Ch 6. Key Terms Flashcards
Biome
A large region characterized by a specific type of climate and certain types of plant and animal communities.
Climate
The average weather conditions in an area over a long period of time.
Latitude
The distance north or south from the equator; expressed in degrees.
Altitude
The height of an object above a reference point, such as sea level or the earths surface.
Tropical Rain Forest
A forest or jungle near the equator that is characterized by large amounts of rain and little variation in temperature and that contains the greatest known diversity of organisms on Earth.
Emergent Layer
The top foliage layer in a forest where the trees extend above surrounding trees.
Canopy
The layers of tree tops that shade the forest floor.
Epiphyte
A plant that uses another plant for support, but not for nourishment.
Understory
A foliage layer that is beneath and shaded by the main canopy of a forest.
Temperature Rain Forest
A forest community (or biome) characterized by cool, humid weather and abundant rainfall, where tree branches are draped with mosses, tree trunks are covered with lichens, and the forest floor is covered with ferns.
Temperate Deciduous Forest
A forest (or biome) that is characterized by trees that shed their leaves in the fall.
Taiga
A region of evergreen, coniferous forest below the arctic and subarctic tundra regions.
Savanna
A plain full of grasses and scattered tress and shrubs; found in tropical and subtropical habitats and mainly in regions with a dry climate, such as East Africa.
Temperate Grassland
A community (or biome) that is dominated by grasses, has few trees, and is characterized by cold winters and rainfall that is intermediate between that of a forest and a desert.
Chaparral
A type of vegetation that includes broad-leafed evergreen shrubs and that is located in areas with hot, dry summers and mild, wet winters.
