Amazonian Rainforet

The Amazon Rainforest is a region that stretches across the widest part of the South American continent. It engulfs 1.7 billion acres of land, or 7 million square kilometers. Of the 1.7 billion acres, 1.4 billion (or 5.5 million square kilometers) is covered by dense, tropical forests. The massive rainforest stretches across 9 nations: French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Bolivia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, and Brazil. The last two holding 13% and 60% of the land, respectively.

Scientists believe that the Amazon Rainforest was formed about 56 to 34 million years ago during the first real "tropical" temperature fluctuation in the Amazon basin. Ever since then, the growth of a huge bio diverse land was forever created. It is estimated that 1 in 10 known species in the world take residence in the vast rainforest. Therefore this cconstitutes the largest collection of animal species and living plants the world has ever seen, and probably will ever know. Wet tropical forests are the source of the most species-rich biomes in the world; and with the Amazon being the largest tropical forest in the world, a plethora of unparalleled diverse species are found here, more than in African and Asian forests.

Plants:
-The plant diversity in the Amazon rainforest is unbeatable. It has the highest diversity of greenery found anywhere in the world. Some scientists explain that one square kilometer could possibly contain over a thousand types of plants and tens of thousands of different tree species.
-According to a 2001 study, Ecuadorian rainforest supports more than 1,100 tree species per 1 quarter square kilometer  

Animals and Wildlife:
-Over 2,000 mammal and bird species
-2.5 million insect species
-As of modern times, at least: 378 reptiles, 427 mammals, 428 amphibians, 1,294 birds, 3,000 fish, and 40,000 plant species have been successfully, scientifically classified in the Amazonian region. 
-One in five of all the birds on the planet nest in the many rainforests of the Amazon
-Between 96,660 and 128,843 invertebrate species have been estimated to reside in Brazil alone

Hazardous Creatures and Elements:
-Includes the Anaconda, Cougar, Jaguar, and Black Caimin as the top most threatening animals of the Amazon
-Swimming in the rivers include Electric Eels and Piranhas that pose threats
-Rabies spreading Vampire bats
-Hundreds of different Poison dart frogs
-Potentially able to contract Yellow Fever, Malaria, or Dengue Fever

Although there are some frightening aspects of the Forests as listed above, there are still many many reasons for conserving it. Deforestation has drastically reduced the size of the majestic forest. At the current rate of deforestation, the Amazon will be reduced to 40% of it's current size in 20 years, endangering a boat load of living species. Today, 91% of the deforested land since 1970 has been used for cattle and other livestock pastures. The main reasons for this is because Brazil is the second-largest global producer of soybeans (the United States is the first) and in accordance to their live-stock need, sufficient room for agriculture is necessary. Also, with the first two highways opened in the rainforest, an obvious increase in deforestation as well as settlement became evident in the past 10 years. A computer animation encompassing future climate change as a result of greenhouse gases show that the Amazon rainforest could become unstable under increased temperature and severely reduced rainfall, leading to a vast loss of rainforest cover by 2100 in the South American basin

Because Amazonian forests have been estimated to intake 0.62 tons of carbon dioxide per hectare per year (between 1975 and 1996), many conservation groups have stepped in to help the unparalleled natural wonder from total deforestation. The Amazon Conservation Team , The World Wildlife Foundation  , The APECA , and many other organizational groups are heading the natural conservation of the Amazon Rain forest.