PROMISE TO GIVE BRAIN ⚠⚠⚠ You are going to write an article for your school magazine giving your views on how people treat animals.
Write a persuasive essay arguing for your perspective on the importance of caring for animals.

Most animals that live in the

emergent layer of the rain forest can

jump, fly, or glide. One example is the

pygmy glider. This squirrel-like animal

has a flap of skin that extends

between its front and back legs.

When its legs are stretched out, the

pygmy glider can swoop from treetop

to treetop in search of insects to eat.

2 About half of the world’s species of

animals inhabit the canopy layer.

One species includes the extremely

slow-moving sloth. Sloths hang

upside down in trees and rarely leave

the canopy layer. Some don’t come

down for decades! Although scientists

estimate that fifty percent of the

world’s species of animals currently

live in this layer, they also suspect

that as rain forests have been cleared

for farming and development, some

species may have become extinct

before they were even discovered.

by Shawn Parcell

Animals of the

Rain Forest

Interim Assessment Unit 5

Unit 5 Interim Assessment 373

Emergent Layer

• Few trees, some as tall as 200 feet

• Most trees are hardwood broadleaved evergreens

• Trees get much sunlight; also high heat and strong winds

Canopy Layer

• Trees can be between 50 and 130 feet tall

• Branches spread out and form a canopy, or roof,

over the lower layers

• Gets much sunlight and rainfall

• About 90% of the plants and animals live in this layer

Understory Layer

• Up to 60-foot trees, vines, and shrubs packed in tightly

• Receives little sunlight

• Tangle of plants provides great camouflage for animals

living there

Forest Floor

• Moss, ferns, and a few types of plants live here

• Little to no sunlight gets through; shaded, unless a

large tree falls and opens a gap in the canopy

• Branches, leaves, seeds, and fruits decay on the

forest floor

3 The poison dart frog is a

surprising inhabitant of the

understory layer. Unlike most

understory inhabitants, this

thumbnail-size frog doesn’t depend

on camouflage for protection. Its

brilliant colors warn predators to

stay away. These tiny frogs possess a

powerful poison. An amount smaller

than a grain of salt can kill a person!

4 The largest and the smallest animals of the rain forest live on the

forest floor. Elephants, tigers, and jaguars live there along with millions

of tiny insects. Some insects, such as beetles, keep the forest floor clean

by eating decayed matter. Army ants also live on the floor. Colonies of

up to 700,000 army ants roam the forest floor in search of food. They will

attack and kill anything that moves. Army ants can eat a horse in only a

few hours

being untruthful

eating too much

overstaying one's welcom

this is that correct answer.