My highest floor is called the emergent layer, where the tallest trees poke out into the sunlight. Below that is the canopy, the busy green roof where monkeys swing, sloths hang, and brightly colored birds fly between the branches. The next floor down is the understory, a shadier, quieter place for jaguars to prowl and snakes to slither. My ground floor is the forest floor, a dark and rich place where fallen leaves become new soil, amazing fungi glow in the dark, and tiny creatures scurry. It is always warm here, and I receive lots of rain every single year, which is how I got my name.

I am a home for millions. In fact, I am home to more kinds of plants and animals than anywhere else on land—more than half of all the species on Earth live with me. Imagine seeing tiny, jewel-colored frogs that can fit on your fingertip, butterflies with wings that shimmer like stained glass, and even flowers that smell like chocolate. For thousands and thousands of years, Indigenous peoples have also called me home. They know my secret paths, understand the language of my animals, and have learned which of my plants can be used for food and which can be used as medicine to heal the sick. Much later, explorers and scientists came to visit, amazed by what they found. A famous scientist named Alexander von Humboldt began a long journey through my South American heart on June 5th, 1799. For five years, he mapped my rivers and collected thousands of plants, sharing my wonders with people who had never seen me before.

I do a very important job for the whole planet, which is why people sometimes call me the 'lungs of the Earth'. It’s a big responsibility. My countless trees breathe in a gas called carbon dioxide, which there is too much of in the air, and they breathe out the fresh oxygen that you and all animals need to live. Many of the medicines that keep people healthy were first discovered in the special plants that grow only within me. Today, I face big challenges, as parts of me are disappearing because people are cutting down my trees. But there is also great hope. During the 20th century, people began creating large national parks to protect me. Now, scientists, leaders, and even kids just like you are working hard to keep me safe. I am a living library of stories and a treasure for all, and by caring for me, you help care for the whole world.