Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

217

forest wildlife

AtlAs moth

the atlas moth is one of the largest

moths in the world, with a wingspan

of 12 in (30 cm). today, atlas moths

are rare. In the past, people killed

thousands of them simply for their

butterfly collections.

lemur

there are

about 72

species of lemur.

they are primates,

so they are closely

related to monkeys, and they live

in trees in madagascar, an island

off the east coast of Africa. mouse

lemurs weigh only 2 oz (60 gm).

Ground

ginger is a spice

made from the

root of the

ginger plant,

which came

originally

from the

forests of Asia.

sloth

Few animals move more slowly

than the sloths of Central and south

America. they hang from branches with

their curved claws and eat leaves. Algae

grows in their coats, giving them a green

hue. this helps camouflage the

sloths among the trees.

touCAn

With its large, light bill, this

plate-billed mountain toucan is an

excellent berry picker. During the

mating season, the male feeds

fruits to the female before they form a

pair. there are 4 species of mountain

toucans, and they are all found

in tropical south America.

toucans nest in tree holes

and eat fruits, birds’ eggs,

insects, frogs, and lizards.

PoIson ArroW Frog

It is so damp in rain forests that

frogs spend their lives in the

trees. the female frog lays

its eggs on land. When

the eggs hatch, the

frog carries them

to pools of rain that

collect on leaves,

fungi, and in flowers

such as bromeliads,

which grow on trees.

Poison Arrow frogs live

in the rain forests of south

America. their bright colors

warn predators of the deadly

poison in their skin.

troPICAl Forests

In tropical forests, the climate is

much the same all year round.

the wide range of

habitats make tropical rain forests

some of the richest places for

wildlife. there are many more

species of trees than in any other

kind of forest, and thousands

more kinds of animals.

Atlas moth resting on

a bromeliad flower

tAnAger

the paradise tanager is a noisy,

active bird that lives high up in the

rain forest canopy. Paradise

tanagers keep their bright

plumage all year and flutter

from tree to tree in

search of insects and

ripe fruit.

Several kinds of frogs,

lizards, snakes, and squirrels

have evolved, or developed, ways of

gliding through the air from a high branch

to escape from predators or

to reach food. The gliding

snake flattens its ribs as

it leaps, to make a

streamlined ribbon shape.

Leaf roller

ants curl up

leaves on the

forest floor and join

the edges into a tube

to make a nesting site.

ConservAtIon

As the forests are cut down or burned, animals

lose their homes. tree-living creatures such as

this bald uakari from south America are most at

risk. they depend on the seeds of hard fruits

from rain forest trees. Worldwide conservation

organizations are trying to stop the destruction

of the rain forests in order to save monkeys and

thousands of other creatures.

PArrot

the male and

female eclectus parrots

shown here are so differently

colored that for many years

people believed

they were

two different species of birds. these

parrots live in the forests of new

guinea and Australia. like all parrots,

they have large bills for cracking seeds.

Find out more

Animals

Birds

Butterflies and moths

Conservation

and endangered species

Frogs and other amphibians

US_217_Forest_wildlife_2.indd 217 12/02/16 5:39 pm