2nd Half Mtn Studies Flashcards
Mountains in the Renaissance
Shunned in Europe
Mount olympus
home of gods, revered by Greeks
Hannibal’s crossing
a roman general first observed the physiological effects of altitude making mountains feared by romans, viewed as obstacles to commerce
Dragons
Represent mountains in China and were worshiped
3rd AD China Mountains
seen as dangerous and places of supernatural power
Hsied Ling-Yun poem
depict Chinese mountains as scenic beauty in 4th century
Human Presence in mountains was ____ years ago
100000 years, archeological evidence
Human Presence in American mountains was ____ years ago
10-11000 years ago
Machu Picchu
home of Incas who worship moon, sun, stars
The Sublime
Mountain aesthetic by Edmund Burke, thrill of confronting untamed nature, supernatural lays beneath surface
First National Park
Yellowstone national park
First Canadian National Park
Rocky mountain national park (Banff), started from Cave and Basin Hotsprings
Writers who talk about sublime spaces
William Wordsworth (The Prelude), John Polidori (The Vampyre), Mary Shelly (Frankenstein), John Muir
What Was Mary Shelly Inspired by?
visit to French Alps Mer de glace glacier in valley of Chamonix during the little ice age
Myth of the Frontier
return to primitive living would cure illness of modern society
Artists who promote myth of the frontier
Kevin Costner (Dances with wolves) and James Cameron (Avatar)
The Alpine Club
in London, first promoters of Mountaineering (climbing) in 1857
Victorian Mountaineering culture
early climbers were from professional urban middle classers
Appinines
in Italy, romans feared these mountains
Mt. Paektu
In Korea, ‘sky god’ or ‘heven like’
Mt. Kailash
In Tibet, revered as sacred, no one can climb
John Muir
described sierra nevada in 1911 as ecstasy evoking
Albert Mummery
died mountaineering on Nanga Parbet from an avalanche
Flow
the right amount of challenge and skill reaches flow. Too much challenge w/o skill gives anxiety and too much skill w/o challenge gives boredom
Maslows Heirarchy of needs
explains the psychology of mountain climbing as most mountain climbers have there basic needs met so will move to self actulization
Maslows Heirarchy of needs
explains the psychology of mountain climbing as most mountain climbers have there basic needs met so will move to self actualization
Loose Snow Avalanche
Little cohesion, fresh snow, causes most damage in the spring (but not as bad as slab avalanches). Get bigger as they progress
Slab Avalanches
Slab on weak layer releases at crown and slides on bed surface. Need slope angle of at least 30 degrees
Slope angle for avalanches
36-39 (60+ can’t hold avalanches)
Speed of avalanches
dry can be 50-200km/h (more dangerous as speed can melt snow and form debris) and wet are slower
Climax Avalanches
Slab avalanche in the spring that brings down all remaining snow
Glacier National Park
Has 134 avalanche paths with 14m of snow over 40km
Snowsheds
protect highway from avalanche
Rockfall Landslide
caused by steep slope and exposed rock caused by weathering, rock bounces and rolls
Topple Landslide
caused by steep slope and exposed rock caused by weathering, lg. piece of bedrock rolls end over end
Turtle Mountain Landslide
A rockfall landslide that was caused by tectonic shifting and undercutting by glaciers
Translational Landslide
Parallel, stays intact, usually clay, sand, and silt that have increased moisture or triggered by an earthquake, has steep headscarpe
Rotational landslide
Curved, slumps and vegetation tilts back, usually clay, sand, and silt that have increased moisture or triggered by an earthquake, has steep headscarpe
Earthflow landslide
Unconsolidated sediment that becomes saturated ( and surface underneath impenetrable)
Earth Creep Landslide
Very slow moving, little water
Earth Creep Landslide
Very slow moving, little water
Debris Flow Landslide
Similar to an earth flow but with larger sediment, most dangerous and triggered by large water influx
Protection from landslides (7)
Rockfall shelters, drape nets, catch fences, levees, metal anchors, ditches and drains, tree planting
Where do volcanos form?
