The fertility of the soil has been used up by rainforest plants. Rainforests are homes for more animals, birds and insects than any other places on Earth. For example, jaguars, pumas, jaguarundis, margays, ocelots, tapirs, peccaries, monkeys, crocodiles, coral snakes, hawksbill turtles, hicatees, ants, red-eyed tree frogs, iguanas, toucans, jabiru storks, macaws, blue morpho and monarch butterflies, and pacas live in rainforests. Each of these creatures has its own special place to live among the forest trees. Rainforests are crisscrossed by streams and rivers.
Some rainforests grow near coastal seawaters.
These watery places are homes for crocodiles, turtles, manatees, dolphins, and many kinds of fish. Manatees especially depend on rainforests. They swim from the ocean into the rainforest's freshwater estuaries, where they feed on aquatic plants. The Forest Floor Jaguars, ocelots, peccaries, and tapirs live on the forest floor, the lowest layer of the forest. The floor is covered by fallen leaves and decaying plant and animal matter.