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Biodiversity is a measure of the variety of life that occurs within an ecosystem. The number of different species that live in an ecosystem determine the biodiversity.

The biodiversity index can be calculated by dividing the number of species by the number of organisms. The closer to 1 the biodiversity index is, the more diverse the community is.

Tropical rainforests support the greatest diversity of living organisms on Earth. Although they cover only 2% of the Earth's surface, they house more than half of all life on the planet.

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What is biodiversity and why is it important?

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The tropical rainforest, an ecosystem that covers about 7% of the Earth’s surface, is home to more than half of all animal and plant species on the planet. The Amazon jungle is the world’s largest tropical rainforest, covering more than 2 million miles of land and stretching across nine South American countries.

Not only does the Amazon encompass the single largest remaining tropical rainforest in the world, it also houses at least 10% of the world’s known biodiversity, including endemic and endangered flora and fauna, and its river accounts for approximately 15% of the world’s total river discharge into the oceans. The Amazon River flows for more than 6,600 km, and with its hundreds of tributaries and streams contains the largest number of freshwater fish species in the world.

Scientists believe only a fraction of animal and plant life has been identified within the Amazon and new discoveries are being made every day. Of the species discovered in the Amazon rainforest so far there are 430 species of mammals, 1300 species of birds, 3000 species of fish, 40,000 plant species and an incredible 2.5 million species of insects. It is easily one of the most diverse ecosystems on the planet.

The world needs the rainforests to produce oxygen and clean the atmosphere to help organisms breathe. Rainforests also provide many valuable medicinal plants, and may be a source of a cure from some deadly diseases.

Take a virtual tour of the Amazon Rainforest in the video linked below...

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A video on the Tropical Rainforest biome that I made for a Grade 9 biology project (I got 100% on it). It was created using footage from BBC`s Planet Earth and the song Tortguero, but the narration, writing, and editing is mine.

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Class: Mammalia
Order: Rodentia
Family: Dasyprocidae
Genus: Dasyprocta
Life Span: Up to 17 Years

The agouti is a diurnal rodent that looks similar to a guinea pig but with larger and longer legs. They grow up to 2 feet in length and weigh around 8-10 pounds when full grown. The agouti has five toes on its front feet and three on the hind feet. It walks on its toes, not flat-footed like many rodents, giving the agouti a dainty look.

Agoutis are very important to the tropical rainforest ecosystem in two major ways.  First, they are known as scatter-hoarders, meaning when food is plentiful and easy to collect, the agouti will bury nuts and seeds all over the rainforest floor. They are not territorial and travel vast distances so losing track of their hoards frequently happens. When they cannot find their buried hoards, the forgotten nuts and seeds become new vegetation, providing a greater biodiversity of plants and food for all organisms.

The second important reason agoutis are considered a keystone animal of the tropical rainforest is because of their symbiotic relationship with the Brazil Nut tree.  Agoutis are the only animals with strong enough teeth to break open the tough pods of the Brazil Nut tree (bertholletia excelsa). This tree  is used by countless animals and insects as a habitat, protection from predators and as a source of food. The tree produces a large fruit filled with edible seeds but they are encased in an extremely hard exterior shell. The sharp, chisel-like teeth of the agouti make quick work of the shell and the nuts are dispersed throughout the agouti’s habitat. The nuts provide food for the agouti and many other rainforest animals or, if left uneaten or buried, grow into new trees. The trees depend on the agouti for seed dispersal. If agoutis were to disappear, so too would the Brazil Nut tree.

(image source: National Geographic)

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Class: Plantae
Order: Ericales
Family: Lecythidaceae
Genus: Bertholletia Excelsa

The Brazil Nut Tree is one of the largest and long-lived trees in the Amazon Rainforest. It grows over 160 feet up into the canopy of the rainforest and is used by countless animals and insects as a habitat, protection from predators and as a source of food. It is also a commercially important tree, harvested for both the protein-rich nuts and oils popular in many beauty-products as well as the wood which is prized for its quality in carpentry and heavy construction.

