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F or four months every year, biologist Janalee Caldwell leaves the comfort of her beautiful country stone home in Oklahoma to live in a makeshift lean-to fashioned from trees and plastic deep in the rainforests of the Amazon Basin in South America. She and her biologist husband, Laurie Vitt, trek into isolated areas of unexplored forests to find out what kinds of frogs and reptiles live there. Janalee is interested in frogs. Her husband does research on lizards and snakes.

To do her research, Janalee spends many hours each day standing in the forest observing frogs and tadpoles through binoculars. She takes notes or talks into a tape recorder to have a record of what she sees and hears. She frequently goes out at night, walking miles into the forest with a headlight strapped to her forehead, because some animals she and her husband want to find only come out at night.

Janalee collects samples of the forest's frog population, photographs them, and kills them quickly in a solution. The she removes their stomachs with tiny surgical instruments so that she can examine the stomach contents to find out what prey the frog has eaten. Janalee preserves the frogs so that they can be seen in museums and borrowed for study by people all over the world. She also writes articles for scientific journals on her new findings about the behavior of frogs and the relationships between frogs and insects. This helps scientists know more about the ecology of rainforests.

Together, Janalee and Laurie are in charge of a collection of over 35,000 amphibians and reptiles at the Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. Amphibians such as frogs are animals that can live both on land and in water. Janalee is associate curator and Laurie is curator of amphibians and reptiles. Janalee is also associate professor of zoology at the University of Oklahoma.

(excerpted from the biography written by Mary Knudson, and the entire biography is available on the Rainforest Ecologist CD-ROM.)

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F or four months every year, biologist Janalee Caldwell leaves the comfort of her beautiful country stone home in Oklahoma to live in a makeshift lean-to fashioned from trees and plastic deep in the rainforests of the Amazon Basin in South America.

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Life for Indigenous People of the Amazon

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Life for Indigenous People of the Amazon

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A 'Q and A' session from Rainforest Action Network, to help older children learn about indigenous populations living in the Amazon and other rainforests.
See all Amazon Rainforest Tours
Q: Who are indigenous people?
A: Rainforests are bursting with life. Not only do millions of species of plants and animals live in rainforests, but people also call the rainforest their home. In fact, indigenous, or native, peoples have lived in rainforests for many thousands of years. Early accounts of these people by European explorers indicate a far denser population lived in the forest than today. Many of these original peoples, such as the Caribs (after whom the Caribbean Sea is named) have disappeared completely. Others are only scattered remnants of what they once were. However thousands of distinct ethnic groups with their own distinctive language and culture remain today in tropical rainforests around the world.

Q: In general, how do they live?

A: Although some indigenous people live much as we do, others still live much as did their ancestors thousands of years before them. These communities organize their daily lives differently than our culture. Their food, medicines and clothing come primarily from the forest.
Q: Do the children go to school?
A: Most tribal children don't go to schools like ours. Instead, they learn about the forest from their parents and other people in their community. They are taught how to survive in the forest. They learn how to hunt and fish, and which plants are useful as medicines or food. Some of these children know more about rainforests than scientists who have studied rainforests for many years!

Indigenous man hunting in the Amazon

Q: What do they find to eat?

A: Besides hunting, gathering wild fruits and nuts and fishing, Indigenous people also plant small gardens for other sources of food, using a sustainable farming method called shifting cultivation. First they first clear a small area of land and burn it. Then they plant many types of plants, to be used for food and medicines. After a few years, the soil has become too poor to allow for more crops to grow and weeds start to take over. They then move to a nearby uncleared area. This land is traditionally allowed to regrow for 10-50 years before it is farmed again. Shifting cultivation is still practiced by those indigenous groups who have access to a large amount of land. However, with the growing number of non-indigenous farmers and the shrinking rainforest, other groups, especially in Indonesia and Africa, are now forced to remain in one area. The land becomes a wasteland after a few years of overuse, and cannot be used for future agriculture.
Q: Why is the forest so important to indigenous people?
A: Indigenous people revere the forest that, until the present, has protected them from outsiders and given them everything they need. They live what is called a sustainable existence, meaning they use the land without doing harm to the plants and animals that also call the rainforest their home. As a wise indigenous man once said, "The earth is our historian, our educator, the provider of food, medicine, clothing and protection. She is the mother of our races."
Q: Why are indigenous peoples in danger?
A: Indigenous peoples have been losing their lives and the land they live on ever since Europeans began colonizing their territories 500 years ago. Unknowingly, the first European explorers to what is now called Latin America brought diseases such as small-pox, measles and even the common cold to which Europeans had developed varying degrees of immunity but to which indigenous peoples had no immunity at all since none of them had never been exposed to these diseases before.

As a result of those encounters, over ninety percent of the native peoples died from diseases that today we regard as minor and even then were fatal to only a small fraction of Europeans. This disaster was repeated again when Europeans explored Oceania. Since then many indigenous groups have also been killed and driven off by settlers wanting their land, or enslaved to work in sugar plantations or mines. However, until about forty years ago, the lack of roads prevented most outsiders from exploiting the rainforest and entering indigenous territories. These roads, constructed for timber and oil companies, cattle ranchers and miners, have opened up vast areas for outsiders to grab and exploit and have made possible the destruction of millions of acres of rainforest each year.

Although indigenous people have lived on their lands for thousands of years, they do not own it, because they have not filed "deeds" of land and do not possess "title." Therefore governments and other outsiders do not recognize their rights to the land. They have no other choice but to move to different areas, sometimes even to the crowded cities. They often live in poverty because they have no skills useful for a city lifestyle and little knowledge about the urban culture. For example, they know more about gathering food from the forest than buying food from a store. Imagine being forced to move to a different country, where you know nothing about the culture or language!
Q: What are indigenous people doing to save their territory?
A: Indigenous groups are beginning to fight for their land, most often through peaceful demonstrations. Such actions may cause them to be arrested or even to lose their lives, but they know that if they take no action, their land and culture could be lost forever.

