text: Two other factors affecting deforestation are also worth noting. First, is that not all deforestation is the same, or has the same characteristics. For example, while much attention is paid to so-called "rainforest" destruction in the Amazon, according to wildlife ecologist Thomas Lacher of Texas A&M;, fires reported for Legal Amazonia are very often in the savannah areas where ranching and other activities are being conducted, but it is made to sound like it is in the middle of lush, green jungle.