Geography Year 9 Flashcards
Epping forest info
- East of london
- 20 different types of dragonfly
- deciduous
- managed for 1000 years
Food web with soil, litter and biomass:
- In ?, trees lose ?, and lots of litter is ?
- In spring, litter is ? to humus and nutrients which turns into ?
- In summer, trees maximise ?
- In ?, leaves are shed to ? heat and in winter these ? are turned into soil
winter, leaves, made
converted, soil
photosynthesis
autumn, conserve, leaves
Proof of climate change (ice cores)
East Antarctica Ice Core records climate of last 800,000 years
Difference between food chain and web
Food chain - direct links between producers and consumers, whereas a food web shows all connections between producers and consumers
Difference between biotic and abiotic
Biotic are living components while abiotic is none living
How much of tropical rainforest covers the earths land
6% of earths land, and is close to equator
How much of desert covers the earths land
1/5
Climate and seasons of savanna
Tropical climate, with both wet and dry seasons (leading to wildfires)
Climate and seasons of temperate grassland
Warm dry summers and cold winters
Climate and seasons of Mediterranean
Hot sunny and dry summers, mild winters, pressure belts migrate N + S
General info of rainforests
Hot and wet, max temp 28 degrees, over 2000 mm, no seasons
Brazil rainforest info
- 20% of worlds fresh water comes from Amazon basin
- 3M hectares in a year
- 80% of clearing is due to cattle ranching
- also lots of mineral extraction
Info about rainforests
- tropical rainforests contain 1/2 of all plants and animals in world
- 28% of earths oxygen comes from rainforest
Malaysia impacts of deforestation
Climate change, loss of biodiversity, soil erosion
Reasons for deforestation
- dams for hydroelectric power
- cattle ranching
- commercial crop growing (allows rainforest to regrow and grows economy)
- road development to make better trade routes
- settlement growth
What does no trees mean for rainforests
- no cooling if air, or absorption of CO2 and real ease of O2
- drier climate, less moisture from trees, more rural urban migration
Cons of loss if biodiversity
Many animals may die out and become endangered, plants that could aid illnesses that aren’t yet discovered are destroyed
cons of soil erosion
infertile land, so can’t grow plants and trees, meaning no trees to keep soil together, soil becomes eroded and loose and provides no shelter
Pros and cons of economic development
Pros - development of land, more jobs for locals, more taxes for government, cheap and easy power from hydroelectric dams
Cons - serious wildfires, lots of pollution, water pollution gives people diseases and costs money
4 layers and details of rainforest
1- shrub later - shrubs, seeds, plants , insects, frogs and fruit
2. under canopy - humid and damp, birds and animals disperse seeds
3. canopy - thickest layer , up to 10 seconds for raindrop to reach forest floor, most sunlight and 70% of species
4. emergent layer - oldest trees, birds, butterflies and bats, hardest layer to live in
Gecko adaptations
Sticky feet to climb up smooth barked leaves
Frog adaptations
Change their appearance to copy poisonous relatives to trick others into thinking they’re poisonous
Jaguar adaptations
Can swim so won’t be damaged by floods
Protection in the rainforest:
Ecotourism, selective logging, conservation and education, allliances, international agreements
Ecotourism?
- supports local communities and protects environment
- gov protects their trees
- trees already cut down are used sustainably for eco hills for example
- locals are supported by money used to introduce people to natural wildlife
Alliances
Achuar and shuar people formed an alliance to fight the threatening prophecy saying the rainforest would disappear (achuar people live in Amazon basin, have 2M acres of land across Ecuador and Peru)
Conservation and education
- rainforest can be preserved in conservation areas, eg national parks
- educate public and also can be used for scientific research!
International agreements
Rainforests are globally important!!
Selective logging?
Only cuts down some trees down and regrows trees restoring forests, (different as most logging is clear felling which destroys ecosystems)
Thin bark adaptation?
- don’t need thick, lots of moisture, slippy - hard for plants to grow and animals to climb
Drip tips?
Waxy surface and pointed tips mean water can drip off during monsoons and prevents algae growth
Leaf angling?
Angle leaves for max sunlight and to avoid shading itself
Red leaves
Reflect red light and act like a sunscreen for young leaves
Epiphytes?
Live on surfaces of plants to maximise access to sunlight
Buttress roots?
Massive roots that give trees stability in thin, infertile soil
How many solar panel installations does Freiburg have, and how much electricity do they supply from them per year?
400 installations, make over 10M kilowatts per year from it
how many people are employed in the green industry? (in Freiburg)
10,000 residents and 1000 work in the solar industry
how do Freiburg manage their waste water?
Excess water from the river Dreisam is stored which can be used
Rainwater can be retained, reused, or seep back into the ground
Residents are given financial incentives to use minimum water
Examples of water conservation in Vauban district
- rainwater collection for in-house usage
- green roofs
- pervious pavements that allow water to soak through