Many people living outside of rainforests want to help protect the indigenous people's culture. They understand that indigenous people have much to teach us about rainforests. By working with these groups, we can learn important information about rainforests - its ecology, medicinal plants, food and other products. It is crucial to realize that they have a right to practice their own lifestyle, and live upon the land where their ancestors have lived before them.
Q: Why should we care about the fate of indigenous peoples?
A: The basic answer is moral: indigenous peoples have a right to live and because we should celebrate their difference from us since diversity enriches life and culture. We should be ashamed that the 20th century has witnessed more genocides of peoples and more extinctions of animals than any other in history.

In addition, indigenous peoples possess an enormous body of almost irreplaceable information and skills about living in the rainforest without destroying it.

In the 19th Century, miners used to carry canaries into the mines with them because the birds were highly sensitive to toxic gases. If the birds died, it warned the miners that they too would die unless they fled. Jason W. Clay has compared the rainforests and their inhabitants to the miner's canary and we can see that they are dying. However, we cannot flee the earth we can only change our ways.
"Within the next few decades, the fate of the world's remaining indigenous peoples, the fragile environments they occupy, and the valuable knowledge that they embody could well be decided once and for all. A number of individuals, corporations, and states are already pursuing their own "final solutions." The 20th century will be remembered either as the century when we destroyed much of the Earth's genetic and cultural diversity, or the century when peoples learned to live together and share their knowledge in order to maintain the diversity upon which we all depend. Working together, we can make a world of difference."

Information aquired from Rainforest Action Network

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Learn about the Amazon's Indigenous peoples. For millennia, isolated Rainforest tribes that thrived on traditional lifestyles are now threatened.

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A Day in the Rainforest with a Scientist

As reconstructed by Christopher Potter, scientist investigating the secrets of the rainforest

(This is not an actual day, but a composite view of what could be a typical research day for a team of researchers)

The Sun seems to rise quickly at 6 a.m. sharp as I view the canopy of trees from my large cotton hammock. It is attached to the side of a field cabin capped with a tin roof. Under my light blanket and the mosquito net I use to deter the occasional insect, I wake up to slightly cool air. Quickly, the warmth of the tropical Sun will erase this coolness.

Near the equator in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil the Sun always rises during the same quarter hour year round and sets twelve hours later. The days are not that long when you have to gather scientific information, especially when you consider that it can rain for hours at a time. Among the many goals of our research team, we are working together to find out how much carbon is being captured or lost by the wide variety of lush vegetation here.

The air is moist and smells pungent with the slight odor of flowers and undefined scents of rainforest vegetation. Because the sunshine quickly penetrates openings in the natural canopy of leaves above our field station, the light is clear, and the colors are brilliant and saturated.

I swing out of the hammock in my gym shorts and a tee shirt, and I start to dress. I will wear a light, long-sleeved cotton shirt. The day will soon be hot, and I need to protect my arms from the sun, thorns and prickly vegetation.

I also put on my lightweight khaki pants. I usually wear tennis shoes, but sometimes, I'll wear my light hiking boots if I might have to trudge through muddy terrain. Also, essential for me in this climate are sunglasses, a wide-brimmed cotton hat and insect repellant that I apply mainly around my ankles. There are millions of almost microscopic chiggers that would drive me crazy, if I didn't take proper precautions. I'd spend days scratching without the repellant that we can buy from the local pharmacy.

Next, I reach under my hammock and grab my daypack from the cabin's wooden porch floor. I carry a first-aid kit in the waterproof pack, as well as my laptop computer, a helmet and a safety harness for climbing into the trees and down into pits where we have scientific instruments. The helmet looks like a bicycle helmet. When I say we, I refer to several colleagues with whom I work in study of the rainforest.

It takes a lot of teamwork to accomplish our mission. Scientists, technicians and others from both Brazil and the United States must work closely together. We share all our ideas, tools and data collected from experiments. Just as importantly, we watch out for each other's safety in this rather dangerous place to work.

We're not camping here. We have full facilities - including indoor plumbing. A local cook makes the delicious meals. For breakfast we usually have fresh, tropical fruit - and eggs anyway we want them. The fruit comes from the local rainforest. I recognize some of the fruit I eat such as guaraná, and açaí. Occasionally, I sample a fruit I have not eaten before. The drink is usually coffee for which Brazilians are famous.

By 6:30 a.m. we are ready to get into a four-wheel drive pickup truck to travel a few miles to the tower research site in the forest. Some of the greatest challenges in this work are going to the field location and getting out again with all of our belongs intact. Also, keeping the sensitive equipment running properly in this climate is a major effort. The overall excitement of our work also must include such essential, but routine tasks as maintenance and other such tasks.

We drive along bumpy, winding red-clay roads just wide enough for two vehicles to pass by each other. There are mud puddles that stretch across the road. They are the result of yesterday's rain. There is torrential rain nearly every day. A dark cloud can pop up at any time. The vehicle is on the verge of getting stuck in the mud on practically every trip. We never actually were stuck in the mire, but some of the puddles are deep enough to ruin an engine.

After about a 20-minutes drive, we park in what had been a logging 'deck.' Private companies formerly used this area to stack logs cut from the forest, and that's why locals call it a deck even though it now looks like a fairly innocent clearing in the forest.

A half-mile hike on a narrow, muddy trail through the trees takes us to the tower research site. On the way we hear what seems like thousands of birds making the loudest, wildest cries you can imagine. Someone in our group heard a rumor that a jaguar resides in the area, and perhaps the birds are sounding an alarm. Because of the densely leaved canopy, we rarely get clears views of birds. We are particularly on the outlook for Macaws. These birds are very beautiful and endangered. They can be brilliant scarlet, or blue and yellow.

Sometimes as I walk through this incredible forest, I think back in time for a moment, and I remember when I was younger, in high school. That was when I first imagined I might want to become a scientist because I enjoyed biology most among all of my subjects. It is every biologist's dream to study the Amazon rainforest with its endless variety of life. Now, I'm living in that vision I first had so many years ago.

One of the nicest times of our day in the rainforest is when we are walking to work. We can enjoy the rainforest, not having to concentrate on gathering data. However, it is already 80 degrees, and the humidity is rising rapidly because the intense energy of the Sun is rapidly evaporating the water from the frequent rains.

