Costa Rica - February 2003
Holbrook - Selva Verde

Rainforest Hikes

Our primary activity on the first day was an over two-hour hike through Selva Verde's 500-acre rainforest preserve. During our walk, Ramon identified the different types of vegetation in the primary and secondary forests and pointed out the many varieties of plants and trees we came across. Along the way, we saw many animals, reptiles and insects, including birds, lizards, poison-dart frogs, leaf-cutter and bullet ants.

 

During the hike, using the Humidity/Temp/Dew Point Sensor, we were able to simultaneously measure relative humidity and temperature. The graph at left shows the wide range between the two and how the alternating thick and thin rainforest canopy creates varying micro-climate regions.
Humidity & Temperature
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At right, a teacher uses an Xplorer datalogger to view the Temperature and Humidity reading.


A unique characteristic of the rainforest is that very little light actually penetrates through the canopy to reach the forest floor. Using a Light Sensor, we measured the level of light intensity (lux) near the end of our hike.
Light Intensity
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We used the Temperature Sensor to measure the soil’s ability to insulate temperature from the surrounding air. Even though the soil is protected from the sun’s direct radiant heat by the rainforest’s canopy, the graph below still clearly shows this phenomenon.
Temperature
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Climate

Barometric pressure is another variable. The graph below shows how pressure changed over a 24-hour period, particularly when an overnight rainstorm hit the region.

Barometric Pressure
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