Tropical forests are very wet for most of the year, with the exception of monsoonal areas. During this time they record around 100 inches or more of precipitation, and their humidity levels average from 77-88%. Recently however, because of environmental factors along with human activity, specific regions like the Amazon are drying out and forest fires are becoming much more prominent in these areas. After an area of forest has caught fire once, it is two times more likely to catch fire again than an area that has never been effected. This is a common theme in both types of forest fire that occurs in the tropics.
But what are the different types of fire that a tropical forest undergoes? Small fires are one type that happen under the canopy killing shrubs, vines, and agriculture on the forest floor. This type of fire is a constant in all tropical rainforests. These are regulated by the high levels of humidity and large amounts of annual rainfall. The other type of fire is much more harmful. Large-scale fires are more widespread throughout the area and kill large trees that have been there for centuries. When a large scale fire takes place, the canopy of the rainforest is opened up drastically and the forest floor drys out much quicker because of the amplified amounts of sunlight it receives.
The picture on the top shows a large-scale fire that has killed most of the trees in the area. The picture on the bottom is a small-scale fire only effecting the wildlife on the lower levels of the forest.
How do forest fires thousands of miles away from us affect us? Photosynthesis is a process where plants convert sunlight and carbon dioxide into chemical energy, and release oxygen into the air. The Amazon is commonly known as the "lungs of the world" where the frequency and amplitude of this process makes up about 20% of the world's oxygen. When large-scale forest fires occur more frequently killing hundreds of miles of plants and trees, there is not as much oxygen being produced in the world. As stated earlier, a fire occurring once in an area makes it more likely to happen again, means that we as humans need to do as much as we can to help prevent these fires from happening. There are multiple causes along with dry weather that humans are responsible for. Most large-scale fires happen in areas of inhabitation and are likely ignited by cigarettes, campfires, and other human sources (Main 2013).
This image shows how much of the Amazon forest has been lost due to fires essentially caused by humans.
On the other hand, low-level fires are not caused by humans and we cannot control these. This is a type of natural selection and will continue to happen. Some causes of these include degradation from selective logging, fragmentation, and agricultural activities (Butler 2012). El Nino years are also a major impact on drying out the forest resulting in fires. The effects of these low-level fires are not as damaging to the forest, but still play an impact on the wildlife. Because most of the animals in a rainforest live up near the canopy, they are not as affected by these types of fires. The forest floor and undershoot are the main levels that see damage and get dried out making them more likely to ignite again.
In conclusion, we need to be more aware of the tropical forests, especailly the Amazon, and the role they play in the environment. When we think of the tropics, we tend to think about how wet and luscious they are, not realizing how prominent fires can actually be in these areas along with the impact we have on them. If we continue to be ignorant to these concerns, there won't be much tropical forest left for in the future. However, low-level fires can not be controlled and will continue to happen but aren't too harmful to the ecosystem they are in.
Sources Cited
Lindsey, Rebecca. "From Forest to Field: How Fire Is Transforming the Amazon : Feature Articles." Earth Observatory. N.p., 8 June 2004. Web. 25 July 2016.
Main, Douglas. "'Hidden' Fires Burning in Amazon Rain Forest." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 10 June 2013. Web. 25 July 2016.
Butler, Rhett. "Fires in the Rainforest." Mongabay. N.p., 27 July 2012. Web. 25 July 2016.
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