Q.1
Within a rainforest much of the water comes from convectional rainfall. What are the stages of this process?
  • Rivers and streams create small pockets of intense humidity. This humidity drips off the leaves and plants making rainfall
  • Rainfall is intercepted by the canopy which channels this to the floor. It then evaporates and is intercepted by the canopy again
  • The rainfall is intercepted by the canopy. As the rainforest heats up the water evaporates and forms clouds to make the following day's rain
  • The rainfall hits the ground and flows through the soil structure to reach the tree roots. These draw it up and the trees evaporate the water via their leaves
Q.2
There are multiple layers in the rainforest. What is the top layer called?
  • Shrub layer
  • Climax layer
  • Canopy layer
  • Emergent layer
Q.3
Which of the following continents or islands does not contain rainforests?
  • South America
  • The British Isles
  • Australia
  • Greenland
Q.4
Which layer is occupied by birds and monkeys?
  • Canopy
  • Emergent
  • Shrub
  • Forest Floor
Q.5
Where is most of the rainfall intercepted in a rain forest?
  • Emergent layer
  • Canopy layer
  • Under canopy layer
  • Shrub layer
Q.6
Why does rainforest land cleared for agriculture only remain fertile enough to grow crops for a year or two before it has to be abandoned?
  • Rainforest soils are thin and the nutrients are easily washed away
  • The high-intensity farming methods mean that the nutrients are removed
  • The deep soils mean that nutrients are locked deep underground
  • The soils become saturated with toxins from the farming methods in a single season
Q.7
Huge trees need huge roots to support their weight. However, the nutrients in the rainforest soil are close to the surface meaning the roots need to be shallow. How have trees adapted to these conditions?
  • Wide roots that lead to only one tree in a large area
  • Buttress roots that stretch up to 2 m up the trunk to anchor the tree
  • The trees use vines and other trees to support their weight
  • All rainforest trees are softwoods so are very light weight
Q.8
What part of the rainforest ecosystem are the latsols?
  • Small rivers and streams
  • The soils
  • The shrubs
  • The highest trees
Q.9
Some trees use the trunks of others to climb up from the forest floor. What are these woody plants known as?
  • Butresses
  • Ivy
  • Lianas
  • Strangler figs
Q.10
When a tree falls in the rainforest what happens to the small trees and other plants in the shrub layer?
  • The change in conditions kills them
  • The light coming through the gap allows them to grow fast to become part of the canopy
  • The lack of convectional rainfall dries the soil and destroys the under canopy
  • The tree decays within hours to form nutrients
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