Climate, Biomes, & Populations

Question 1

Climate

Answer 1

Long term prevailing weather conditions in an area

Question 2

Weather

Answer 2

Daily conditions of the atmosphere in terms of temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind and moisture

Question 3

Sun

Answer 3

Ultimate source of energy and driver of climate; shapes the other climate forces: wind and water

Question 4

Weather or climate? There are more sunny days per year in Los Angeles than in Seattle.

Answer 4

Climate

Question 5

Weather or climate? A thunderstorm damaged trees in my neighborhood last summer.

Answer 5

Weather

Question 6

How does the angle of sunlight impact temperatures across the world?

Answer 6

Low angle of incoming sunlight hits the North Pole and South Pole, so those regions are cooler. Sun is overhead at equinoxes, so those regions experience hotter climate.

Question 7

Why is climate seasonal?

Answer 7

Due to the tilt of the Earth and it’s annual orbit around the sun.

Question 8

What are the features of the landscape that contribute to regional variation in climate?

Answer 8

Bodies of water, topography (mountains), and vegetation

Question 9

Specific heat

Answer 9

Amount of energy required to raise temperature; water has a higher specific heat than land or air

Question 10

T or F? Oceans warm up slower during the summer and cool off slower during the winter?

Answer 10

T

Question 11

Do regions w/o forests experience hotter and drier climate?

Answer 11

Yes, because forests promote higher rates of photosynthesis and transpiration so lower temperatures and more precipitation is seen in those areas

Question 12

What determines species distribution?

Answer 12

Biotic factors, abiotic factors, and dispersal

Question 13

Biotic factors

Answer 13

Living factors; organisms in an environment

Species interactions: predation, parasitism, competition, mutualism, herbivory

Ex: urchins graze on seaweed and limit its distribution

Question 14

Abiotic factors

Answer 14

Non living factors; the physical and chemical properties of an environment

Physical characteristics: temp., water and oxygen, salinity, sunlight, and rocks & soil

Ex: increasing water temps. along coast of Tasmania allowed sea urchin to expand its distribution

Question 15

Dispersal

Answer 15

Movement of individuals away from centers of high population density or from their area of origin; evolutionary history plays a role

Mountains can act as barriers to dispersal

Question 16

Biomes

Answer 16

Major type of biological assemblage; largely determined by climate on land and depth and salinity in water; two fundamental aspects: primary productivity and biodiversity

Question 17

Primary productivity

Answer 17

Amount of plant growth in a given area over a given time

Question 18

Biodiversity

Answer 18

Number of species

Question 19

Disturbance

Answer 19

An event such as a storm, fire or human activity that changes a community; ex: frequent fires can kill woody plants and maintain the characteristic vegetation of savanna

Question 20

List terrestrial biomes.

Answer 20

Tropical forest, broadleaf forest, coniferous forest, chaparral, grassland, savanna, desert, and tundra

Question 21

Rank the following biomes from driest (1/top) to wettest (4/bottom)

Tundra, Tropical forest, Desert, Coniferous Corest

Answer 21

1. Desert
2. Tundra
3. Coniferous forest
4. Tropical forest

Question 22

Benthic zone

Answer 22

Bottom surface of an aquatic environment

Question 23

Pelagic zone

Answer 23

Open water component of aquatic biomes

Question 24

List aquatic biomes.

Answer 24

Intertidal, coral reefs, oceans (pelagic), oceans (benthic), wetlands, lakes, estuaries, and river/streams

Question 25

Invasive species

Answer 25

An introduced (non native) species that becomes overpopulated and harm its new environment