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What is the Difference Between the Jungle and the Rainforest?

Tricia Christensen
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Updated: Jun 04, 2024
Views: 189,709
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These two terms have often been confused, but they describe different patterns of vegetation that are mostly, though not always, associated with tropical climates. “Jungle” is a general term used to describe vegetation that is tangled and impenetrable — the kind that might seriously impede the progress of humans, and which may need to be cut through with tools such as machetes. It comes from the Sanskrit word jangala, which simply means uncultivated land. A rainforest is a type of dense forest, often with several layers of vegetation, that is found in areas of high rainfall. The foliage in the upper parts is generally so dense that relatively little light reaches the ground, and because of this, ground-level plant life is quite sparse — it is, in fact, much easier to walk through rainforest than jungle.

Much early exploration of tropical forests by Europeans took place via rivers. Around these rivers, vegetation was usually very dense, as much more light was able to reach the ground in the absence of trees. Consequently, it was assumed that the impenetrable-looking vegetation visible around the rivers was typical of the forest, and the term “jungle” came to be used to describe rainforests.

Jungle

In the past, the word jungle has been used rather indiscriminately to describe almost any kind of dense, tropical vegetation, including what is now called rainforest. The term “rainforest”, however, only came into common use in the 1970s. Plants need both moisture and light to grow well, and the kind of dense ground-level vegetation that thrives in jungle areas occurs in places that have plentiful rainfall for at least part of the year, and more or less unrestricted access to sunlight. Consequently, it differs markedly from rainforest.

Jungle, however, may well occur close to, and within, rainforests, since all that is usually required in these warm, moist areas for this type of vegetation to develop is an adequate supply of light. Therefore, in places where trees are sparse, jungle can thrive. Typically, jungle vegetation will be found at the edges of rainforests, along rivers within the forest, and in areas where trees have fallen due to natural disasters such as high winds, or where trees have been felled by humans, and the land then left to itself.

This kind of vegetation is not found in temperate areas, as constant high temperatures are required to allow the year-round growth of plants. When combined with moist conditions, and a plentiful supply of light, growth is rapid. Many kinds of plants have evolved to compete successfully for resources, and so jungle areas, like rainforests, have a great diversity of plant life; however, the main difference is in the ground level vegetation. Trees do not get a chance to grow, as faster spreading plants rapidly deprive small seedlings of space and light. Plants in these areas have evolved to grow and spread quickly, and in many cases possess thorns to defend themselves against predators, resulting in a thick, impenetrable tangle of plants that makes life difficult for explorers.

Rainforest

As the name implies, this type of vegetation occurs in areas of high rainfall. In the equatorial regions, conditions are ideal for rainforest, due to the frequent heavy rain, high humidity and year-round high temperatures. Rainforests, can, however, be found in some temperate regions, where rainfall is high enough. For example, many parts of the west coast of North America have forests of this type. These woodlands, however, have far fewer plant and animal species living in them than tropical forests.

The typical tropical rainforest has a high canopy of overlapping branches and leaves that absorb most of the incoming sunlight. The trees that make up this layer generally grow to between 70 and 100 feet (21 - 30 meters). Above this, there may be an emergent layer, consisting of a relatively small number of even taller trees, up to 180 ft (55 m) high. Below the main canopy, there is a shrub, or understory, layer, consisting of young trees and large-leaved plants that are able to exploit the relatively small amounts of light at this level. The ground layer has only a few shade-loving plants.

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Tricia Christensen
By Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a All Things Nature contributor, Tricia Christensen is based in Northern California and brings a wealth of knowledge and passion to her writing. Her wide-ranging interests include reading, writing, medicine, art, film, history, politics, ethics, and religion, all of which she incorporates into her informative articles. Tricia is currently working on her first novel.
Discussion Comments
By anon974744 — On Oct 20, 2014

They are the same thing. "Rain Forest" is simply the newer, more politically correct term for a jungle.

By anon261650 — On Apr 16, 2012

Are a rainforest and jungle the same thing?

By anon241615 — On Jan 19, 2012

Thank you! Someone finally clarified it for me.

By anon103419 — On Aug 12, 2010

thanks for sharing knowledge! It is a beautiful gift! i know a bit more now.

By anon98635 — On Jul 23, 2010

thank you very much for the explanation. Finally i understand the difference between the rainforest and the jungle.

By anon87034 — On May 27, 2010

Thank you for finally explaining the difference! I have been looking for the difference to help my daughter with a school project and every other site seems to use the terms jungle and rainforest interchangeably. thanks again

By anon67160 — On Feb 23, 2010

Before I read this post, I always thought the the jungle and rainforest were the same thing. Thanks for explaining!

By anon37133 — On Jul 17, 2009

I think that there is more to explain about the rainforest.

Tricia Christensen
Tricia Christensen
With a Literature degree from Sonoma State University and years of experience as a All Things Nature contributor, Tricia...
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