The walk is easy. The land is flat, and the dirt is iron-rust red. This soil is generally hard-packed except where we encounter small streams that cross the path. We see centipedes the size of your index finger and ants as big as your thumbnail. These insects don't bother us because they busy in their own world, and are moving as fast as a crowd of shoppers in a big city.

Once in a while I glance to the side of the pathway and see large termite mounds. They are red because they are made of the iron-rich soil. Some are waist high. A colleague has reminded us that the termites are important because they enrich the soil with nutrients. The rainfall washes away many of the important life-supporting chemicals in the soil. If it were not for the industrious termites, the soil nutrients would not be recycled efficiently from decaying plant matter within ecosystem.

We now reach the boundary of our study plot, marked by fluorescent, yellow tape, similar to tape that construction crews use. The area of the plot is the size of two football fields side by side. One of our major intentions is to minimize disturbing the forest, and, so, you just see the tape and the bases of two, large wooden towers that we use in our work.

These tall towers have been built using common lumberyard materials. Each structure is about five feet square at its base and about 150 feet high. Because they are anchored with guy wires, these structures are remarkably stable. We climb the ladders inside the tower frame to research platforms built about every 30 feet. The design is the product of local engineers. Skilled technicians did most of the difficult construction work. We have installed sensors and detectors every 50 feet up the structure to monitor the physiology of the rain forest. The physiology of the trees includes the study of the rate of photosynthesis and water uptake.

In addition to the towers, researchers also built platforms about a third of the way up the canopy throughout the study area. Catwalks connect the platforms and help us to reach many kinds of trees for study. There are hundreds of tree species there. Most are evergreens, but not 'needle-leaf' trees like pines you might envision. Rather, the trees in the study plot are broadleaf species that maintain leaves year round.

It's now 7:30 a.m., and we begin our ascent of one of the towers. I carry just my pack. Our field study leader and Brazilian scientist, Joaõ, leads the way.

"I'll take the carbon dioxide sensor," Joaõ mentions. Then he picks up the sensor, a box-like device that is less than a foot long on its biggest dimension and weighs a few pounds. The climb to the tower top should take us only five minutes, but we stop about halfway up to listen to the sounds of birds and monkeys. Monkeys screech and howl. Like the birds, the monkeys keep their distance, and we rarely see one.

In many of the crotches of nearby tree limbs and trunks there are plants called 'epiphytes.' These are Bromeliads, and they are parasitic organisms, but still they do have green leaves. Although these strange plants have aerial roots, the epiphytes around here collect most of the water they need in their vase-shaped leaf 'bodies.' These natural urns each may hold as much as a couple of cups of rainwater.

As we move up, we collect leaf samples. We will return these to a research laboratory in the city of Belém, about an hour east by jet. We will analyze the samples for chlorophyll and protein levels in different kinds of leaves. These chemicals control the growth and subsequent decomposition of the foliage.

Belém is near the mouth of the Amazon River on the Atlantic Ocean. Our base camp is located far west of the city, but is only about a one-hour drive on a two-lane highway from the banks of the huge, lazy Amazon that carries more water to the ocean than the Mississippi, the Nile and Yangtze rivers combined.

Until we climb to the top of the canopy, the light remains as dim as twilight. When we emerge from the top of the trees, intense sunlight momentarily blinds us. After a few moments, our eyes adjust to the brilliant light. The view is spectacular. We see what appears to be an ocean of green. It looks like as dense as a super-big head of broccoli with a few giant trees sticking up. We can see large birds flying around. Macaws and other parrots are some of the most interesting ones. These are brilliantly colored, very big parrots. They have long tails shaped like sabers. Macaws also have curved, strong bills.

Now that we are at the top of the canopy, we can measure the fastest growing leaves and tree parts at the level where the canopy 'harvests,' or absorbs, more than half of the sunlight's energy that strikes the forest. First, I remove my computer from my pack and hook the laptop machine to a 'data logger.' It looks like household electrical circuit-breaker box, but the logger has a computer chip that continuously records light levels, humidity levels and air and leaf temperature changes. The logger has a probe that is attached to a leaf. A sensor in the probe collects data that goes to the logger. It has been recording data every 15 minutes for three weeks.

Some people use radio transmitters (telemetry) to send this kind of record data automatically to instruments on the ground. But because we need to get other on-site information as well, it's easier to for us to gather all the data at one time.

Next, Joaõ switches on the carbon dioxide detector. Carbon dioxide is a gas that is only three parts per 10,000 in the atmosphere (0.03 percent). This gas is the main 'food' of green plants. The almost magic process of photosynthesis combines sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to make sugar. Photosynthesis is the engine that drives life at the Earth's surface.

We will make carbon dioxide measurements over the course of the next couple of hours. The detector has a small, metal chamber in the form of a clamp that fits around a leaf. We keep each leaf sample clamped for about 15 minutes while the device analyzes the leaf for carbon dioxide absorbed and water that evaporates as we wait. We don't leave the carbon dioxide detector unattended for days at a time as we do with the logger. Besides, you can't keep the clamp on a leaf for a long time because it would die.

Before we descend, we take more leaf samples. We take a whole leaf for each sample, although we know by experience what each kind of tree is.

Just before climbing down, I look west, and on the horizon I see a large plume of grayish smoke that appears to be as big as my fist from this vantage point.

Our stomachs are growling. It's now time for lunch.

When we get down a colleague says, "Do you smell the smoke?"

"Yes, definitely, we say." This smoke comes from slashing and burning that farmers commonly use to clear forestland at the peak of the burning season - usually September in this part of the Amazon.

On some days, the smoke can be thick enough to obscure the Sun, making the light as dim as it appears during a total eclipse. A smoky condition can last for days, and it affects your breathing, making it hard to suck enough oxygen into your lungs. We don't know how much this smoke may affect plant growth, but some researchers say

that the trees that are cut and burned may very well contribute to global climate change because the smoke contains a potent mixture of 'greenhouse' gases that can trap heat near Earth's surface. The scientific community is still waiting for strong proof regarding the effects of burning on possible climate change.

