Transcript The Amazon Rainforest

The Amazon Rainforest
Size
• 2,123,562 sq mi or 1.4 billion acres
(Rainforest)
• 3,119,884.69 square miles (U.S.)
Climate of the Region
• A tropical rainforest is an ecosystem that occurs
in the equatorial zone between the Tropic of
Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn.
• High average temperatures
• Significant amount of rainfall.
Biodiversity
• One in ten known species in the world lives in
the Amazon Rainforest
• Many endangered animals
Giant Otter
• A study in 2006 suggested 1,000 to 5,000
otters remain
Golden Lion Tamarin
• Estimated wild population of approximately
1,500 individuals
Hyacinth Macaw
• In 1990, the wild population was estimated to
be 2,500 birds.
Short-tailed Chinchilla
• The last short-tailed chinchilla sighting in the
wild was in 1953
Jaguar
• Jaguars have been
eradicated from over
40% of their historical
range
• They are extinct in two
countries: El Salvador
and Uruguay.
Problems in the Rainforest
• Deforestation
• Hunting and Poaching
• Exploitation of Resources
Deforestation
• Two main causes:
– Cattle Pastures
– Agriculture (Soy)
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2009/planet.in
.peril/brazil.html
Hunting and Poaching
• Wildlife smuggling is Brazil's third most profitable
illegal activity, after arms dealing and drug
smuggling.
• Poachers are taking an estimated 38 million birds,
reptiles and other animals from the wild each
year.
Exploitation of Resources
• Oil
• Hardwoods
• Precious Metals
Indigenous People
• http://www.uncontactedtribes.org/brazilfoota
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