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Making Geographical Decisions > Biomes and the Biosphere > Flashcards

Biomes and the Biosphere Flashcards

1
Q

What is a biome?

A

A global size ecosystem categorised by similar environmental characteristics such as climate, vegetation type and soil

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2
Q

What do biomes occur in?

A

Latitudinal belts
- This means they’re present across the world at similar latitudes

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3
Q

Why do latitudinal patterns occur in biomes?

A

Because climate in these regions is similar due to atmospheric circulation

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4
Q

Why are there some variations in biome location?

A

Other influences:
- Ocean currents
- Winds
- Land-sea temperature differences

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5
Q

Where is the Tundra located?

A

Far North
- Canada, Northern Russia, coastal Greenland

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6
Q

What are the characteristics of tundra?

A
  • Harsh winters and very short summers
  • Treeless, as it is too cold and not damp
  • Very low precipitation levels
  • Short growing season, and soil lacks nutrients
  • Most animals are migratory
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7
Q

Where is the taiga located?

A

North America
Russia
Scandinavia

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8
Q

What are taiga characteristics?

A
  • Coniferous forest
  • Evergreen trees
  • Around 50cm of rainfall / year
  • Long growing season
  • Contains small animals and migrating birds
  • May also contain wolves, bear and moose
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9
Q

Where is temperate deciduous forest located?

A

Eastern USA
Europe- including Uk
Eastern Australia

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10
Q

What are the characteristics of temperate deciduous forest?

A
  • Broad leaf trees that shed their leaves
  • Oak, maple and beech trees are common
  • Hot summers and cold winters
  • Moderate precipitation
  • Animals include deer, bear and small animals
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11
Q

Where is temperate grassland located?

A

Central Europe and Asia
Central USA
Central Australia

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12
Q

What are the characteristics of temperate grassland?

A
  • Dominant vegetation is grass, due to periodic fires and low precipitation
  • Animals include prairie dog and bison
  • Hot summers, cold winters
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13
Q

Where is desert located?

A

Northern Africa
Australia
Eastern USA
Middle East

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14
Q

What are the characteristics of desert?

A
  • Extremely low precipitation
  • Temperature fluctuates between night and day
  • Limited plant growth and soil is poor in nutrients- mainly cacti
  • Small, often nocturnal animals
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15
Q

Where are tropical rainforests located?

A

Close to the equator

South America
South-East Asia

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16
Q

What are the characteristics of tropical rainforest?

A
  • Species rich
  • Warm moist climate
  • Very high precipitation
  • Very quick nutrient cycle
  • Animals include many insects, reptiles and amphibians
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17
Q

Where is savanna located?

A

India
Central Africa
Central South America

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18
Q

What are the characteristics of Savanna?

A
  • Little temperature variation throughout year
  • Seasonal precipitation, with dry and wet periods
  • Dry seasons characterised by wildfires
  • Often used for animal grazing
  • Hoofed animals and herds are common as well as lions and leopards
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19
Q

Where is Mediterranean/ Chaparral located?

A

South of the Equator-
South Africa
Western Australia

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20
Q

What factors affect the distribution and characteristics of biomes?

A

Climate factors-
Precipitation
Temperature
Sunlight exposure

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21
Q

How does precipitation affect biomes?

A
  • Forest biomes are found in low pressure areas, because they’re rainy, which supports tree growth
  • Grasslands and deserts are found in areas of high pressures as there isn’t enough rain to support forests
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22
Q

How does temperature affect biomes?

A
  • The equator is more warm, which causes plants to be very productive, creating tropical rainforest biomes
  • At high latitudes, the temperatures are lower because sunlight is less intense, limiting plant growth
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23
Q

What local factors affect biome distribution?

A

Altitude
Rock and soil type
Drainage

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24
Q

What is altitude?

A

The height of the land

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25
Q

What effects does altitude have on temperature and height?

A
  • Temperature gets colder with increasing altitude- for every 1000m change in height temps can decrease by 6.5
  • Precipitation usually increases with height
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26
Q

What is altitudinal zonation?

A

The pattern we see on hills and mountains where the ecosystem changes with increasing elevation

27
Q

How can rock and soil type affect biomes?

A
  • When rocks are broken down in weathering, chemicals and nutrients are released into the soil
  • This can affect soil pH and fertility
28
Q

What does the bedrock of an area affect?

A
  • It influences soil composition and grain size (such as if its a sandy or clay soil)
  • This affects things such as permeability, vulnerability to erosion and drainage
29
Q

What is drainage?

A
  • How fast water enters and leaves soil
30
Q

What can drainage impact?

A
  • Well drained soils wont retain excess water
  • Poorly drained soils can become boggy and waterlogged
  • Species are adapted to live in these areas, such as willow trees in boggy areas
31
Q

What is drainage influenced by? (Local factors)

A

Topography and relief
- some areas may receive more water due to the shape of the land

Soil type
- more permeable soils (sandy) drain well whilst porous soils (clay) retain it

Amount of vegetation
- Trees and plants intercept and store water

Precipitation and temperature
- More precipitation leads to wetter soils and higher temperatures lead to more evaporation

32
Q

What is a biotic component?

