Forest habitats - Australian Museum

Image: Forest habitats

Description

Forests are places with tall trees and a thick canopy. In Australia the three main types of forest include dry forests, wet forests and rainforests.

Illustrator:: Andrew Howells
Rights:: © Australian Museum

Additional information

Dry Forest

The trees in dry forests usually do not grow as tall as trees in rainforests and wet forests. The trees are also not as close together so their branches often do not overlap. This means lot of light is able to reach the ground. Grasses, shrubs and groundcovers often grow on the ground in dry forests.

Wet Forest

Wet forests have very tall trees and they are usually found in areas where it rains a lot. The leaves of the trees come together to form a canopy which is quite thick. This means it is not easy to see the sky when you are standing in a wet forest.

Rainforest

Rainforests have trees of all different heights growing close together. Lots of the trees are really tall and their leaves touch at the top to form a really thick canopy. When you look up in a rainforest you can only see small patches of sky. Rainforests can be very wet and dark environments because light from the sun does not get to the ground very often.

Last Updated: 18 June 2009

Share: