A forest is a highly complex and constantly changing environment. It is made up of a variety of living things like wildlife, trees, shrubs, wildflowers, ferns, mosses, lichens, fungi and microscopic soil organisms; and non-living things such as water, nutrients, rocks, sunlight and air. Trees are the biggest part of this complex community.
Forests provide following services –
Trees of a forest act as natural air conditioners and water pumps. They cool the earth by giving shade and recycling water. By cooling the air and ground around them, the shade from trees helps cool the earth’s temperature overall. Trees also help moderate the earth’s rainfall, which also helps keep the temperature cooler. Forests help in causing rain. They provide food, medicine, shelter and warmth and Support biodiversity. A number of human communities or tribals inhabit forests and derive their livelihood there.
Types of Forests
There are different types of forest ecosystems across the globe. A brief description of types of forests is as below-
1. Tropical evergreen forest: These forests are found in areas that receive a mean rainfall of 80 for every 400 inches annually. The forests are characterized by dense vegetation which comprises tall trees at different heights. Each level is shelter to different types of animals.
2. Tropical deciduous forest: In these forests, shrubs and dense bushes rule along with a broad selection of trees. The type of forest is found in quite a few parts of the world while a large variety of fauna and flora are found there.
3. Temperate evergreen forest: These forests have quite a few numbers of trees as mosses and ferns make up for them. Trees have developed spiked leaves in order to minimize transpiration.
4. Temperate deciduous forest: The forest is located in the moist temperate places that have sufficient rainfall. Summers and winters are clearly defined and the trees shed the leaves during the winter months.
5. Taiga: Situated just before the arctic regions, the taiga is defined by evergreen conifers. This type of forest is also called as Coniferous Forest. As the temperature is below zero for almost half a year, the remainder of the months, it buzzes with migratory birds and insects.