A

Living organisms, such as plants (flora) and animals (fauna)

33
Q

What is an abiotic component?

A

Non-living environmental factors which influence an ecosystem
- Climate
- Light exposure
- Soil type
- Water availability

34
Q

Interaction of water in a biome?

A
  • Breaks up rocks through weathering, releasing chemicals into soil
  • Chemicals are taken up by plants and used as nutrients to help grow
  • They are then passed onto animals when they eat the plants
  • Finally, put back into soil when animals die and decay
35
Q

What is the biosphere?

A

Living layer of Earth between the atmosphere and the lithosphere where all plants and animals are found

36
Q

What are goods that the biosphere produces?

A

Physical materials-
- Food and water (meat, berries, nuts)
- Energy sources (fossil fuels, timber)
- Materials (metal, rock, wood)

37
Q

What services happen in the biosphere?

A

Processes in the biosphere that support life
- Atmosphere regulation
- Soil formation and nutrient cycling
- The hydrological cycle

38
Q

Example of indigenous population and where they live?

A
  • The Efe people
  • Native to the Ituri Tropical Rainforest in the Congo Basin
39
Q

How do the Efe people use the biosphere?

A
  • Hunt and gather food
  • Use rainforest materials to build homes, make fire, and produce medicine
  • Use wood from the rainforest for fires
  • Hunt the giant forest hog and sell its meat to other people in the region
  • Hunt monkey and antelope for food
40
Q

What impact have human activities had on the biosphere?

A
  • Exploiting goods and services at an unsustainable rate
  • The biosphere cant recover and regenerate
  • Humans are exploiting it for energy, mineral resources and water
41
Q

How is energy affecting biosphere?

A
  • Biosphere contains fossil fuels that are being extracted at an unsustainable rate to meet demands
  • It takes millions of years to produce coal, oil and gas
  • Extraction causes lasting environmental damage (mines)
  • Fossil fuel combustion releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere
42
Q

How is water demand affecting the biosphere?

A
  • Water resources are being depleted, affecting the hydrological cycle
  • Groundwater stores, aquifers, are being depleted faster than they can replenish
43
Q

How is demand for mineral resources affecting the biosphere?

A
  • Some minerals can take billions of years to form and are now being depleted at a very high rate due to commercial demand
44
Q

What are the uses for mineral resources?

A

Consumer goods
- Makeup, jewelry, phones, televisons

Construction of buildings and infrastructure

Many medicines are derived from minerals

Some fertilisers are made of minerals

45
Q

How does the biosphere regulate the environment?

A
  • Maintains greenhouse gases, keeping the planet warm enough to live on
  • Regulates CO2 and O2 levels through photosynthesis
  • Regulates CO2 and methane levels through carbon sequestration- carbon is stored in soils, rocks, ice, permafrost and the sea
45
Q

What is carbon sequestration?

A

The long-term capture and storage of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

46
Q

How does the biosphere maintain soil health?

A
  • Nutrient cycling
  • Healthy soils are needed for plant growth
47
Q

How does the biosphere regulate water through the hydrological cycle?

A
  • Trees intercept, absorb and transpire water, putting water vapour back in the atmosphere that can then fall as precipitation
48
Q

What is the hydrological cycle?

A
  • How water is transferred throughout the world from different sources into different states
49
Q

Why is there a growing demand for resources?

A
  • Growing population
  • World is getting richer
  • Urbanisation is increasing
  • Increasing industrialisation in poorer regions
50
Q

What did Thomas Malthus say?

A
  • Malthusianism
  • Population will increase exponentially but resources will only increase linearly
  • The population will eventually run out of food and resources
  • Population will then decrease due to deaths and low birth rates
  • Population will also decrease due to Positive and Preventative checks
51
Q

What were Malthus’ Positive checks?

A

Disease, war famine
- A disaster that significantly reduces a population by increasing deaths

52
Q

What were Malthus’ Preventative checks?

A

A cultural choice to not have children, as you wont be able to support them
Lowering the birth rate

53
Q

What did Ester Boserup say?

A
  • Boserupian Theory
  • No matter how large the population grows, the population will always discover new ways to sustain food supplies
54
Q

How would food supplies be sustained according to Boserup?

A
  • New agricultural technologies
  • Systems to ensure food security
55
Q

What is eutrophication?

A

The growth of algae in a body of water due to excess nutrients
This leads to depletion of oxygen in an aquatic ecosystem

56
Q

Vegetation in tundra:

A

Grasses, lichens and dwarf shrubs
No trees

57
Q

Vegetation in taiga:

A

Coniferous trees (e.g pine)

58
Q

Vegetation in temperate forests:

A

Deciduous trees (e.g oak)

59
Q

Vegetation in temperate grassland:

A

Short or tall grasses
Few trees

60
Q

Vegetation in Mediterranean:

A

Evergreen and Deciduous trees
Shrubs

61
Q

Vegetation in hot desert:

A

A few cacti and succulents

62
Q

Vegetation in tropical rainforest:

A

Evergreen trees growing all year round

63
Q

Vegetation in tropical grassland:

A

Grass with some trees (e.g acacia)

Making Geographical Decisions (4 decks)

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