We hike back to the logging deck area where we parked and to the kitchen shack there. The research team consisting of local and international scientists - men and women - assembles for lunch. We get our food, and we sit at a long picnic table. We feast while listening to local stories and speculation about the Brazilian soccer team strategies in international competition.

Lunch is grilled meat - beef or chicken - rice and black beans washed down with lots of bottled water. This is our usual lunch. We eat well. The food is very filling.

We could use a nap, but a sudden rainstorm interrupts any plans. Big raindrops are warm as they strike my face when I glance up at the sky. We hear thunder and run for cover in the pickup. I look through window, and I see big, black cumulus thunder clouds. I see long, thin trails of lightning etching the sky in white, jagged lines. This storm lasts the better part of an hour. We talk and then doze. Just as suddenly as it came, the storm ends. Sunshine quickly pops into the clearing, like an electric light that someone switched on.

The trail back to the plot is very wet, inundated in certain places. Our first stop in the afternoon is a very deep soil pit that has been covered with a tarp to protect animals and people from falling in. This pit is more than 30 feet deep, six feet long and a yard wide at the surface. Local technicians dug the pit by hand last year. They spent several weeks of hard labor digging the hole and installing sturdy wooden scaffolding to the bottom of the pit.

Again, we put on our climbing gear -- our safety harnesses and helmets. We begin to climb down. As we descend we collect samples of water from the soil. We get this water from small tubes that we inserted into the soil cross-section every few yards down when the pit was first dug. The tubes are a little bigger than the diameter of a common soda straw, and they go a couple of feet horizontally into the dirt. At a point farthest into the soil each tube connects to a porous cup that collects the water.

We put each sample a into separate glass flask to transport the samples to our local laboratory for preparation and later analysis in the Belém laboratory. We hope to better understand how the trees and other forest plants 'harvest' - or absorb - nutrients from the soil, especially nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. These also are in commercial fertilizers. Nutrients escape from the soil of the rainforest, traveling in runoff water that quickly finds its way into streams.

It's now about 3 p.m. of our typical research day and almost time to leave. We have one more task to accomplish, though. Just off the trail that goes back to our vehicle is a stream sampling site. This is a place where the stream narrows, and we can easily access it to take a sample of rapidly moving water.

In narrow places the water runs faster, and in smaller cross-sections of streams we get a better mix of the total chemicals that are leaving the forest. These chemicals eventually will spill into the Amazon River and flow into the Atlantic Ocean, hundreds of miles distant. We use another flask to grab the stream water sample, seal and label it.

Everyone looks tired, but satisfied as we step into the pickup truck passenger compartment. I drive back to the field station. Our trip is not like rush hour in California, but nevertheless, I must still pay close attention to the road, looking for hazards such as fallen tree limbs and the frequent mud puddles. It's now close to 4 p.m., and the Sun is dropping below the top of the rainforest's canopy. Twilight-like illumination appears instantly. I switch on the vehicle's headlights. Shortly, I see the unpainted wooden structures of our station about 100 yards away. The slight smell of dinner cooking makes my mouth water.

We park near the field laboratory building. It is a split plank two-room cabin about 20 by 30 feet. We unload all our samples of leaves and water as well as the equipment including the laptop computer with its store of today's data. We put all our samples in a wooden crate, and carry it inside.

We still have work to do. First, we put the leaves in labeled paper bags. Then we put them into a special drying oven for a 24-hour stay. As for the water samples, we need to filter it them. We pour the water samples through disposable an analytical paper filters that look much like coffee filters. This filtering removes dirt and other debris, but leaves the dissolved chemicals in the water samples. Finally, we pour the filtered samples into test tubes that we place in the laboratory's refrigerator. The work in the field laboratory cabin took us about an hour and a half. Every so often, when we have a good quantity of leaf and water samples, one of us will put them into a cooler and travel to the Belém laboratory with them.

Before quitting for the day, we look at the data that we captured in the laptop computer. The charts, graphs and numbers look acceptable except for bad data from a malfunctioning humidity sensor. We make note of this so we will remember to make repairs on the instrument tomorrow when we return to the tower site.

We leave the lab - there are several more of us by now - and I lock it. We stroll to the porch that overlooks a tributary of the Amazon. This river is a great spot to watch the sunset. The water is dark and rich in nutrients. Across the river there is an open area near a docking place for canoes and other watercraft. And looking in that direction we can see the orange and red colors of a magnificent tropical sunset.

After a half hour of talk about the day's accomplishments, we notice that our surroundings are pitch black. We were hungry before, and now we are even hungrier. We walk to the mess hall-like cabin. After we select the food we want and place it on big metal platters, we sit family-style at long wooden tables. Usually, we have grilled beefsteak or other meat, roasted vegetables and a salad.

We enjoy the meal and then wash up a bit. I hear the music start. It comes from a CD player, and the sound is typical Brazilian music that originated here in the Amazon. This music is fast, with lots of guitar sounds and women singers. Brazilians like to dance, and they like to teach us their favorite steps. The dance is a combination of traditional and more modern movements. I am not sure what we would call it in the United States, but it is fun. We dance about an hour.

Finally, we check out the soccer scores on TV before I go to bed in the hammock. The diesel generator switches off for the night, and all we can hear is the sound of crickets in the dark forest.

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NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration

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A Day in the Rainforest with a Scientist As reconstructed by Christopher Potter, scientist investigating the secrets of the rainforest (This is not an actual day, but a composite view of what could be a typical research day for a team of researchers) The Sun seems to rise quickly at 6 a.m.

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Home to an estimated 40,000 plant species, including 16,000 native tree types, with new ones still being discovered on a regular basis, the Amazon Rainforest is one gigantic expanse of greenery and accounts for some 20% of the world's entire allocation of natural forest. Studies have shown that a single square kilometre of Amazon Rainforest can contain upwards of 90,000 tonnes of living plants. That being said, some of the most interesting and unique species of plants can be found in the Amazon jungle. Rainforest Cruises has put together a list of 10 very cool plants found in the Amazon Rainforest.