convergent plates, subduction zones, hot spots
Basaltic Lava
low silica content (increased flow), high iron and magnesium, usually at divergent plates and hot spots in ocean
Rhyolitic Lava
high silica (thick), low iron and magnesium, usually at subduction zones and hotspots
Sheild Volcano
Basaltic magma travels lg area before cooling therefore gentle slope where gas escapes easily (mild eruption)
Tamu Massif
oceanic sheild volcano
Strato Volcanos
rhyolitic magna travels slowley creating steep volcanos. Gas gets trapped causing explosions
Examples of strato volcanos
Krakatoa, Vesuvius (pompeii), Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Pinatubo
Cinder Cone
Intermediate between sheild and strato volcanos (ie Paricutin in New Mexico)
Lava Flows
Impossible to stop but not life threatening (more very slow)
Volcanic Ash
contains glass and rock shards that can enter stratosphere and have a cooling effect
Pyroclastic Flows
Fast lava movement (moves at about 700km/h) that is very dangerous
Lahar
large amounts of snow mix with volcanic ash in rivers creating a wet cement
Biodiversity (4)
number of species, distribution, genetic varriation, and roles in an ecosystem
Speciation
Populations diverge untill they can’t interbreed
Allopatric Speciation
caused by geographic barriers (is Tyrian Metaltail)
Regufia
Areas that maintain good conditions during periods of environmental change
Species Richness
number of species present
Evenness
how similar abundance is between species
Species diversity
species richness+evenness
Hotspots for Biodiversity
2% of worlds surface contains half the endemic species
Geographical Area Hypothesis
larger areas support more biodiversity
Diversity Stability Hypothesis
diverse systems mean that there is an increased ability to withstand change
Ecosystem servicies
benefits people receive from an ecosystem
Nunataq
Tops of mountains that poke out of ice sheets
Conifer Trees
reproduce via seeds and cones, have needles and don’t change color (evergreen). Don’t accumulate snow as much, have increased photosynthesis rate, and have narrow trachieds soo air bubbles can’t freeze in wood
White Bark Pine
Lovated in upper alpine reigion, coniferous, Nutcrackers must break open their seeds, regulate snow melt in mtns with canopy, seedlings increased with fires to clear growing area
Limber pine
Upper to mid alpine region, coniferous
Larch/ Tamarak Trees
Shed needles in falll, have softer needles and photosynthesize better that evergreens to account for loosing needles
Radiative heat gain
Plan adaptation that allows increase of heat from sun (ie dark colours)
Conductive cooling
plant adaptation that decreases heat loss (ie pubescence, compact growth)
Rosettes
have high stems for seed dispersal and marcescent leaves to protect from cold
Freezing point depression
physiological plant adaptation where solvent concentration is increased to reduce freezing temperature
Supercooling
Water is seggregated so there is no nuclei to start freezing.
Ice Segregation
Plants dehydrate selves so that water won’t freeze and damage tissue
Taproot system
1 large main root has small roots stemming off as an adaptation to thin mountain soil
Lichens
mutualistic association between algae (photosynthesizes) and fungi (shelter). Can tolerate severe dehydration and photosynthesize down to zero degrees
heliotropic
organisms that follow sun (ie Mtn Avens)
Bees and Plant Reproductions
Specialist, prefers bright, sweet smelling flowers
Fly’s and Plant Reproduction
Genralist, like white meat smelling flowers
Bird and Plant reproduction
Prefer red, no preffered smell
Motane
Land below mtn treeline
Alpine
Land above alpine treeline
Nival Belt
snowfall stays year round
Ectotherms
use external sources for heat (reptiles)
Endotherms
Generate most of own heat (mammals)
Morphological adaptations to high altitude
fur and feathers, low surface area to retain heat, bigger wings (for thin air), darker colors (decreased albedo)
Phylogeography
differences within a specifies that correlates to spatial arrangement
Behavioral adaptations to high altitude
inactivity in cold temperature, seek out microclimates, basking, migration
Physiological adaptations to high altitude
heat conservation (piloerection, vasoconstriction, counter heat exchange), heat generation (thermogenesis, hibernation, supercooling)
Marmot hibernation
heart rate from 180-200bpm to 28-30bpm (new set point)
Thermogenisis
shivering or brown fat (non-shivering)
Supercooling
Water cools below zero by incorporating unique carbs and aa (ie propylene glycol, cryoprotectants)
White Tailed Ptarmigan
only bird to permanently reside in north american alpine, changes feather colors depending on season, feathers cover feet in winter and they are more sedentary. Can eat snow for water
Marmots
Hibernate 200 days/yr, can double mass in summer, burrows create microclimates, whistle to tell colonies about danger
Yaks
Found in Himalayas where annual mean temp is 5C and doesn’t get about 13C. Thick fleece coat and subcutaneous fat. Don’t have sweat glands, heart and lungs are large for high altitudes.
