Rain Forest – Animals of the Amazon

These rain forest animals of the Amazon makes for fun animal studies. Also, be sure you read and grab the activities on my page Rain Forest Amazon and Rainforest Activities for Kids.

After all, isn’t this what fascinates us the most about the Amazon Rain Forest? We want to know all about the animals that live there. Enjoy these photos.

Note:This lapbook can be done in conjunction with the Rain Forest Lapbook or it can be a stand alone unit on just the Amazon Rain Forest Animals

More Rain Forest Animals Resources

(Note: It is not always easy to gather up photos and try to put them in one spot when it comes to preparing a unit, but that is exactly what we tried to do here. We have been collecting, asking permission for months and otherwise sorting photos to put them in one spot for our children and yours too. Of course this by no means even touches the fringes of all the biodiversity in the animal and plants contained in the Amazon Rain Forest, but we wanted to include as many as we could find. Again, please do not post these pictures on your site as our agreement states from these different copyright holders that it would be maintained here. If we failed to give copyright attribution, please let us know as that was not our intention in this undertaking. )

RED HOWLER MONKEY

They live in the in the canopy. They are very social and live in groups of 5 to 40 led by a dominant male. It has been said they make the loudest sound in the forest. Their diet includes fruit, flowers,leaves, small birds, reptiles and mammals.

Image Credit: ©Alessandro Catenazzi

ORANGE JULIA BUTTERFLY

The orange julia butterfly lives in the canopy and in openings along forest roads where passion flowers and vines occur.They feed on nectar.

Image Credit: ©John White

JAGUAR

Jaguars are carnivores and their diet can include capybaras, fish, snakes and birds and other small mammals.

Of all the cats they are the most water loving cat where they can fish as well. Also they have been known to eat tortoises and turtles because they can crack their shell with their powerful jaws. Jaguars are mostly solitary. The jaguar hunts at night and can climb trees. Baby jaguars are called kittens. They stay with their mothers for one or two years.  People sometimes confuse jaguars with leopards. How can you tell the difference? The large spots on the jaguar’s fur have smaller spots inside them. Jaguars are endangered (means they are at risk of dying out). People kill jaguars because they kill and eat farm animals. People also kill jaguars for their fur. Areas of the rain forest have been cleared for farming, so jaguars don’t have as much land as they need. However, people are working to protect the jaguar and the rain forests

Some other interesting facts about the jaguar:

• It has excellent hearing. It can pick up an animal’s movements before it sees the animal.
• It uses its retractable claws to grab animals and catch fish.
• It has a special lining at the back of it’s eyes. The lining reflects light and helps the jaguar to see in dim light.
• It eats more than 85 species of animals. It can even eat deer and monkeys.

EMERALD TREE BOA

They wait in the trees of the canopy while their tail is hanging around the tree to catch prey.

The boas feed on birds and other small mammals where they constrict and swallow their prey

RED LION TAMARIN

They live in the dense thicket of the canopy and are squirrel-size monkeys. They are omnivores meaning they eat a vareity of plant and animal food.Tamarins live in an extended family and usually spend the hottest part of the day in dense foliage.

RED & GREEN MACAW

Macaws are members of the parrot family and they nest in the hollow of the trees. Although the macaw has such bright colors it is often hard to see it against the natural colors of the rain forest. Most macaws feed on fruit of the trees, nuts, seeds and berries. The macaw can crack the hard shelled Brazilian nuts with their strong beak.

Image credit:Dr.Lloyd Glenn Ingles©California Academy of Sciences

SOUTH AMERICAN COATI OR RING TAILED COATI

They live on both the ground and in the trees. They are omnivores meaning they eat both plants and other smaller animals and birds eggs too. Coatis typically sleep in the trees. They search for animal prey by turning over rocks on the ground or ripping open logs with their claws.

Image Credit: © 2009 Maik Dobiey

SLOTH

The sloth is the world’s slowest mammal. It moves so slow that the greenish tint on it’s coat is algae. There are two toed and three toed sloths and they are identified by looking at their front feet. Nearly all sloths spend their lives hanging from the trees. At night they eat shoots, leaves and fruit from the trees.

SQUIRREL MONKEY

Squirrel Monkeys are noisy and energetic. They spend most of their time in the trees scrambling around for food like insects, seeds and occasional fruit bat. They have often been called small nervous primates. Squirrel monkeys have great skill in moving around in the trees and often feed early in the morning. Squirrel monkeys live in packs so if a predator attacks they can kill the intruder.Their main predator is the eagle that can swoop down and pick the monkeys up.