The Coolest Plants Found in the Amazon Rainforest

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The Coolest Plants in the Amazon Rainforest | Rainforest Cruises

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Home to an estimated 40,000 plant species, including 16,000 native tree types, with new ones still being discovered on a regular basis, the Amazon Rainforest is one gigantic expanse of greenery and accounts for some 20% of the world's entire allocation of natural forest.

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Introduction: Insects That Live In Rainforests

(Scroll down to see the insects!)

Rainforest Biodiversity

Rainforests are known for their high levels of biodiversity (the amount of species found in one place). Over half of all the world's species are found in rainforests. For this reason alone rainforests should be considered extremely important habitats.

Insects

The class Insecta (i.e. insects) is the largest of all animal groups. Over half of all the world's species* are insects, and over 1 million insect species have so far been identified.

* That's all species (including plants, etc.), not just animals!

Insects in Rainforests

All those insects have to live somewhere, and the rainforest is home to many of them. It's thought that 25% of all of the world's insect species live in the rainforest canopy.

You can find out about the layers of a rainforest, including the canopy layer, here: Rainforest Layers

2.5 million Insect species are believed to live in the Amazon Rainforest alone.

Excitingly, there may be millions of insect species living in rainforests still to be identified!

The List

While we can't include every single insect that lives in the rainforest, the list below contains pictures and facts about some of the most interesting and / or most famous rainforest insects.

You'll find ants with extremely painful stings, butterflies with transparent wings, and some of the world's largest butterflies, beetles and ants.

Thank you to Anna Harwood for her help in compiling this list.

Discover More with Active Wild

You can find out more about rainforests on the following pages:

List Of Rainforest Insects
Note: some of the insects listed below are 'groups' of insects rather than individual species. For example, there are several butterflies called 'blue morphos'. Wherever this happens, we've included the group name (e.g. the genus) rather than the species' scientific name. You can find out more about terms such as 'genus' and 'species' on this page: Animal Classification.
Army Ant

The army ant Eciton burchelli is one of the best-known of over 200 army ant species. It is found in the Amazon rainforest and other rainforests in Central and South America.

Unlike most other types of ant, army ants don't built permanent nests. Instead, the workers group together, linking their legs and using their own bodies to form structures known as bivouacs. The queen and the colony's larvae are protected in the middle of the bivouac.

When foraging, army ants form lines which can be 20 meters wide and up to 200 meters in length. An army ant foraging party is known as a ' raid '. Raids can consist of up to 200,000 ants. (These lines of ants resemble human armies marching into battle, which is how army ants got their name.)

Blue Morpho Butterfly

Blue morpho butterflies are among the best-known of all rainforest insects. These large, bright blue butterflies are found mainly in South America. There are several different species of blue morpho. All are in the genus (a group of related animals) Morpho.

The largest blue morpho species have wingspans of up to 15 cm (5.9 in.). The butterflies' iridescent (shiny) wings are thought to protect them from predators; the flapping of the shiny wings makes it hard for a predator to lock on to the insect's position.

On the surface of a blue morpho's wings are over a million tiny scales arranged over several layers. Light is reflected between the layers, causing the wings to appear blue.

Brachydiplax Dragonfly

Brachydiplax duivenbodei, otherwise known as the darkmouth dragonfly, is an insect found in Australia's Daintree Rainforest. It has a light blue body and a wingspan of around 4 to 6 cm (1.6 - 2.3 in.), making it a relatively small dragonfly.

The species gets its name from its dark mouthparts. These help differentiate it from the closely related palemouth dragonfly, which, as its name suggests, has pale mouthparts.

Both species are found by slow-moving and still waters in Queensland, Australia and parts of Southeast Asia.

Bullet Ant

The bullet ant is one of the most famous of all insects that live in rainforests. Both its fame and its name are due to its extremely painful sting; it is said that the pain from the sting of a bullet ant is comparable to that of being shot

Rainforest tribes use bullet ants in initiation ceremonies. If a boy can endure being repeatedly stung by a glove-full of bullet ants, he is considered ready to become a warrior.

Bullet ant workers are large ants, reaching lengths of 30 mm (1.2 in.). Unlike some species, the queen is only slightly larger than the workers.

Bullet ants are found in lowland rainforests in Central and South America. Because the ants forage in the rainforest canopy, their nests are usually found at the foot of trees.

Bombus Traversalis Bumblebee

Bombus Traversalis is a bumblebee found in the Amazon rainforest. Unlike most other rainforest bumblebees, which nest in trees, it lives in underground nests.

The intricate nest of Bombus Traversalis is designed to protect the colony both from predators and from rain.

Bombus Traversalis constructs a protective dome over the entrance to the nest (this behavior is unusual, if not unique, among ground-dwelling bumblebees).

As a further deterrent against predators, the entrance to the nest is also guarded by up to five bees. They will vigorously attack any predator that approaches the nest.

Clear-Winged Butterflies

Scientific Name: Cithaerias pireta / Pseudohaeterea hypaesia

Where Found: Central and South America

Cithaerias pireta, otherwise known as the blushing phantom, is a butterfly found in rainforests in Central and South America. It is one of several species of clear-winged butterflies.

The wings of most butterflies are covered with tiny scales which provide their bright colors. The wings of clearwing butterflies lack these scales, and therefore appear almost transparent.

Cithaerias pireta and other related butterflies in the group Haeterini, such as Pseudohaeterea hypaesiaI live deep in the rainforest vegetation. They are mainly active at dusk.

Comet Moth

The comet moth is only found in the rainforests of Madagascar. It is a large and very distinctive insect, with yellow wings and a long tail projecting from each hind wing. (With their long tails, the hind wings resemble comets, which is how the species got its name.)

The eye-like markings on each of the wings are a deterrent to predators.

Once it has hatched, the comet moth is unable to feed, and only has from four to eight days to find a mate and reproduce.

Dancing Jewel Damselfly

The dancing jewel damselfly is a brightly-colored damselfly found by lakes and rivers in southern and eastern Africa. It is found in tropical forests but avoids the densest rainforests.

The males perform elaborate courtship dances to attract females.

Like most damselflies, it folds its wings behind its back when at rest. This is a good way of telling damselflies and dragonflies apart; dragonflies hold their wings open and away from their bodies when at rest.

Elephant Beetle

The elephant beetle is a large rainforest insect found in Central and South America. It is a member of the scarab beetle subfamily Dynastinae, a group of insects also known as rhinoceros beetles.

Elephant beetles can grow up to around 12 cm 4.75 in., with males reaching significantly larger sizes than females. Males can also be identified by the long horns which project forwards from the head.

Elephant beetles spend up to three years as larvae. As adults they are mainly nocturnal; this allows them to lessen the chances of being predated.

Giant Forest Ant

The giant forest ant is one of the largest ants in the world, with workers reaching almost 21 mm (.82 in.), and soldiers reaching 30 mm (1.18 in.). The species is found in rainforests in several Southeast Asian countries, including Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand.

This large rainforest insect lives in colonies of around 7,000 individuals. Largely nocturnal, the species feeds mainly on honeydew, a sugar-rich liquid excreted by sap-eating insects.

Giant forest ant colonies are territorial. A fascinating aspect of the species' lifestyle is that at territorial borders rival colonies may take part in ritualistic battles. These involve each colony sending out a soldier ant to fight on behalf of the colony.

Although the species lacks a sting, it can deliver a painful bite.

Goliath Beetle

Goliath beetles are five species in the genus Goliathus. They are among the largest insects in the world, with the larger males reaching lengths of up to 110 mm (4.3 in.).

Male goliath beetles can be identified by their V-shaped, forward-facing horns. These are used to fight other males.

Goliath beetles are found in African rainforests. Despite their great size, they are still able to fly.

Hercules Beetle

The Hercules beetle holds the record for being the longest insect in the world. Males are equipped with a pair of huge, forward-facing horns, resulting in a total body length of up to 175 mm (7 in).

The longer of the two horns projects from the insect's head. The other projects from the thorax, underneath the head horn.

The Hercules beetle's horns are used to fight other males in order to mate with females. When fighting, the beetle attempts to capture its opponent between its two horns in order to lift and throw the other beetle.

Leafcutter Ant

There are over 40 different species of leafcutter ant. They are divided between 2 genera: Acromyrmex and Atta. They are found from the southern United States south into South America.

You can find out more about animal groups such as genera and families on this page: Animal Classification

Leafcutter ants live in huge colonies, the largest of which contain around 8 million ants.

Leafcutter ants cut leaves from the foliage and carry them back to the nest, travelling in long lines that stretch from the food source to the nest. The ants use the leaves to feed fungus that is grown in a special area of the nest known as a 'fungus garden'.

The ants live in partnership with the fungus. The fungus grows on the leaves they bring it; in return the ants feed their larvae with the fungus.

Mosquitoes

Family: Culicidae

Where Found: All continents except Antarctica

There are around 3,500 species of mosquito. They make up the family Culicidae, which itself is part of the order Diptera (the flies).

Despite their small size mosquitoes are among the most dangerous of all animals. This is because they feed on blood, and in doing so transmit diseases such as malaria, yellow fever and the zika virus.

Mosquitoes are present in rainforests (as well as a number of other habitats). Because of this, care should be taken to minimize the chance of being bitten while in the rainforest.

Some studies suggest that disease-carrying mosquitoes are less likely to be found in undisturbed rainforests than in areas that have been disturbed (i.e. changed by humans in some way).

Orchid Bee

There are around 200 species of orchid bee. They are brightly-colored and have long, thin tongues. Unlike other bees, orchid bees do not live in colonies, and many are solitary.

Orchid bees have coevolved alongside a group of plants known as Coryanthes, or bucket orchids.

A bucket orchid's flower is a complex system of chambers. Attracted by the flower's scent, the orchid bee wanders into the flower and becomes trapped in a liquid-filled bucket. The bee's only means of escape is by passing under a pollen-dispensing structure in the flower.

The bee, having freed itself from the flower, will then distribute the pollen to other flowers.

You can find out more about rainforest plants, including bucket orchids, here: Rainforest Plants

Queen Alexandra's Birdwing Butterfly

With a wingspan of 25 cm (9.8 in), the Queen Alexandra's birdwing is the largest butterfly in the world. It is found in the forests of Papua New Guinea. The species was discovered by British collector Albert Meek, and named after Alexandra of Denmark, wife of King Edward VII.

Female Queen Alexandra's birdwings are larger than the males. Their wings are brown with white markings. The male is far more strikingly-colored, with emerald green and black wings.

The Queen Alexandra's birdwing is an endangered species. It is found in an extremely small area of forest, and is threatened by habitat loss due to palm oil plantations.

Stingless Bee

Stingless bees are members of the insect group Meliponini, a subgroup of the bee family Apidae. There are around 500 stingless bee species, some of which inhabit tropical rainforests. Stingless bees produce honey, and some species are farmed for this purpose.

Stingless bees, as their name suggests, lack the ability to sting. They will, however, swarm defensively and bite predators.

Trigona spinipes is a stingless bee found in Brazil. It is known to build its nests in dung (as well as a variety of other materials) and its honey is therefore not eaten by humans. The species is found in a range of habitats, including rainforests.

Melipona bicolor is a stingless bee found in the coastal rainforests of South America. It nests in the hollow bases of trees or among the roots. It is commonly kept as a source of honey.

Termites

Infraorder: Isoptera

Where Found: All continents except Antarctica

Termites are insects in the infraorder (a group of related animals) Isoptera. They are present in various habitats, including rainforests, and are found on all continents except Antarctica. There are around 3,000 recognized termite species, with the largest number being found in Africa.

Despite their small size, termites play a vital role in the rainforest ecosystem. In rainforests in Cameroon, their collected biomass is more than 1 ton per hectare.

Recent studies have found that termites help to protect rainforests during droughts. Termites break down the leaf litter and increase the level of moisture contained in the soil. When there is little or no rainfall, termites increase their activity, ensuring the soil remains moist and allowing plants to continue to grow.