Geese Mtn Adaptations
Have efficient O2 diffusion bc lungs have 10X SA of humans and barrier to blood in 10X
Bar Headed Geese
Migrate from mongolia to indea over tibetan plateu over 8000m high; lungs 25% bigger and breath deeper than normal gease. Hg has higher O2 affinity and have more capillaries
How many species are in mountain lakes
1-4
Bulltrout
Require temperatures below 13C
Limnology
study of inland water
How much of the world population lives in mountains?
12%
What was one of the initial industries in the moutains?
Mining; dates back to Incas, brought people to mountains in 19th and 20th century
What mountains are used for mining resources? (2)
Appalachia (coal), Cerro Rico (silver)
What were the two movements for indigenous forest rights?
Chipko in the Garhwal Himalaya and Clayoquot Sound in the Vancouver Island Ranges
What agriculture resources come from mountains (8)
potato’s, quinoa, wheat, barley, coffee, tea, cocaine, tobacco
How much of agriculture does mountain farming make up in Europe?
18%
What is the reliance on agriculture in the Alps?
4% of the population relys on agriculture, but this populaiton has decreased 40% in the last 40 years
What industry is in the Jura Mountains?
Watch and clock industry
Amenity Migration
People who move to the mountains for lifestyle reasons; brings affluence and modernization
What has Switzerland done to limit amenity migration?
Capped the number of second homes in any region at 20%
What percent of mountain regions are protected?
20%
What is a protected area?
Land dedicated to protection of biodiversity and cultural resources through laws (IUCN)
Trans Boundary Peace Park
Moutains along borders share protection among countries
The UNESCO Transboundary Biosphere Reserve in the Carpathians
Designated a trans boundry peace park between poland, solvakia, and ukraine
The Glacier-Waterton International Peace Park
Created in 1895 between Canada and the US from rancher advocates and allows for grizzly research and better fire rescue
Alpine convention
Alps sustainable dedvelopment; 120M tourists/yr and 14M people live there
Albertine Rift Valley
Most biodiverse region in africa, lots of poverty
St. Elias Mountains
Biggest protected area (132km2), shared with canada and US
Altai Moutntains
In himalayas, snow lepord lives here
1st National Park Service
Parks Canada
How has animal mortality been reduced on highways
Electrified mats and fencing, open span underpaths (grizzlys, wolves, moose), overpass, and underpass’s (cougars, black bears) have reduced mortality by 80%
What are animal highway stats in Banff?
17-30k vehicles/day go through 82km highway where there are now 44 wildlife crossing structures and 55 cameras
Louise and Guy Hut
in Yoho national park, runs on solar, wind, and propane energy, closed in Summer
What percent of mountain regions are protected?
20%
Climate change
changes to temperature, percipitation, or wind that occur for over a decade
What are recent climate change stats?
CO2 concentration is currently over of 400ppm; over the last 800k years, CO2 was never higher than 280ppm
A CO2 increase from 280-560ppm will cause what temperature change?
1-2.5C increase
IPCC
International panel of climate change; leading international advisory body for climate change
21st UN climate change confrence
Negotiated Paris Agreement: net 0 greenhouse gas emission by 2050 and limit temperature change to 1.5C.
Elevation dependant warming
snow albedo, water vapor changes, surface heat loss and aresols which cause enhanced warming at increased elevations
Mount Kosciusko
Highest peak in australia; has had a decrease in snow depth from 2m to under 50cm and a 377m upward shift in snow line
Peyto glacier
in banff, has shrunk from 12km2 to 7km2 and lost 200m in thickness
Ice core research
Can see chemistry in ice and observe trapped air for climactic evidence
Effects of climate change in the mountains
Increased number of glacial outburst floods and land slides (from thawing of permafrost)
GLORIA
Global observation research initiative; program developed to monitor biodiversity consistantly
Impacts of climate change on biodiversity
increase in species richness, species move upslope (shrubs have a 5%/decade advance)
Mountain Legacy project
collection of historical images of Canadian mountains that are being retaken to show mountain changes
Prescribed fires
Used because repression of fires causes increased canopy covers which decreases grassland/shrubs, changing fauna (feeding source)
Plains Bison
Have been absent from Banff since 1870’s, but now being introduced to Panther river valley (less people than where they used to live in vermillion lake)
Reintroduction plan for Plains bison
burn plan program, reduced elk population (competitors), and maintaining predators such as wolves cougars and bears (selection pressure)
Yellowstone volcano
super volcano that erupts 1000km2 of rock every 600k years; if it erupts there could be 1-10cm of volcanic ash (causing climate change)
The Mountain Partnership
Aimed at improving quality of life of mountain people. Developed in 2002 and contains more than 250 groups
International Mountain day
11th of December
