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Welcome to the Thai Riviera on the Gulf of Siam
Trekking in the Rain Forest along the Gulf of Siam
One of the most important rain forest areas of Thailand are the Great Western Forests along the Burmese border. Mountains rising to 1000 metres, frequent rainfalls and the resulting abundance of waterfalls and streams create an almost impassable interior that has so far escaped the mass tourism development. Tropical rainforest is the scientific term for a specific type of ecosystem which includes a unique range of animal species and plants. This is in direct contrast to a jungle which has no similar system of organization.
Southeast Asian rainforests date back as far as 60 million years and no other eco-system on earth is as rich in variety of flora and fauna. More than 250 different tree species can be found in a single hectare of virgin rain forest, while a European mixed forest might consist of only 12 different species. Worldwide, tropical rainforests are home to more than 3000 different species of trees, many of them until today, un-named and un-documented. And the same wide variety of species applies to the animal kingdom. Most of the life exists in the canopy of the trees, as high as 40 metres above the forest floor, and is therefore extremely difficult to spot while trekking. In the past, tropical rainforests covered much of the globe. By today most have disappeared. Scientists are concerned that this could have an effect on the global climate. As recently as fifty years ago, about 65% of Thailand was covered by virgin tropical rainforest. Today, that figure is around 10% with most of the remaining rainforests existing in mountaineous region that in the national parks.
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