The agouti and the Brazil Nut tree have an important relationship as they rely on one another for survival. The tree produces a large fruit filled with edible seeds but they are encased in an extremely hard exterior shell. Agoutis are the only animals in the rainforest with strong enough teeth to break open these tough pods. The Brazil Nut tree relies on the agouti to spread its seeds across the rainforest floor, promoting new growth and the survival of the tree. The nuts provide food for the agouti and many other rainforest animals.

Each Brazil Nut tree can produce 250 pounds of fruit each year, making it a valuable asset in the ecosystem.

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Emerging tree of the Amazon rainforest. Majestic and large, it becomes an ancient tree. There are large Brazil Nut trees in the Amazon, planted thousands of years ago. Planted? By whom? 
In the scientific environment, the idea that the tree has been domesticated is suggested, that is, it is the result of a collaboration that includes humans and animals for its diffusion. After a certain practice with the tree, it is easy to understand how it spread through the Amazon: the farmer opens a field and if there are Brazil Nut trees nearby, the agouti (Dasyprocta agouti) has already buried seeds there. Then, by some mystery, the plant emerges, and the greater intensity of light causes it to grow rapidly (more than one meter per year). In our day, the chestnut trees no longer have the deserved attention that the ancestors had: in our days it "takes a lot to grow". However, if we turn our thinking to future generations, we can define simple and efficient strategies to regenerate not only the ancient Brazil Nut tree, but also the forest itself, and quickly with the urgency that we need.

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The agouti is now endangered because of the negative impacts of human interference, primarily habitat loss. The rainforests are currently disappearing at a rate of 6000 acres every hour.

Humans are cutting through the forest at a rapid pace to make way for cattle-ranching, harvest wood for items like furniture and building materials, and to increase the size of urban areas. When these forests are cut down, the plants and animals that live there are destroyed, and species like the agouti  and Brazil Nut tree are at risk of going extinct.

Tropical rainforests have more than 210 gigatons of carbon stored within its trees. When we cut them now, not only are we reducing our supplier of oxygen, we are releasing all that carbon in our atmosphere.
To date, more than 4.6 million hectares of forests have been cut down or burned – to supply our ever increasing demand for wood and land.

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ESA shows 30 years of deforestation in Amazon rainforest

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Proposed Solution - How to Save the Amazon and Agouti 

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Proposed Solution - How to Save the Amazon and Agouti 

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There are many solutions to the problem of rainforest destruction and the rapid extinction of the plants and animals that live there. The first steps are awareness and education. It is important to be learning about the environment and what can be done to make a difference.

Healing the environment while slowing the extinction of plants and animals must be a worldwide effort. Because poor countries often need to use the resources of the rainforest for their own needs and to strengthen their own economies, it is up to the wealthier countries to step in and help.  The collection and sale of Brazil nuts and their by-products provide critical sources of income to forest-based communities. However, if the trees are harvested so quickly and over used, both the agouti and Brazil Nut trees will disappear.

In the article printed in The Guardian, “We Are Destroying Rainforests So Quickly They May Be Gone in 100 Years,” John Vidal explains, “The science and economics needed to stem deforestation are in place, but there is one huge caveat: countries with tropical forests are some of the poorest in the world, desperate to develop and use their natural resources to grow their economies. Their pledges to stop or reduce deforestation are mostly conditional on rich countries financially and technically helping them achieve this – and the onus on reducing emissions is on these rich countries which have historically caused most climate change.”  This is where global agreements such as the Paris Climate Accord become very important. In the agreement, the wealthy countries have pledged to raise $100 billion in funds each year to help poor countries enact policies and practices that help protect and care for the environment. If the world as a whole is able to focus on solutions, a long and thriving existence for animals like the agouti will be achieved.

Every person has a part to play in keeping the earth a healthy place for all organisms. Recycle products when possible, buy sustainably harvested and produced products, limit use to what is needed and never purchase from companies that pollute, harm or destroy the environment. Get involved in politics, research what the candidates stand for and always make sure to vote. Educate yourself and those around you. It is vitally important that information is spread wide and far. Let your family, friends and neighbors know that there is a critical environmental problem and that together we can solve that problem. Working together is the solution, making a world safe for humans, agoutis and all.

(image source: pinterest.com)