Ulysses Butterfly

The Ulysses butterfly is found in tropical rainforests in Australia, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and other parts of Southeast Asia. The wings of this large butterfly are iridescent blue with black edges.

The species is a swallowtail butterfly in the family Papilionidae. Like other members of this family, its hind wings have long projections, giving it a forked, or swallow-tailed, appearance.

The Ulysses butterfly's wingspan reaches 14 cm (5.5 in). Despite its relatively large size and bright upper wing coloration, the species is elusive and difficult to see when not in flight. This is due largely to the plain, dark coloration of the underside of its wings.

Weaver Ant

The weaver ant lives in the canopy layer of African rainforests. Weaver ants are known for the ingenious way in which they construct their nests out of leaves.

First, several worker ants combine their strength to pull the leaves together. Larvae are then fetched from the nest, and the silk that they emit is used by the workers to stitch together the leaves. (It is this behavior that gives the weaver ant its name.)

The weaver ant is a voracious predator, feeding on other invertebrates both in the canopy and on the forest floor. Its presence is often encouraged by farmers, as the species will attack the crop eating coconut bug.

Rainforest Insects List: Conclusion

We hope that this list of insects that live in the rainforest has given you an idea of the types of insect found in the rainforest habitat.

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Rainforest Insects List: Insects That Live In Rainforests Pictures & Facts

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A list of rainforest insects with pictures and facts. Discover amazing insects that live in rainforests, including butterflies, ants, beetles & dragonflies.

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Every year thousands of miles of rainforest are destroyed for agricultural use. The two groups chiefly responsible for converting rainforest into farmland are poor farmers and corporations.

Poor farmers in many parts of the world rely on clearing rainforest to feed their families. Without access to better agricultural lands, these people use slash-and-burn to clear patches of forest for short-term use. Typically, they farm the cleared land for a couple of years before the soil is exhausted of nutrients, and they must move on to clear a new patch of forest.

Agricultural companies are clearing more rainforest than ever before, especially in the Amazon where large tracts of rainforest are being converted into soybean farms. Some experts believe that South America will someday have an area of farmland that rivals that of the American Midwest. But much of this farmland will come at the expense of the Amazon rainforest.

In Asia, especially Malaysia and Indonesia, large areas of rainforest are being cleared for oil palm plantations to produce palm oil, which is used widely in processed food, cosmetics, and soap. Today palm oil is found in some 50 percent of packaged snack foods, a proportion that is growing because palm oil is the cheapest type of vegetable oil. Unfortunately, the forests that are being destroyed for palm oil production are home to many endangered species, including orangutans, pygmy elephants, Sumatran tigers, and Javan and Sumatran rhinos.

Why are biofuels bad for rainforests? | Why is palm oil bad for rainforests? | Why is soy bad for the Amazon rainforest
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Every year thousands of miles of rainforest are destroyed for agricultural use. The two groups chiefly responsible for converting rainforest into farmland are poor farmers and corporations. Poor farmers in many parts of the world rely on clearing rainforest to feed their families.

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Descendants of the ancient Maya abound throughout southern Mesoamerica. The population is estimated at eight million, likely as many as there were at the time of conquest. Some live by very traditional means, others have integrated into urban life, yet all, in some way or another, have adapted to modern lifestyles of the 21st century.

The importance of Maya culture is attracting more and more attention. The Mayan language is now being taught in schools and modern science is recognizing the value of traditional medicinal plants for their healing power and their potential in finding cures for diseases like cancer, diabetes, and AIDS.

The modern Maya and researchers are working to overcome centuries of cultural suppression. Today, the Maya forest stands as an enduring monument to the resourcefulness of the Maya and the continuation of their invaluable cultural heritage.

Check out Macduff Everton's new photo narrative of the Modern Maya

Want to learn more about the Maya? Check out some of these resources!

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Descendants of the ancient Maya abound throughout southern Mesoamerica. The population is estimated at eight million, likely as many as there were at the time of conquest. Some live by very traditional means, others have integrated into urban life, yet all, in some way or another, have adapted to modern lifestyles of the 21st century.

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Tropical rainforests are dense forests located close to the Equator on many continents. The biggest is the Amazon rainforest in South America. Rainforests have a high annual rainfall and are hot and humid, and as the largest ecosystem on Earth, they are home to approximately half the animal species on the planet. Animals are found in each of the four layers of forest: the overstory, the canopy, the understory and the forest floor. Each level provides the perfect environment for different species to thrive.

Mammals in Rainforest Habitat

*** John Foxx/Stockbyte/Getty Images

There are more bats in a rainforest than any other kind of mammal. They play a vital role in the ecosystem, feeding on insects, distributing seeds and pollinating plants and flowers. The best known rainforest mammals are the monkeys and apes, including orangutans, gorillas and chimpanzees, which nest in the trees. Large cats such as tigers, leopards and jaguars roam the forest floor. One of the most fascinating rainforest animals for kids may be the sleepy sloth, which lives high in the canopy and feeds on leaves. Anteaters suck up ants and termites from the forest floor with their long snouts. Elephants and rhinos are among the largest animals found in rainforests, and mouse lemurs are the smallest.

Birds in the Rainforest

*** Jupiterimages/liquidlibrary/Getty Images

A wide variety of birds live high in the canopy of the rainforest and swoop through the treetops, which reach up to 200 feet. Bright-colored parrots and toucans with their long, curved bills are the most widely known rainforest birds. Sometimes birds are referred to as the "gardeners of the forest" because they eat fruit and disperse seeds through their dung. Birds like hornbills and quetzals also enjoy dining on lizards, insects and frogs.

Reptiles and Amphibians

*** Medioimages/Photodisc/Photodisc/Getty Images

Reptiles and amphibians are found in all the layers of the rainforest. Snakes like boa constrictors and pythons live in the trees and are well camouflaged among the leaves. Crocodiles lurk in the streams and creeks, and lizards and chameleons feast on bugs and insects. Bright-colored poison arrow frogs are found in Central and South America. They have poisons in their skin to protect them from predators.

