Natural Vegetation Flashcards

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1
Q

define natural vegetation

A

the plant community which has grown naturally without any human assistance, and has not been disturbed for a long time, so as to allow individual special to adjust themselves to the climate and soil conditions

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1
Q

define flora

A

plants of a particular region or period, listed as species and considered as a group

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2
Q

define vegetation

A

assemblage of plant species living in association with each other in a given environmental setup

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3
Q

define forests

A

large tract of land covered with trees, with an undergrowth of shrubs and herbs, sustaining thousands of life forms, including plants and animals

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4
Q

importance of forests

A
  1. productive functions
  2. protective functions
  3. regulatory functions
  4. accessory functions
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5
Q

productive functions of forests

A

trees provide fruits, leaves, roots, tubers of plants
wood used in making furniture and industrial units
wood and bamboo pulp used for paper
wood is used as source of energy and warmth

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6
Q

protective functions of forests

A

control water cycle
humus acts as natural sponge and soaks rainwater into the soil
trees prevent soil erosion and loss of nutrients
thick hums increases fertility of soil

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7
Q

regulatory functions of forests

A

use CO2 and release oxygen, used by animals
regulate the water cycle
helps in precipitation

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8
Q

accessory functions of forests

A

provide habitat for wildlife
provide aesthetics and recreation to humans

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9
Q

major vegetation regions

A
  1. tropical evergreen
  2. tropical deciduous
  3. tropical desert
  4. littoral
  5. mountain
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10
Q

climate of tropical evergreen

A

annual rainfall more than 200 cm
short dry season
average annual temp is 25-27 degrees C
average annual humidity is 77%

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11
Q

distribution of tropical evergreen

A

western slopes of western ghats
hills of NE india
island groups of lakshadweep and andaman nicobar
TN coast

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12
Q

characteristic features of tropical evergreen

A
  1. luxuriant vegetation of all kinds- multi layered structure
  2. trees are more than 60 m
  3. carpet layer of herbs and grasses cannot grow because the dense canopy of trees do not allow sunlight to reach
  4. trees do not have a fixed time to shed their leaves, to flower or fruition, so they appear green all year around
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13
Q

trees in tropical evergreen

A

rosewood, mahogany, ebony, toon, chaplas, sissoo, gurjan, telsur

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14
Q

economical value of tropical evergreen

A

produce various plant species of high economic value
timber is hard, durable, fine grained

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15
Q

why can’t tropical evergreen forests be fully exploited

A

due to tangled mass of canes, palms, bamboos, ferns and climbers, along with lack of means of transport

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16
Q

category of deciduous forests

A
  1. moist deciduous
  2. dry deciduous
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17
Q

most widespread forests in india

A

tropical deciduous forest

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18
Q

climate of moist deciduous

A

rainfall between 100-200 cm
mean annual temp: 24-27 C
humidity: 50-80%

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19
Q

distribution of moist deciduous

A

along NE part of peninsula
foothills of himalayas
eastern slopes of western ghats
UP, maharashtra, karnataka, tamil nadu

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20
Q

characteristics of moist deciduous

A
  1. shed leaves 6 to 8 weeks during the spring and early summer when there is water shortage
  2. a particular species can be found over a large area
  3. commercially most exploited forests in india
21
Q

common trees in moist deciduous

A

sal, teak, arjun, shisham, mahua, mulberry, sandalwood

22
Q

economical value of moist deciduous

A

commercially most exploited
provide timber, sandalwood

23
Q

climate of dry deciduous

A

annual temp: 23-24 C
annual rain: 70-100 cm
humidity: 51-58%

24
Q

distribution of dry deciduous

A

rainier parts of peninsular plateau
plains of bihar and UP

25
Q

characteristics of dry deciduous

A
  1. thrive between moist deciduous and tropical thorn forests
  2. in north indian plains, where there is high rainfall, they have open stretches in which teak and others are interspersed with patches of grass
  3. shed leaves completely in dry season
26
Q

trees of dry deciduous

A

teak, dal, rosewood, bel, axlewood

27
Q

economical value of dry deciduous

A

provide timber, fruits, other useful products
large tracts of these forests cleared for agriculture

