Jungle (Civ3)/Civilopedia

In heavily forested areas where rainfall is high, the growth of both trees and other indigenous plants is profuse. The dense, tangled environment of the jungle is home to wide varieties of plant and animal life. Although mineral deposits and fruit-bearing plants can sometimes be found in these regions, jungles tend to lack both mineral and food resources. This, combined with the sheer density of the native plant life, makes jungles inhospitable to humans. In order to make these areas more useful, jungles are often destroyed through forestation and burning to yield areas of grassland. While this improves the usefulness of the land for humans, it destroys the habitat of the indigenous animals of the region. It is estimated that hundreds of undiscovered species of insect and animal life are made extinct every day as a result of the destruction of jungles and rain forests.