NOTES: L – 4 HOT AND WET EQUATORIAL

REGION
I. Define the following:
1. Natural vegetation- The plant that grows naturally due to
the climatic conditions of the region without any help of
human being is natural vegetation.
2. Evergreen forest-The tropical rainforests always appear
green as their trees shed leaves at different times of the year
hence the trees are never without leaves. Only old leaves get
replaced with new leaves.
3. Deforestation- Cutting down of trees at a large scale or
permanently clearing the land for the purpose of cultivation
or setting up factories etc.
II. Correct and rewrite:
1. Hot and wet equatorial region lies within the temperate
zone.
Hot and wet equatorial region lies within the torrid zone.
2. The largest equatorial forest in the world is in the Congo.
The largest equatorial forest in the world is in the Amazon.
3. In the equatorial region the rainfall is unevenly distributed
throughout the year.
In the equatorial region the rainfall is evenly distributed
throughout the year.
III. Give reason for the following statement.
1. Equatorial rainforests are always green.
Ans. The trees in the equatorial region shed their leaves at
different point of time in the year. Only the old leaves fall
and the new leaves take their place. Hence the forests are
always green.
2. Most of the time animals spend their time on trees rather
than on ground.
Ans. Most of the time animals spend their time on trees rather
than on ground as the sunlight hardly reaches the ground in
the forest.
IV. Answer the following questions in 1 or 2
sentences/points
1. Where is equatorial region located?

Ans. The equatorial region is located in the continents of Africa,

South America, Australia and South-East Asia.

2. Which are the different tribes found in the equatorial forest

region?

Ans. The different tribes found in the equatorial forests are:

1. Semangs of Malaysia
2. kulus of Sumatra
3. Pygmies of Congo Basin
 4. Bantus of Zaire
5. Amazon Indians
3. What are the different layers of the equatorial forest?

Ans. There are 4 different layers in which the plants grow in these
areas. They are Emergent layer, Canopy layer, Understorey
Layer and Forest Layer.

4.What is plantation farming? Name few crops grown on

plantation.

Ans. Plantation farming is growing of the crops on a large farm

after clearing the land from trees. various crops grown in this
region are Tea, Coffee, Banana and Cocoa.

V. Answer the following in 3 or 4 sentences or points.

1. Describe the climate of equatorial forests.

Ans. The climate of the equatorial forests is hot and humid and it
rains every afternoon at around 4 O’ clock. Being near the
equator, duration of the day and night remains same
throughout the year. As this region receives direct sunlight
throughout the year there is no winters in this region. The
humidity is very high as the rainforest dense and it is
surrounded by many water bodies.

2. What is shifting cultivation?

Ans. Shifting agriculture is one of the oldest method of
cultivation. In it the patches are cleared and cultivated for
few years. The trees of those patches are burnt and the ash
makes the soil fertile.

3. How is the deforestation affecting the life in the hot and wet
equatorial region?

Ans. Cutting down of trees on large scale for mining, timber,

agriculture and ranching affects the life of the tribal people
living there. It is endangering the wide variety of wild life. It
leads to soil erosion resulting in the decreasing agricultural
output.