Rainforest Australia [antikvár]

RAINFORESTS For millions of years, rainforests covered much of the surface of Australia. Over more millions of years, as the continent became increasingly arid, they shrank in size, a process hastened in the past two centuries by human activities. Today, Australia's rainforests exist mainly in the wetter areas of north-eastern and south-eastern Australia. For best growth, a temperate or tropical rainforest needs to receive at least 1300 mm of rainfall each year, preferably spread evenly over the 12 months. One-quarter is used by the forest, while the rest returns to the air, to float above the forest as cloud, shielding the earth beneath from the sun's rays. When the cloud carries enough water and the temperature drops, rain falls once again. Rainforest is alive with animals, many of them living in the leafy branches crowning the tall-trunked trees. In this small book, I have gathered images of Australia's rainforests with their majestic trees and waterfalls, and of the plants and animals which make them so special.