Forests


Glossary

A

acid rain
 - rain that is unusually acidic due to pollutants in the air, often resulting from the burning of fossil fuels
altitude
 - height above sea level

B

biodiversity
 - the rich variety of different kinds of life
biome
 - a region of the world with similar climate, soil, animals and plants, such as desert, grassland, forest, or tundra
boreal
 - evergreen forests of subarctic regions - also taiga

C

canopy
 - the top layer of tree growth often forms a sort of cover over the forest
conifers
 - trees that grow cones

D

debris
 - leaf litter, twigs, undergrowth on the forest floor
deciduous
 - trees that drop their leaves in the fall
deforestation
 - the intentional clearing of forested land
dominant
 - main
drought
 - a lack of rain over an extended period of time, a continuous period of unusually dry weather

E

ecosystem
 - all the living and non-living things that interact in an area: animals, plants, microorganisms, water, soil, rocks, etc.
emergent layer
 - the highest level of the rainforest, where high treetops rise above everything else
environment
 - the surroundings where a plant or animal lives
erosion
 - the process of wearing away or reshaping the land through the forces of wind and water
evergreens
 - plants that stay green all year - they do not change color and lose their leaves in the fall
expansive
 - vast, far reaching

F

fauna
 - animals
forest floor
 - the bottom layer of the forest, soil and dead plants and animals
fossil fuel
 - an energy source such as coal, oil and natural gas that is formed from the buried remains of organisms that lived long ago
fungi
 - living organisms that are not plants or animals, that cannot make their own food, and that must live on host plants, animals, or decaying matter (molds, mushrooms, mildew, yeast

G

generated
 - created

H

humid
 - having a high level of water vapor in the air

I

inhabitants
 - living things of an area
invasive species
 - species that are not native to a certain area and that can compete with native species for food and habitat, upsetting the balance of the ecosystem

L

lush
 - thick and abundant growth

M

maturity
 - fully grown
monitor
 - watch over, keep an eye on

P

photosynthesis
 - the process by which green plants use sunlight, water and carbon dioxide to make their own food and give off oxygen
precipitation
 - water that falls to the ground as rain, snow, etc.

R

recreation
 - things done for fun and enjoyment
recycled
 - to cycle through something again and again - used again and again
reforesting
 - restoring trees in deforested places
regions
 - areas

S

snowpack
 - the winter collection of snow - often collected over time
sustain
 - help them survive
sustainable forestry
 - help them survive

T

taiga
 - evergreen forests of subarctic regions - also boreal
temperate
 - mild, not extreme
timber harvesting
 - the planned cutting of forest trees to use for commercial purposes
tropical
 - related to the tropics - hot and humid area

U

understory
 - the second layer of a forest just below the canopy