3. CANOPY DEFINITION
• The top layer of a forest or wooded ecosystem
consisting of overlapping leaves and branches
of trees, shrubs, or both.
• Canopy is a habitat for many kind of animals.
• All species of the plants and animals are evolve
to adapt with the environment.
• Canopy is important to the soil and its
component
4. FUNCTIONS OF CANOPY
• Influence the sexual reproduction of trees.
• Provide unique habitat for wildlife and other
biota.
• Affect temperature and primary production of
aquatic habitat by shading.
• Prevent extreme soil erosion by decrease the
impact of rainfall which is the canopy raindrop
take 5 to 10 minutes to reach forest floor.
6. OVERSTORY LAYER
• Also called emergent
layer.
• Consists of giant
emergent trees that
tower above the
surrounding canopy.
• The air is much drier
and moderately strong
winds blow through
their branches.
7. CHARACTERISTICS
• Trees are huge
• A height of 213 feet (65 m) with horizontal
limbs that stretch over 100 feet (30 m).
• Often covered with epiphytes (non-parasitic
plants which take no nutrients from the host
plant but use it for support)
• Example lichens, mosses, liverworts, and algae.
• The most successful and most plentiful
predators of vertebrates in the canopy are the
birds of prey, such as eagles.
8. CANOPY LAYER
• Found directly beneath
the overstory layer
(emergent layer).
• The primary life
sustaining layer with an
abundance of food and
forms a natural roof
over the remaining two
layers beneath.
9. CHARACTERISTICS
• Canopy rising to 150 feet above ground .
• Trees elevations, creates a highly reflective
shield that protects them from the higher
levels of intense sunlight.
• This almost shield filters out 80% of the
light, preventing light from penetrating the
forest.
• Consists of a thick layering branch system of
limbs and vines that create natural vistas and
form a natural umbrella.
10. • Absorbs ultra-violet rays from the sun
protecting the plant and animals species
beneath the canopy layer from UV rays.
• Retains moisture and makes a natural shield to
prevent “wash-outs” during the flooding caused
by heavy rain from the tropical rainy seasons.
• Many Epiphytic Plants, commonly called “air
plants” like Bromeliads and Orchids grow in the
canopy Layer.
11. • Roots of these plant do not reach the ground
or live in soil.
• Instead they thrive by absorbing moisture and
nutrients through an aerial root system by
attaching themselves to a host.
• A home to many species, including
birds, butterflies, monkeys, parrots, the slow
moving sloth, tree
frogs, toucans, jaguars and leopards.
12. UNDERSTORY LAYER
• Directly underneath the
canopy layer and on top
of the forest floor.
• Growth here is very
dense.
• This layer is a
dark, sometimes almost
impenetrable natural
habitat like vines, shrub
and broadleaf trees.
13. CHARACTERISTICS
• Provides superior camouflage and many of the
species who live here crossover between this
layer and the canopy layer.
• Average 12’-15’ feet in height and have
exceptionally large leaves to compensate for
the lack of sunlight.
• The leaves are so large in fact, just one single
leaf could be used for an umbrella.
• Many species living in this layer like darkness.
(nocturnal)
14. • Several animal species such as tree
frogs, bats, owls, and an amazing array of
insect species like the famous team working
“Leaf Cutter Ants” can be found.
• Intermingling between layers is done by many
species but especially by the many varieties of
Monkeys, Sloths, Jaguars and Leopards.
15. FOREST FLOOR
• The Forest Floor is the
ground layer.
• No sunlight reaches
the Forest Floor cause
it is very dark.
• Quality of the soil is
extremely poor and
very few plants are
found growing in this
area.
16. • Examples of the plants: moss, ferns and some low
growth plants and vine roots.
• It is rich in microorganism and this environment
makes quick work of decomposition making a
natural compost that is exceeding rich.
• Beetles, Frogs, Lizards, Snakes, Termites, and
insects of every kind thrive by the millions in the
moist, dark climate of the Forest Floor.
19. INTRODUCTION
• The light penetration level varies by each
layer.
• Maintains under storey vegetation and
determines the degree of suppression or
vigour of its growth.
• Each canopy layer consist of different types of
plants and have their own specific
characteristic and structure that can help in
the light competition.
• All plants must compete to get sunlight for
photosynthesis.
20.
21. PHYSIOGRAPHIC LOCATION TO
LEAF POSITION
• Light incident on a leaf varies with leaf angle and
canopy position
• Plants can change the amount of energy they
absorb by changing their effective “physiographic
location”
• Heliotropic leaf movements: Some plants follow
the sun by moving leaves to maximize absorption
(diaheliotropism) or minimize by moving parallel
to the sun (paraheliotropism)
22. CANOPY COMPOSITION AND
DISTRIBUTION
• This affects both light quantity and light quality
• Light quantity diminishes through the canopy
but all canopies are not equal.
• Incident light (PAR) at the forest floor may be
different between types of forest in this world.
23. WHY WOULD THE PAR IS
DIFFERENT BETWEEN THE
FOREST??
1. Species – leaf optical properties
2. Density – how much is there, LAI, LAD, etc
*Leaf Angle Distribution refers to the
angular orientation of the leaves in
the vegetation *Leaf area index refers to leaf
area per unit ground area
3. Architecture – Canopy
structure, shape, orientation and heliotropic leaf
movements give each plant its own characteristic
light absorption characteristics
24. PHOTOSYNTHETICALLY ACTIVE
RADIATION (PAR)
• PAR is the amount of light available for
photosynthesis, which is light in the 400 nm to
700 nm wavelength range.
• Light is a waveform which can be measured
in terms of wavelength.
• The range of human vision(400 to 700 nm) in
term of wavelength is called the visible
spectrum.
25.
26. Reference
• James M. Vose, Neal H. Sullivan, Barton D.
Clinton, and Paul V. Bolstad, (1995), Leave
area index LAI, Vertical leaf area
distribution, light transmittance, 1037.
• M. D. Lowman, (1986), Light interception and
its relation to structural differences in three
Australian rainforest canopy, Australian
Journal of Ecology, 163-170
• William G. Hopkins, Norman P. A.
Hunter, (2009), Introduction to Plant
Physiology. The University of Western Ontario;
John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
27. • Linda E. Graham, James M. Graham, Lee W.
Wilcox (2003), Plant Biology. Upper Saddle
River, New Jersey; Pearson Education.
• Murray W.Nabors,(2004), Introduction For
Botany, Pearson Benjamin Cummings, United
State of America, page 518.
• What Is
Canopy, http://kids.mongabay.com/elementary/0
04.html.
• www.tigerhomes.org/animal/layers-rainforest.cfm
• Rainforest.mongabay.com/10403.htm
library.thinkquest.org/27257/st3.html
