Where do the tropical evergreen forests grow and why?
The tropical evergreen forests usually occur in areas receiving more than 200 cm of rainfall and having a temperature of 15 to 30 degrees Celsius. They occupy about seven per cent of the earth's land surface and habours more than half of the world’s plants and animals. They are found mostly near the equator. These forests are dense and multi-layered. They harbour many types of plants and animals. The trees are evergreen as there is no period of drought. They are mostly tall and hardwood type. Leaves are broad and give out excess water through evapo-transpiration.
In India, evergreen forests are found in the western slopes of the Western Ghats in States such as Kerala and Karnataka. They are also found in hills of Jaintia and Khasi. Some of the trees found in Indian Tropical Forests are rosewood, mahagony and ebony. Bamboos and reeds are also common.