Retest Answer
4 (a) (I)
There is a lot of constant rainfall in the tropical rainforest. It totals 2413 mm every year. The most rain falls in December (250mm) while the least falls in March (160mm). This large amount of rainfall is caused by the heat. The temperature is fairly constant throughout the year; it never dips below 21 degrees and never goes above 30 degrees. The temperature peaks in April at 30 degrees.
4 (a) (III)
The trees grow very tall because the conditions are perfect for growth. That is the reason some make it up to 80 metres. The leaves can be very large, as a result very little light filters down to the forest floor. When one tree dies, a fight for light commences and the quickest and strongest growing trees will succeed. Due to the large rainfall, some plants have adapted waxy leaves to stop the water saturating the foliage and as a result the water can run off when incorporated with the plant’s drip-tip leaves. However, a lot of water is retained in the leaves. The heat also makes decay very fast and gives rise to a thriving bacterial population, which very quickly decomposes dead matter.
4 (b) (I)
A
The clearance of the tropical rainforest was named an economic disaster because after the valuable timber has been cleared, the land is very infertile and farming was found not to be profitable. The resulting food shortage could bring starvation for many thousands of people. Also, the Amazon finds itself with people owning large areas of worthless land, their entire savings tied up in a badly calculated financial venture. Secondly if the land is cleared, valuable herbs and plants cannot be picked meaning that expensive medicines cannot be made, one area of guaranteed financial success in the past.
B
The clearance of the tropical rainforest was an environmental disaster because of the vast amount of species affected by the deforestation. The rainforest biome has the highest density of animals in the world. The climate...