You are here : Amazon Rainforest Guide

Amazon Rainforest Guide

The Amazon Rainforest, also known as the Amazon jungle, or Amazonia, is the world´s largest rainforest covering five and a half million square kilometers of the Amazon basin. The Amazon Rainforest represents more than half of the planet's remaining rainforests, and it is the largest, most diverse species-rich tract of tropical rainforest in the world.

This region covers territory belonging to nine south-American nations. Brazil has the majority with 60% of the forest, followed by Peru with 13%, and with smaller areas in Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.

The name "Rain" forest describes the humidity that you find in tropical and equatorial forests, but it doesn't rain all the time. Always located near the equator tropical rainforests are very hot. The heat, combined with large amounts of water, result in a lot of evaporation into the air. The trees and vegetation of the forest also helps to retain water in their branches, roots and soil. This all makes the forests very humid along with a well defined rainy season. All this heat, rain and humidity make these forests a very rich ecosystem and habitat for many organisms, birds and mammals.

The Amazon was short-listed as a candidate for one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature by the New Seven Wonders of the World Foundation. As of February 2009 the Amazon was ranking first in the category for forests, national parks and nature reserves (Group E).

Visits to the Amazon normally involve staying in jungle lodges. Whilst often simple these make for an excellent base for exploring your surroundings. Activities vary from lodge to lodge but almost always involve walks in the jungle to discover the flora and fauna and motorised canoe trips along the many rivers. You may also get to visit villages inhabited by local tribes and some lodges even have canopy towers or walkways.

amazon vacations