28
Q

climate of tropical desert forests

A

rain: less than 50 cm
mean annual temp: 25-27 C
humidity: below 47%

29
Q

distribution of tropical desert

A

SW punjab
Haryana
UP
central and eastern rajasthan
MP
AP

30
Q

characteristics of tropical desert

A
  1. xerophytic vegetation- trees are stunted with large patches of coarse grasses
  2. have trees that have adapted themselves to drought conditions, called xerophytes \
  3. plants remain leafless for most part of the year and look like scrubs
31
Q

important trees in tropical desert

A

babool or acacia (xerophytes)
date palm, ber, neem, cactii, khejri, kanju

32
Q

economical value of tropical desert

A

ber is eaten raw or made into pickle
its timber is hard, strong, tough, durable
babool bark and gum have medicinal value
date palm is eaten raw, used at astringent, decoration, syrup
neem bark and roots have medicinal properties

33
Q

define mangroves

A

plants whose roots are underwater during high tide

34
Q

define wetlands

A

are lands between terrestrial and aquatic system where the water table is usually at or near the surface of the land

35
Q

climatic conditions of littoral forests

A

temp: 26-29 C
rainfall is not more than 200 cm

36
Q

distribution of tidal forests

A

wet marshy areas, river deltas, swampy areas, along sea coasts
deltas of large rivers on eastern coast
pockets on the western coast in saline swamps of Sunderbans in WB
coastal areas of AP and Odisha

37
Q

characteristics of littoral forests

A
  1. mainly evergreen species of varying density and height
  2. tree trunks are supported by stilt roots which remain underwater during high tide but can be seen during low tide
  3. profuse growth with tangle of climbers, which is an adaptation for survival in soft and shifting mud
  4. breathing roots called pneumatophores
38
Q

define pneumatophores

A

breathing roots in mangroves
because of waterlogged conditions, the roots are deprived of oxygen during the high tides. some mangrove roots extend vertically above the ground. these vertical roots have pores which enable them to breathe when other roots remain submerged during high tide

39
Q

important trees in littoral

A

keora, amur, bhara, rhizapora, screw pines, canes, sundari, agar

40
Q

economical value of littoral

A

mangrove trees are used for fuel
sundari trees provide hard durable timber

41
Q

climate in mountain forests

A

temp: 12-13 C
rain: 100-300 cm
humidity: 56-65%

42
Q

relief in mountain forests

A

forests occur at an altitude of 1000 m to 4000 m

43
Q

distribution of mountain forests

A

himalayan zone
vindhyas, nilgiris, western ghats

44
Q

characteristics of mountain forests

A
  1. contain mixed species of broad leafed evergreen trees and conifers, scrubs, creepers, ferns
  2. at foothills of himalayas, deciduous trees are found
  3. at 1000-2000 m, moist temperate forests are found
  4. between 1500-1750 m, coniferous trees like chir pine is found
  5. at 2250-3000 m, spruce and blue pine is found
  6. at higher altitudes, alpine forests and alpine grass up to the snowline are found
  7. in peninsula, area is only 1500 m high and vegetation varies from tropical to temperate forests
45
Q

why, in the peninsular regions, mountain forests vary with tropical and temperate vegetation?

A

because of their closeness to tropics and height of only 1500 m above sea level.
these temperate forests are called sholas

46
Q

trees in mountain forests

A

cinchona, wattle, plum, magnolia, laurel

47
Q

correlation of forests with the environment

A
  1. moderators of climate- control humidity, temp, rain
  2. play dominant role in carbon cycle, controls pollution
  3. controls soil erosion, degradation, and floods
  4. water percolation help, and maintain underground water table
    5.decay of plant leaves provides humus to the soil
48
Q

effects of decline of forests

A
  1. decline in forest productivity
  2. moderate climate, regulating water supply, maintaining soil fertility , purifying air will be affected
  3. reduction in precipitation, leading to drought
  4. forests act as a sink for CO2. absence increases CO2 content in air, and global warming is caused
49
Q

conservation measures

A
  1. increasing area under forests
  2. afforestation around industrial units
  3. stopping indiscriminate felling of trees
  4. establishing corridors between different reserved forests
  5. using alternative sources of energy
  6. proper legislation and its implementation