Chapter 6 Key Terms

Question 1

biome

Answer 1

a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat

Question 2

Climate

Answer 2

the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long period.

Question 3

Latitude

Answer 3

the angular distance of a place north or south of the earth’s equator, or of a celestial object north or south of the celestial equator, usually expressed in degrees and minutes.

Question 4

altitude

Answer 4

the height of anything above a given planetary reference plane, especially above sea level on earth

Question 5

tropical rain forest

Answer 5

rainforests that occur in areas of tropical rainforest climate in which there is no dry season

Question 6

emergent layer

Answer 6

the top layer of a rainforest

Question 7

Canopy

Answer 7

the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns and including other biological organisms

Question 8

Epiphyte

Answer 8

any plant that grows upon another plant or object merely for physical support

Question 9

Understory

Answer 9

an underlying layer of vegetation specifically: the vegetative layer and especially the trees and shrubs between the forest canopy and the ground cover. 2: the plants that form the understory.

Question 10

Temperate Rain Forests

Answer 10

Temperate rainforests are coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rainfall

Question 11

Temperate Deciduous Forests

Answer 11

are a variety of temperate forest ‘dominated’ by trees that lose their leaves each year

Question 12

Taiga

Answer 12

also called a boreal forest, biome (major life zone) of vegetation composed primarily of cone-bearing needle-leaved or scale-leaved evergreen trees, found in northern circumpolar forested regions characterized by long winters and moderate to high annual precipitation

Question 13

Savanna

Answer 13

A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland ecosystem characterized by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to support an unbroken herbaceous layer consisting primarily of grasses

Question 14

Temperate Grasslands

Answer 14

Temperate grasslands are characterized as having grasses as the dominant vegetation. Trees and large shrubs are absent. Temperatures vary more from summer to winter, and the amount of rainfall is less in temperate grasslands than in savannas.

Question 15

Chaparral

Answer 15

Chaparral is defined as a plant community consisting of evergreen, sclerophyllous shrubs adapted to a Mediterranean-type climate

Question 16

Desert

Answer 16

a desert is a landscape form or region that receives very little precipitation. Generally deserts are defined as areas that receive an average annual precipitation of less than 250 mm

Question 17

Tundra

Answer 17

Tundra is the coldest of all the biomes. Tundra comes from the Finnish word Tunturi, meaning treeless plain. It is noted for its frost-molded landscapes, extremely low temperatures, little precipitation, poor nutrients, and short growing seasons. Dead organic material functions as a nutrient pool

Question 18

Permafrost

Answer 18

Permafrost is any ground that remains completely frozen—32°F (0°C) or colder—for at least two years straight. These permanently frozen grounds are most common in regions with high mountains and in Earth’s higher latitudes—near the North and South Poles.