Insects of the Rainforest

*** Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images

Here's another set of interesting rainforest facts for kids: Insects are the largest group of animals in the rainforest, and they're found in every one of its layers. Beetles make up around one quarter of the world's known animal species. Leafcutter ants march through the forest cutting off pieces of leaves with their strong jaws. Bright butterflies flutter through the trees. Millipedes clean up the forest floor, feeding on dead and decaying plant matter. Dung beetles recycle animal waste by using it as food.

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Rainforests make up the largest ecosystem on the planet. All that rainforest habitat is home to immense biodiversity, with a series of colorful, exotic animals found in each of the four forest layers. Each layer provides the perfect environment for highly evolved species to thrive.

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Deforestation can include clearing the land for farming or livestock, or using the timber for fuel, construction or manufacturing.

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As the world seeks to slow the pace of climate change, preserve wildlife, and support more than eight billion people, trees inevitably hold a major part of the answer. Yet the mass destruction of trees-deforestation-continues, sacrificing the long-term benefits of standing trees for short-term gain of fuel, and materials for manufacturing and construction.

We need trees for a variety of reasons, not least of which is that they absorb the carbon dioxide we exhale and the heat-trapping greenhouse gases that human activities emit. As those gases enter the atmosphere, global warming increases, a trend scientists now prefer to call climate change.

There is also the imminent danger of disease caused by deforestation. An estimated 60 percent of emerging infectious diseases come from animals, and a major cause of viruses' jump from wildlife to humans is habitat loss, often through deforestation.

But we can still save our forests. Aggressive efforts to rewild and reforest are already showing success. Tropical tree cover alone can provide 23 percent of the climate mitigation needed to meet goals set in the Paris Agreement in 2015, according to one estimate.

Causes of deforestation

Forests still cover about 30 percent of the world's land area, but they are disappearing at an alarming rate. Since 1990, the world has lost more than 420 million hectares or about a billion acres of forest, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations-mainly in Africa and South America. About 17 percent of the Amazonian rainforest has been destroyed over the past 50 years, and losses recently have been on the rise. The organization Amazon Conservation reports that destruction rose by 21 percent in 2020, a loss the size of Israel.

Farming, grazing of livestock, mining, and drilling combined account for more than half of all deforestation. Forestry practices, wildfires and, in small part, urbanization account for the rest. In Malaysia and Indonesia, forests are cut down to make way for producing palm oil, which can be found in everything from shampoo to saltine crackers. In the Amazon, cattle ranching and farms-particularly soy plantations-are key culprits.

Logging operations, which provide the world's wood and paper products, also fell countless trees each year. Loggers, some of them acting illegally, also build roads to access more and more remote forests-which leads to further deforestation. Forests are also cut as a result of growing urban sprawl as land is developed for homes.

Not all deforestation is intentional. Some is caused by a combination of human and natural factors like wildfires and overgrazing, which may prevent the growth of young trees.

Why it matters

There are some 250 million people who live in forest and savannah areas and depend on them for subsistence and income-many of them among the world's rural poor.

Eighty percent of Earth's land animals and plants live in forests, and deforestation threatens species including the orangutan, Sumatran tiger, and many species of birds. Removing trees deprives the forest of portions of its canopy, which blocks the sun's rays during the day and retains heat at night. That disruption leads to more extreme temperature swings that can be harmful to plants and animals.

With wild habitats destroyed and human life ever expanding, the line between animal and human areas blurs, opening the door to zoonotic diseases. In 2014, for example, the Ebola virus killed over 11,000 people in West Africa after fruit bats transmitted the disease to a toddler who was playing near trees where bats were roosting.

(How deforestation is leading to more infectious diseases in humans.)

Some scientists believe there could be as many as 1.7 million currently "undiscovered" viruses in mammals and birds, of which up to 827,000 could have the ability to infect people, according to a 2018 study.

Deforestation's effects reach far beyond the people and animals where trees are cut. The South American rainforest, for example, influences regional and perhaps even global water cycles, and it's key to the water supply in Brazilian cities and neighboring countries. The Amazon actually helps furnish water to some of the soy farmers and beef ranchers who are clearing the forest. The loss of clean water and biodiversity from all forests could have many other effects we can't foresee, touching even your morning cup of coffee.

In terms of climate change, cutting trees both adds carbon dioxide to the air and removes the ability to absorb existing carbon dioxide. If tropical deforestation were a country, according to the World Resources Institute, it would rank third in carbon dioxide-equivalent emissions, behind China and the U.S.

What can be done

The numbers are grim, but many conservationists see reasons for hope. A movement is under way to preserve existing forest ecosystems and restore lost tree cover by first reforesting (replanting trees) and ultimately rewilding (a more comprehensive mission to restore entire ecosystems).

(Which nation could be the first to be rewilded?)

Organizations and activists are working to fight illegal mining and logging-National Geographic Explorer Topher White, for example, has come up with a way to use recycled cell phones to monitor for chainsaws. In Tanzania, the residents of Kokota have planted more than 2 million trees on their small island over a decade, aiming to repair previous damage. And in Brazil, conservationists are rallying in the face of ominous signals that the government may roll back forest protections.

(Which tree planting projects should you support?)

Stopping deforestation before it reaches a critical point will play a key role in avoiding the next zoonotic pandemic. A November 2022 study showed that when bats struggle to find suitable habitat, they travel closer to human communities where diseases are more likely to spillover. Inversely, when bats' native habitats were left intact, they stayed away from humans. This research is the first to show how we can predict and avoid spillovers through monitoring and maintaining wildlife habitats.

For consumers, it makes sense to examine the products and meats you buy, looking for sustainably produced sources when you can. Nonprofit groups such as the Forest Stewardship Council and the Rainforest Alliance certify products they consider sustainable, while the World Wildlife Fund has a palm oil scorecard for consumer brands.

Editor's note: This story was originally published on February 2019. It has been updated.

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Deforestation and Its Effect on the Planet

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Large scale destruction of trees-deforestation-affects ecosystems, climate, and even increases risk for zoonotic diseases spreading to humans.