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Human impact in desert areas 1700,2000 and 2050

The cocoa tree produces more than 150 chemicals in its leaves, seeds, fruit, and bark.

Annatto/Lipstick tree has a wide variety of uses. For centuries, rainforest peoples have used the plant for things from insect repellant to lowering blood

The Amazon Rainforest By Alec The Amazon rainforest has many different plants that can be used as herbal medicines. Some of the most important medicines come from the Amazon. They have been used for hundreds and hundreds of years. These plants can be deadly if taken in large doses, but in small doses they can be very helpful. They can be used to cure headaches, skin irritation, high blood pressures, and many other diseases. Here are some of them. White Trillium The white trillium has three petals, three sepals, and three leaves. If the leaves are chewed, it can help cure snake bites. If the plant’s petals are chewed, they can help ease childbirth, and the sepals if chewed are used to help cure fevers. Cinchona Tree (Cinchona officinalis) The bark of this tree is used to make Quinine, a medicine that helps treat Malaria, a serious disease. A number of various other chemicals can also be made from Cinchona, and these chemicals include cinchonine, cinchonidine and quinidine. However, quinine has been replaced by other drugs such as chloroquine and mefloquine, and now quinine is rarely used to treat malaria. Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea) The leaves of this plant contain digitalis, a substance used to treat heart problems. When taken in large doses it can produce palpitations and dizziness, but when taken in smaller doses it can help the heart beat more slowly. This medicine had many effects, and sometimes it cured in miraculous ways, but it mostly produced violent reactions, occasionally killing because it was taken in very large doses. The foxglove tea is used as a morning tea to aid in birth control. Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum) The opium poppy is used to make Morphine and Codeine, two drugs that are used as painkillers. The opium gum may be crudely refined and smoked, or converted to morphine and heroin.

It is estimated that nearly half of the world's estimated 10 million species of plants, animals, and microorganisms will be destroyed or severely threatened over the next quarter-century due to rainforest deforestation.

Commercial logging is the single largest cause of rainforest destruction, both directly and indirectly. Other activities destroying the rainforest, including clearing land for grazing animals and subsistence farming. The simple fact is that people are destroying the Amazon rainforest and the rest of the rainforests of the world because "they can't see the forest for the trees."

When a medicine man dies without passing his arts on to the next generation, the tribe and the world loses thousands of years of irreplaceable knowledge about medicinal plants.

What is a Biome?     A biome is a large area with similar flora, fauna, and microorganisms.  Most of us are familiar with the tropical rainforests, tundra in the arctic regions, and the evergreen trees in the coniferous forests. Each of these large communities contain species that are adapted to its varying conditions of water, heat, and soil.  For instance, polar bears thrive in the arctic while cactus plants have a thick skin to help preserve water in the hot desert.  To learn more about each of the major biomes, click on the appropriate heading to the right.  What is an Ecosystem?     Most of us are confused when it comes to the words ecosystem and biome.  What's the difference?  There is a slight difference between the two words.  An ecosystem is much smaller than a biome.  Conversely, a biome can be thought of many similar ecosystems throughout the world grouped together.  An ecosystem can be as large as the Sahara Desert, or as small as a puddle or vernal pool.     Ecosystems are dynamic interactions between plants, animals, and microorganisms and their environment working together as a functional unit.  Ecosystems will fail if they do not remain in balance.  No community can carry more organisms than its food, water, and shelter can accomodate.  Food and territory are often balanced by natural phenomena such as fire, disease, and the number of predators.  Each organism has its own niche, or role, to play.

Tropical rainforests are the most diverse ecosystems on earth. A four-square mile patch of rainforest contains as many as 1500 species of flowering plants, 750 species of trees, 125 species of mammals, 400 species of birds, 100 species of reptiles, 60 species of amphibians, and 150 species of butterflies. More than 50% of the world's plant and animal species inhabit the 7% of the world that is covered in rainforest.

Some forests in Southeast Asia have been around for more than 100 million years, when the dinosaurs roamed the Earth. During the Ice Ages, the last of which occurred about 10,000 years ago, the frozen areas of the North and South Poles spread over much of the earth, causing huge numbers of extinctions.

While there are many species of plants in a square-mile of tropical rainforest, there may only be one or two of each. In addition as most of the species are found nowhere else on Earth, by removing one plant or animal, the fragile ecosystem would be threatened, and the species may be forced into extinction.

According to some estimates, 50 million acres of rain forest are cut down every year.  The United Nations says the figure is closer to 17 million acres.  The World Wildlife Fund says that every minute, 25 to 50 acres are cut or burned to the ground.

The harpy eagle nests in the tallest trees and hunts birds, monkeys, and sloths. Swinging through the lower branches, the grey woolly monkey uses its tail to grip. But this is gradually being destroyed. The Amazon Basin once dense, is now rapidly being opened up. The land is being developed for oil, mining, and farming.

Desert plants have developed various ways to get as much water as possible and to reduce water loss.Some plants have long roots to get water deep in the soil, or branched roots to get water over a wide area. With thick waxy layer on the stems and leaves, water can be retained and the tissues are protected from strong sunshine. Some plants have pin-like leaves to reduce water loss.        Barrel Cactus             Many desert plants are succulents and they store water in their swollen stems or leaves.  

The Fer-de-lance strikes without warning, and its bite is often fatal to humans.  It is found in South and Central America and various islands of the West Indies, often near sugar plantations.  During the day the snake lies coiled, blending with its surroundings, but it's especially dangerous after sunset, when it wanders in search of prey.  The Fer-de-lance has a thick, reddish brown body.  It has a tapering tail that ends in a hard point.  It has a black stripe that runs from each eye to the neck, and its sides may be bright red.  The snake is usually about  5 ft long, but may grow to more than 7 ft. 

The boa constrictor is one of the largest snakes in the world, ranging in size from 10 to 14 feet long.  The boa is very large, but the anaconda in South America is larger.  Most boa constrictors live in Guiana and Brazil.  Boas defend themselves by striking.    The boa is a constrictor, which means it wraps around its prey tighter and tighter until their prey dies.  Whenever its prey breathes out, the boa wraps tighter.  After the prey has been constricted, the boa eats it whole.  Boas eat mice and rats, and occasionally a small deer. To eat bigger things (like deer), they stretch their mouths very wide by unhinging their jaws.  It can take several weeks for the boa to fully digest its food.     Boa constrictors vary in color from brown to gray.  A large female can give birth to as many as 50 young!  Boas use heat pits to sense their surroundings, because they have bad eyesight.