Image Credit:Dr. Lloyd Glenn Ingles © California Academy of Sciences

HARPY EAGLE

The harpy eagle is considered one of the largest eagles in the world. It is fast and agile and powerful as it pursues it’s prey. They hunt in and below the rain forest canopy instead of soaring over the top of the rain forest. The eagle feeds mostly on animals that live in the trees like sloths, monkeys and some reptiles and birds. Their curved talons are larger than a grizzly bears claws. Even though they are not the largest bird of prey they are the most heaviest. Harpies like to live up way high in the kapok tree and build nests 90 to 140 feet in the air.

Image Credit:birdphotos.com

RED BELLIED PIRANHA

These fish have the reputation of being one of the most feared fresh water fish. Their short jaws are very powerful and lined with razor sharp teeth.As their name suggests they have a reddish tinge on their bellies.They mostly eat other fish, but not all piranhas eat flesh. There are many species that are vegetarians eating the nuts that fall in the water by using their teeth to crack the nut.

Image Credit:©Joseph Doughtery, M.D.

KINKAJOU also called HONEY BEARS

Kinkajous spend most of their time in the trees. Most interesting is that they are able to turn their feet backwards to run either direction along trees. Their prehensile tail which is used for gripping like an arm helps in balancing. They eat insects like termites and fruit. They are called honey bears because they raid bees nests and lick the honey with their long tongues

Image credit: Dr. Lloyd Glenn Ingles©California Academy of Sciences

SCARLET IBIS

Like flamingos the brilliant red comes from carotene found in the crustaceans, which are shrimps, crab, crayfish, which it feeds on.

They have curved, slender bills that they use to probe into shallow water, mud or grass when they are looking for food. They are scavengers that help destroy insects and keep pests away from crops. Both parents help feed the chicks and take turns guarding the nest until the chicks are large enough to defend themselves.

GIANT ANT EATER

Endentate animals? What are they? Animals that have few or no teeth.  Ant eaters are teethless animals, but their tongue makes up for any food that they need to swallow each day. So what is on the menu? About 35,000 ants and termites each day. It uses it sharp claws to tear into a mound, flicking its’ tongue about 160 times a minute to avoid as many ant stings as possible. It won’t destroy a nest instead it prefers to come back and dine some more later.

Image Credit: © Dr. Joseph Doughtery, M.D. ecology.org

IGUANA

Green or common iguanas are among the largest lizards in the Americas. Primarly herbivores, iguanas are most active during the day. They generally live near water and are excellent swimmers and have razor sharp teeth and strong tails. They can detach their tail and grow another if they need to.

Image Credit:© Christiano Nogueira

TOUCAN

South America is the home of the toco toucan. It is one of the most recognizable and popular birds. Even though their bill may look strong and perhaps used a weapon it is not. It is more for show and in passing food back and forth between male and female. Their bill is actually hollow and fragile. Toucans eat fruit, insects, eggs and sometimes young birds.   Toucans nests in holes in trees. Even though they have bright colors, their colors actually help camouflage them in the beautiful colors of the rain forest.

AMAZON TREE BOA

As their name implies, this species is very adapted for life in the trees. They eat, drink and live in the trees. They exhibit an infinite variety of colors and patterns. Some of the basic colors are black, brown, to orange, gray and red. They are nocturnal animals. Their eyes have an “eye shine”. Hanging in a S shape on a vine to mimic a vine is how they catch their prey.

Image Credit:©2006 Thomas Eimermacher

BLUE FRONTED AMAZON PARROT

Blue fronted Amazon Parrots are the best talkers.

In the Amazon they will flock with other parrots. Its feathers are primarily green and ith as a bright blue. They will also have bright yellow markings on the crown, cheeks and ears and their wings will often be red or a combination of red and yellow.  Each bird will have unique shading and patterns. Its diet is primarily seeds, fruits and nuts.

Image Credit: Dr. Lloyd Glenn Ingles©California Academy of Sciences

BLUE HEADED PARROT

The blue-headed parrot is a medium size parrot. It is named for its medium-blue head and neck.

Its habitat is forest and semi-open country, including cultivated areas. It is largely restricted to humid or semi-humid regions, but locally extends into drier habitats, at least along rivers. The blue-headed Parrot lays three to five white eggs in a tree cavity.

Blue-headed Parrots are noisy birds and make light, high-pitched squeaking sweenk calls. They roost communally in palm and other trees, and large numbers can be seen at the roost sites at dawn and dusk.

Image Credit:Wikimedia

RHINOCEROS BEETLE

Colossal creature? It has been said that the rhinoceros beetle can carry about to 850 times it’s weight. AMAZING!! Who would have thought that a bug could be strong?

The rhinoceros beetle gets its name from the horns on its head. Scientists believe that the beetle has become so strong to be able to forage through heavy litter on the jungle floor and dig its way to safety. Using its horns it can dig its way out of a sticky situation by burying itself underground, escaping danger.Rhino beetles help recycling plant material back into the ecosystem. The adult rhino does not eat much, but the larvae do. The larvae eat a huge amount of rotting wood and thus help the jungle floor.

