Name the rainforest layer composed of overlapping leaves and branches.

• A. Emergent
• B. Understory
• C. Forest Floor
• D. Canopy

Answer: (D)

The layer formed by overlapping leaves and branches is the canopy. It creates a continuous leafy roof made by the crowns of tall trees spreading and touching each other, which filters a lot of sunlight and keeps the space underneath warm and humid. This canopy is where most of the rainforest’s photosynthesis happens and where a large share of its biodiversity lives. Below it lies the understory, a shaded zone with smaller plants and limited light; above it are the emergent trees that poke above the canopy, and the forest floor sits beneath, receiving very little light and filled with leaf litter and decomposers.