Rainforests
Amazon Rainforest Tropical Rainforests Rainforest Animals Rainforest Plants
Rainforests
Rainforests are large regions that have an estimate annual rainfall of about 1750mm - 2000mm. Hence the name rainforest. There are two kinds of rainforests: Tropical Rainforests and Temperate Rainforests. They once covered 14% of our planet's land surface. Now they only cover 6%. And experts agree that remaining rainforests will be consumed in less than 40 years.
Wetforests host a large number of spieces of both plants and animals. In fact, about two thirds of our world's spieces live in the rainforests. It is estimated that there are still millions of spiecies that remain undiscovered to this day. But unfortunatly we are losing about 140 plant, animal and insect species every single day due to rainforest deforestation. That equates to about 50,000 species per year.
The Rainforests carry a huge importance for our world's existence as we know it. They are often referred to as "the world's largest pharmacy" since most of our modern medicines were discovered there. The U.S. National Cancer Institute has located 3000 plants that are effective against cancer cells. 70% of these plants are found in the rainforests. A quarter of the active ingredients in today's cancer-fighting drugs are found only in rainforest organisms.
Further they are important for our global climate. The emmittance and absorbance of carbon dioxide of rainforests are about in balance, while deforestation has a huge negative impact on our climate and causes the forests to significantly release carbon dioxide.
The rainforests of this planet are endangered by the ever proceeding deforestation. Please help us save parts of the Rainforests by purchasing a piece of our map. Together we can make a difference.