RUFOUS MOTMOT

Motmots are medium-sized birds, inhabiting dense forests.  These birds have colorful plumage and long, graduated tails, which they move back and forth in a wag-display that commonly draws attention to an otherwise hidden bird. Motmots eat small prey such as insects and lizards, and will also take fruit.  The eggs hatch after about 20 days, and the young leave the nest after another 30 days. Both parents care for the young.
Image Credit: Dr. Lloyd Glenn Ingles ©California Academy of Sciences

ARMY ANT

The most fierce and dangerous ant is the “army ant”. These ants can eat a wide variety of food due to their amazing digestive system which can dissolve any living creature. Army Ants use two front teeth and claws which they use in to inject a venom which works as an acid and will dissolve all types of flesh. A favorite tasty treat among this species are wasps and Leaf Cutter Ants. This ant lives mostly underground or in the trees. There is a reason they are called  “army” and it is because they “tread down” any creature in their path.

Image Credit:© Joseph Doughtery, M.D./ecology.org

CLEAR WING BUTTERFLY

As the name indicates their wings are transparent.  This helps them to appear and disappear throughout the dense tropical foliage.

There are over 2,000 species of butterflies in the rainforests of South America.

Image Credit:© Joseph Doughtery, M.D./ecology.org

PYGMY OWL

The Pygmy Owl is a small owl which averages 6 inches in size.  This owl has talons which are very large for its small body size.

This owl is crepuscular (most active at twilight, dawn or dusk).  The Pygmy Owl hunts small birds, insects, lizards and small mammals.

The Pygmy Owl can be spotted at times by looking for groups of small birds mobbing it while the owl perches in a tree.  There have been sightings of up to 40 small birds mobbing one owl.

Image Credit: Dr. Lloyd Glenn Ingles ©California Academy of Sciences

XENOPS

(Prounced: ZEN-ops). This five inch bird makes its nests in a hole in an old tree. Xenops eat insects that live inside the branches and ants are a favorite food.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Dario Sanches

Lapbook

Layout tips for lapbook:  To use ALL of the animal mini books (36 in all) you will need to use a LEGAL size folder with TWO extensions. On the file folder it will make four columns with three rows. So one column on the left and right flaps and two columns in the middle of the file folder. So 12 in all to fit WITHOUT any extensions. Also, 12 minibooks fits on EACH extension (6 on front and 6 on back).  Here is the breakdown in a nutshell to help you plan.

First option is a Legal Size Folder NO extensions – Choose 12 minibooks; Layout out folder as follows: 4 columns and 3 rows on the folder.

Second option is legal Size Folder with ONE extension – Choose 24 minibooks; Layout folder as follows: 4 columns and 3 rows on the folder; PLUS choose 12 more for the extension; Two columns, three rows front and back on the extension.

Legal Size Folder with TWO extensions – Use ALL 36 minibooks; Layout folder as follows:4 columns and 3 rows on the folder; PLUS 12 for EACH extension both with two columns and three rows front and back.

Pictures of Possible Layout

Rain Forest Animals of the Amazon Minibooks

This next book is the inside page of the  animal mini books above. Print as many as you need or as animal books you choose to do. Then glue inside each animal mini book.

More Animals of the Amazon Activities

About Animal Cell

cell membrane- semi permeable membrane; also known as the plasma membrane; the outer limit for the cell.
cytoplasm– is a gel-like substance that fills the cell and in which the organelles are suspended
smooth & rough ER (endoplasmic reticulum)– transports proteins to other parts of the cell; rougher ER is dotted with ribosomes; smooth ER has no ribosomes
mitochondrion- converts nutrients to energy
lysosome– destroys old organelles and dangerous substances
nucleus– control center of the cell and where DNA is contained.
nucleolus– small round body inside the nucleus where ribosome synthesis occurs
vacuole– membrane bound sac; storage chambers where nutrients, water, and waste products are temporarily kept
Golgi body– series of stacked membrane sacs that stores proteins and lipids (fats) and that are changed to suit the need of the cell
centrosome – produces microtubules; in animal cells the centrosome is actually a pair of organelles called centriole
ribosome – makes new protein

How to Get the Free Rain Forest Animals of the Amazon Lapbook

Now, how to grab the free lapbook. This is a subscriber freebie.

That means when you sign up to follow me, you get access to my subscribers library and this freebie.

However, not all my freebies are in the library (wink).

I like to keep up to date with what is valuable to you so I can give you more, some freebies you must sign up again on the form below even if you are already a follower.

And it’s the only way I have of freely delivering them to you. Just follow the steps below.

► 1) Sign up on my list.
► 2) Go to your inbox and confirm your email from the automatic reply I sent you. If you’re already a confirmed subscriber you will not have to do this. You’ll receive the freebie instantly.
 ►3) Last step. look for my reply AFTER you’ve confirmed your email.