Tropical Rainforest Ecology

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Tropical Rainforest Ecology

• Rainforest Animal Life

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Rainforest Mammals Monkeys

• Capuchin most commonly seen monkey medium size
  brown to black body pale face surrounded by
  whitish fur move in troops eat fruits, leaves,
  arthropods, sometimes small mammals

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Rainforest Mammals Monkeys

• Spider large size but very slender brown to
  black body pale face surrounded by whitish fur
  long prehensile tail move in troops eat fruits
  leaves brachiation

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Rainforest Mammals Monkeys

• Mantled howler large robust size black body
  w/tan on sides and back bearded face prehensile
  tail loud voice _at_ dusk dawn primarily eat
  leaves prefers canopy

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Rainforest Mammals Monkeys

• Geoffreys tamarin small and squirrel-like
  long tail not prehensile like forest gaps eat
  insects fruits red nape highly patterned
  body often have twins

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Rainforest MammalsMonkeys

• C.A. Squirrel endangered species smaller size
  w/extremely long black-tipped tail white mask
  and ears very active fruit eater
• Night monkeys entirely nocturnal tail not
  prehensile

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Rainforest Mammals Rodents

• Agouti diurnal large guinea pig-like
  tailless sit upright to eat seeds

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Rainforest Mammals Rodents

• Paca nocturnal near water like large agouti
  w/white stripes

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Rainforest MammalsRodents

• Capybara diurnal largest rodent in the world
  aquatic feeds on aquatic vegetation
• Spiny rat nocturnal spines in fur on forest
  floor
• variegated squirrel
• arboreal

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Rainforest Mammals Peccaries

• Collared smaller size and herds pig-like
  collar of hair at shoulderroots for food
• White-lipped larger size and herd white hair
  around mouth eats larger hardened fruits (e.g.
  palm fruits)

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Rainforest Mammals

• Bairds tapir odd-toed ungulate almost
  hairless long proboscis eat only vegetable
  matter most active at night

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Rainforest Mammals

• Anteaters sharp curved claws long sticky
  tongue long snout
• Northern tamandua prehensile tail
• Giant anteater - large size bushy tail

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Rainforest Mammals

• Three-toed sloth
• two-toed sloth

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Rainforest Mammals Raccoons Relatives

• Northern raccoon longer pelage lighter feet
  and legs
• Crab-eating raccoon shorter pelage darker feet
  and legs
• White-nosed Coati highly pointed nose holds
  faintly ringed tail straight up omnivorous

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Rainforest Mammals Raccoons Relatives

• Kinkajou already discussed
• Olingo faintly ringed tail, not prehensile

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Rainforest Mammals Weasel Relatives

• Tayra black bushy tail
• Grison black face w/white stripe across
  forehead and ears carnivore

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Rainforest MammalsCats

• Jaguar Ocelot
• Margay small nocturnal spotted cat climber
  carnivorous
• Jaguarundi diurnal common not a climber not
  spotted

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Rainforest Mammals Opposums

• descent diversity exists in this group of
  marsupials due to adaptive radiation
• Virginia, woolly, mouse, four-eyed, short
  bare-tailed, water opposums

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Rainforest ReptilesPitvipers

• All are poisonous
• Tend to be secretive and nocturnal
• Not frequently encountered
• Pits for detecting warm-blooded prey
• Retractable fangs to deliver venom
• Slit pupils
• Many non-poisonous snakes in the neotropics will
  mimic pitvipers, so always err on the side of
  caution

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Rainforest ReptilesPitvipers

• Fer-de-lance large (4-8 ft.) arrowhead-shaped
  head tan w/dark brown diamond pattern tend to
  hunt _at_ night extremely poisonous

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Rainforest ReptilesPitvipers

• Eyelash palm-pitviper eye scales highly
  variable in color arboreal prehensile tail
  feeds on tree frogs, anoles hummingbirds

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Rainforest ReptilesPitvipers

• Jumping pitviper short thick alleged to hurl
  itself when threatened venom not as potent as
  most

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Rainforest ReptilesPitvipers

• Bushmaster largest pitviper in the world,
  6.5-14 ft. often coil at bases of large trees
  typically nocturnal

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Rainforest ReptilesCoral Snakes

• Poisonous
• Brightly colored red, yellow, black bands
• Small fangs to chew in venom
• Neurotoxic venom
• Round pupils
• Active both day night

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Rainforest ReptilesBoas

• Non-poisonous
• Constrictors
• Elongated heads
• Boa constrictor larger (5-6 ft.)
• Rainbow boa smaller (3 ft.)

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Rainforest ReptilesOther Non-poisonous Snakes

• Vine snakes very thin feed on lizards
• Indigo snake up to 10 ft. long gloss black

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Rainforest ReptilesOther Non-poisonous Snakes

• Chunk-headed snake extremely thin w/big head
  eyes arboreal

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Rainforest ReptilesLizards

• Iguanas large common (already discussed)
• Anoles small sharply pointed nose
• Basilisk (JC lizard) common run fast up on
  hind legs

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Rainforest ReptilesLizards

• Tegus some of largest lizards in neotropics
  eat small animals (chickens)
• - common, northern, red species

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Rainforest ReptilesLizards

• Geckos small, suction cup toes extremely
  common, arthropod eaters

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Rainforest AmphibiansFrogs

• Tree frogs small arboreal have suction cup
  toes some camouflaged, some brightly colored
• - Gaudy leaf frog one of most well known
  species

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Rainforest AmphibiansFrogs

• Poison dart tree frogs

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Rainforest AmphibiansFrogs

• Glass tree frog
• Giant cane toad
• Smokey frog

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Termites social form massive colonies on
  trees mutualism with protozoa
• Army ants already discussed

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Giant tropical ant (bullet ant) tend to be
  solitary both terrestrial arboreal extremely
  potent sting

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Giant tropical cockroach very large nocturnal
  common near bat guano

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Harlequin beetle very large w/long antennae
  wood borer

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Rhinoceros beetle very large males w/long
  horn wood-feeding grub

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Lantern fly very large plant sap feeder
  multiple defense mechanisms

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Owl butterfly
• Black witch moth

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Rainforest InvertebratesInsects

• Blue morpho
• Butterfly congregations at liquids

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Rainforest InvertebratesOther Arthropods

• Forest floor millipede non-poisonous
  herbivore repugnatorial glands
• Peripatus velvet worms non-poisonous
  capture prey w/glue

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Rainforest VertebratesBirds

• Oilbirds nocturnal cave dweller
• Tinamou

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Rainforest VertebratesBirds

• Chachalaca
• Guan
• Curassow -

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Rainforest VertebratesBirds

• Toucan