Life 54- Ecology and the Distribution of life

Question 1

Biogeographic region

Answer 1

One of several defined, continental-scale regions of Earth, each of which has a biota distinct from that of the others.

Question 2

Cold desert

Answer 2

Biome with great seasonal temperature changes found in dry regions at middle to high latitudes, especially in the interiors of large continents in the rain shadows of mountain ranges.

Question 3

Thorn forest.

Answer 3

Biome with a semiarid climate found on the equatorial sides of hot deserts, and having little or no rainfall during winter, but rainfall may be heavy during summer.

Question 4

Climate

Answer 4

The long-term average atmospheric conditions (temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind direction and velocity) found in a region.

Question 5

Abiotic

Answer 5

Non living

Question 6

Coastal zone

Answer 6

The marine life zone that extends from the shoreline to the edge of the continental shelf. Characterised by relatively shallow, well-oxygenated water and relatively stable temperatures and salinities.

Question 7

Biotic

Answer 7

Alive

Question 8

Area phylogenies

Answer 8

Phylogenies in which the name of the taxi are replaced with the names of the places where those taxa live or lived

Question 9

Microclimate

Answer 9

A subset of climate conditions in a small specific area, which generally differ from those in the environment at large, as in an animal’s underground burrow

Question 10

Endemic

Answer 10

Confined to a particular region, thus often having a comparatively restricted distribution

Question 11

Littoral zone

Answer 11

The costal zone from the upper limits of tidal action down to the depths where the water is throughly stirred by wave action

Question 12

Ecology

Answer 12

The scientific study of the interaction of organisms with their living (biotic) and no living (abiotic) environments.

Question 13

Pelagic zone

Answer 13

The open ocean

Question 14

Rain shadow

Answer 14

The relatively dry area on the leeward side of a mountain range

Question 15

Tundra

Answer 15

Biome that is found in the Arctic and high mountains at all latitudes with very short summers, very long, cold winters, and little precipitation

Question 16

Tropical evergreen forest

Answer 16

Biome found in equatorial regions where total rainfall exceeds 250 cm annually and the dry season lasts no longer than 2 or 3 months.

Question 17

Biotic interchange

Answer 17

The dispersal of species from two different biotas into the region they had not previously inhabited, as when two formerly separated land masses fuse.

Question 18

Benthic zone

Answer 18

The bottom of the ocean.

Question 19

Vicariant event

Answer 19

The splitting of a taxon’s range by the imposition of some barrier to dispersal.

Question 20

Temperate deciduous forest

Answer 20

Biome that is found in eastern North America, Eastern Asia, and Europe, with temperatures fluctuating dramatically between summer and winter, and relatively even distributed precipitation throughout the year.

Question 21

Environmentalism

Answer 21

The use of ecological knowledge, along with economics, ethics, and many other consideration, to inform both personal decisions and public policy relating to stewardship of natural resources and ecosystems

Question 22

Biogeography

Answer 22

The scientific study of the patterns of distribution of populations, species, and ecological communities across Earth

Question 23

Biome

Answer 23

A major division of the ecological communities of Earth, characterised primarily by distinctive vegetation.

Question 24

Tropical deciduous forest

Answer 24

Biome that occurs in hot lowlands and replaces the thorn forest as the length of the rainy season increases toward the equator. It has very warm, dry winters and warm, wet summers.

Question 25

Abyssal plain

Answer 25

The deep ocean floor

Question 26

Hot desert

Answer 26

Biome that is found in two belts, centered around 30 degrees north and 30 degrees south latitude and receives most of its rainfall in summer, but also receives winter rains from storms that form over the mid-latitude oceans.

Question 27

Temperate grassland

Answer 27

Biome that is found in many parts of the world such as the pampas of Argentina, the veldt of South Africa, and the Great Plains of North America and are relatively dry for much of the year. Most grasslands have hot summers and relatively cold winters.

Question 28

Chaparral

Answer 28

Biome with cool, wet winters and warm, dry summers found on the west sides of continents at moderate latitudes, where cool ocean water flow offshore (such as Mediterranean region of Europe, costal California, central Chile, extreme Southern Africa, and southwestern Australia.)