- Caquetá tití monkey (Western Colombia) (critically endangered)
- hoary-throated spinetail bird (Brazil and Guyana) (critically endangered)
- pink-throated brilliant hummingbird (Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru) (vulnerable)
- fantastic poison frog (Northern Peru) (near-threatened)
- Amazon river dolphin (Amazon and Orinoco river basins) (insufficient data to assign a conservation status.)
- Amazon bamboo rat (Bolivia, Western Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru) (least concern)
- albina Suriname toad (French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname) (least concern)
- southern two-toed sloth (Northern Amazon Basin) (least concern)
- black spider monkey (Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana) (vulnerable)
- black bearded saki (Northeastern Brazil) (critically endangered)
salty water, usually a mixture of seawater and freshwater.
capable of floating.
tactic that organisms use to disguise their appearance, usually to blend in with their surroundings.
one of the top layers of a forest, formed by the thick leaves of very tall trees.
destruction or removal of forests and their undergrowth.
an entire river system or an area drained by a river and its tributaries. Also called a watershed.
species that naturally occurs in only one area or region.
environment where an organism lives throughout the year or for shorter periods of time.
vine that takes root in the soil and winds around trees to the top of a forest canopy.
animal with hair that gives birth to live offspring. Female mammals produce milk to feed their offspring.
to transfer pollen from one part of a flower (the anther) to another (the stigma).
group of similar organisms that can reproduce with each other.
study of the shape of the surface features of an area.
grouping of tall evergreen trees, usually close to the Equator, which receives more than 203 centimeters (80 inches) of rain a year.
ecosystem between the canopy and floor of a forest.
all the plant life of a specific place.
Writer
Heather J. Johnson, Vanderbilt University
Editor
Caryl-Sue, National Geographic Society
Producer
Caryl-Sue, National Geographic Society
Last Updated
April 7, 2015
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Funder
Educational resources for this project funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and the BIO Program at the Inter-American Development Bank.
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Terrestrial Ecosystem
A terrestrial ecosystem is a land-based community of organisms and the interactions of biotic and abiotic components in a given area. Examples of terrestrial ecosystems include the tundra, taigas, temperate deciduous forests, tropical rainforests, grasslands, and deserts. The type of terrestrial ecosystem found in a particular place is dependent on the temperature range, the average amount of precipitation received, the soil type, and amount of light it receives. Use these resources to spark student curiosity in terrestrial ecosystems and discover how different abiotic and biotic factors determine the plants and animals found in a particular place.
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Terrestrial Ecosystem
A terrestrial ecosystem is a land-based community of organisms and the interactions of biotic and abiotic components in a given area. Examples of terrestrial ecosystems include the tundra, taigas, temperate deciduous forests, tropical rainforests, grasslands, and deserts. The type of terrestrial ecosystem found in a particular place is dependent on the temperature range, the average amount of precipitation received, the soil type, and amount of light it receives. Use these resources to spark student curiosity in terrestrial ecosystems and discover how different abiotic and biotic factors determine the plants and animals found in a particular place.