Knowra Amazon rainforest Amazon rainforest The Amazon rainforest is the vast tropical forest of the Amazon Basin in South America. It spans several countries and contains exceptionally high biodiversity.
Amazon Basin : The drainage basin of the Amazon River, covering much of northern South America. Its immense watershed defines the rainforest’s geographic setting.
Evapotranspiration : The transfer of water to the atmosphere through evaporation and plant transpiration. Water released by Amazonian forests helps generate regional rainfall.
Carbon sink : A system that absorbs more carbon from the atmosphere than it releases over a given period. Amazon forests store carbon, though drought and disturbance can reduce their uptake.
Deforestation in the Amazon : The removal or conversion of forest cover across the Amazon region, often for agriculture, ranching, or infrastructure. Forest clearing fragments habitats and releases stored carbon.
Atlantic Forest : A highly diverse tropical and subtropical forest system along Brazil’s Atlantic coast, now greatly reduced and fragmented. Unlike the Amazon, it has undergone extensive historical conversion and fragmentation.
Amazon River : The major South American river that carries water from the Andes across the Amazon Basin to the Atlantic Ocean. Its flood cycles shape forests, wetlands, and wildlife across the basin.
Biotic pump : A proposed mechanism in which forest-driven evaporation and condensation help draw moist air inland. It describes one way Amazon forests may influence rainfall beyond the basin.
Indigenous peoples of the Amazon : The diverse Indigenous peoples whose ancestral territories and communities are located in the Amazon region. Their knowledge and land stewardship shape conservation and forest use.
Amazon rainforest wildfires : Fires that burn in or near Amazonian forests, often associated with land clearing and drought. Repeated burning can degrade forests that are not adapted to frequent fire.
Cerrado : A vast tropical savanna region of Brazil with grasslands, shrublands, and woodland. Its open vegetation contrasts with the Amazon’s predominantly closed-canopy rainforest.
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