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Making Geographical Decisions > Taiga forests > Flashcards

Taiga forests Flashcards

1
Q

Where is the taiga located?

A

High latitudes (between 50°-70°)
Mostly in Northern hemispheres
Covers a huge area of the Earth

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2
Q

What are the characteristics of the Taiga?

A
  • Very cold, long winters
  • Mild, short summers with a short growing season
  • Dominated by coniferous trees
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3
Q

What countries are Taiga forests located in?

A

Canada
Central Russia
Central Sweden

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4
Q

What is the climate like?

A
  • Highly seasonal
  • It affects other components of the ecosystem, such as nutrient recycling and plant and animal behaviour
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5
Q

What is winter like in the Taiga?

A
  • Temperatures are consistently below freezing for 8-9 months of the year
  • Low temperatures can range from -20°c to -40°c
  • Very dry, with only 5-15mm of precipitation monthly, the majority of which is snow
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6
Q

What is summer like in the Taiga?

A
  • Short but mild/warm, temperatures can rise to 20°c
  • Much more precipitation, which helps with plant growth
  • Soils can be boggy and waterlogged due to melting snow
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7
Q

What is productivity like in the Taiga?

A

(How much new plant and animal life there is in a given time)
- Very low productivity
- This is due to low temperatures, frozen ground and dry weather, which limits plant growth

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8
Q

What is biodiversity like in the Taiga?

A
  • Low biodiversity
  • Low productivity leads to a reduced food supply in winter, meaning only a few animals are able to survive
  • Only highly adapted plants can survive (conifers, mosses, lichens), which only certain herbivores eat, which then affects the amount of carnivores in the ecosystem as their food supply is small
  • Many animals migrate in winter to warmer areas, removing chains of the food web that other animals depend on
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9
Q

What are plant (specifically Conifer) adaptations?

A
  • Cone shaped, which allows snow to slide off rather than collect and weigh down trees
  • Conifer branches are flexible, allowing them to bend downwards when snow becomes too heavy
  • Leaves are needle shaped, which reduces the water loss by reducing the surface area. They are also protected by a waxy outer coating, which retains water and reduces freezing
  • Seeds are stored in cones, protecting them from the weather
  • Roots are wide but shallow, stopping them from reaching the frozen subsoil whilst still supporting the tree
  • Evergreen trees can photosynthesis all year round
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10
Q

In what 3 ways have animals adapted?

A

Migration
Hibernation
Physical features

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11
Q

How have animals adapted through migration?

A
  • Many birds live in the Taiga during summer, feeding on insects and berries, and breeding
  • The majority of these species have adapted to migrate South in winter to avoid harsh temperatures
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12
Q

How have animals adapted through hibernation?

A
  • Many animals such as bears, chipmunks and squirrels sleep through the whole winter
  • Their breathing, heart rate and metabolism slows down, which conserves energy supplies until they wake up in Spring
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13
Q

What physical features have animals in the Taiga adapted?

A
  • Thick, oily fur to retain heat
  • Large feet to be stable on icy ground
  • Winter coats that are thicker and may be white for camouflage
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14
Q

What are stores and transfers like in the Taiga?

A
  • Small biomass store due to limited vegetation, growth and biodiversity
  • Large fallout due to needles falling off trees, adding nutrients to the litter store
  • Large litter store as decay is very slow
  • Soil is nutrient deprived as decay is limited
  • Plant uptake is low as there is low biodiversity and plants only really grow in late Spring
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15
Q

What are Nutrition additions and removals like?

A

ADDITIONS:
- Low precipitation
- Slow chemical weathering
REMOVALS:
- Runoff only washes away litter in Spring, when there is high meltwater
- Leaching is limited as there is little precipitation

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16
Q

What are the direct threats to the Taiga?

A

Logging
Pulp and paper production

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17
Q

What is the taiga deforested for, and what are the uses of the wood harvested?

A
  • Softwood and paper production
    USES:
    Doors, beams, frames
    Furniture
    Panels for flooring
    Fences
    Boats
    Paper
18
Q

What happens in the pulp-and-paper process?

A
  • Softwood is turned into pulp then spread thinly to make paper
19
Q

What are the indirect threats to the Taiga?

A
  • Exploitation of mineral resources
  • Extraction of fossil fuels
  • Development of hydroelectric power
20
Q

Why does mining for mineral resources take place in the Taiga and why is it harmful?

A
  • Taiga contains mineral deposits such as iron, silver, gold and diamond
  • Many abandoned mines are close to lakes and rivers, which means harmful chemicals are washed into river ecosystems
  • Large areas of forest must be cleared to build the mines, and also the roads that lead to them
21
Q

What are Tar sands and how is oil extracted from them?

A
  • Natural deposits of oil mixed with sediments and water
  • The oil can be extracted through Open-Cast mining, where the surface of an area is cleaned then mined, rather than mining underground
22
Q

Why is open-cast mining bad for the Taiga?

A
  • Produces toxic waste
  • Uses huge amounts of water
  • Requires the clearing of large areas of forest
23
Q

Why is hydroelectric power generated in the Taiga and how does it impact it?

A
  • Although the Taiga has low precipitation, they still have a lot of water, especially during Spring
  • Huge areas of land need to be flooded to create the reservoirs behind dams
24
Q

What environmental conditions affect the Taiga?

A
  • Acid Rain
  • Pests and diseases
  • Forest fires
25
Q

How does acid rain affect the Taiga?

A
  • Weakens trees, damages needles and can react with soils to form harmful compounds
  • It can affect biotic components that rely on the now dead or damaged trees, and increase acid-tolerant plants, which can disrupt the food web
26
Q

How is acid rain formed?

A
  • Forms when chemicals such as sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxides are released from burning fossil fuels
  • These chemicals then react with water in rain clouds to form acidic compounds
27
Q

How do pests and diseases affect biodiversity?

A
  • Reduce biodiversity by killing large amounts of trees, which reduces food supplies for animals that depend on these trees and their seeds
  • As the Taiga already has a low biodiversity, it has a low tolerance for pests and diseases
28
Q

How do forest fires affect the Taiga?

A
  • A natural process in Taiga forests, and the biome is adapted to cope with them
  • However climate change is altering the pattern of wildfires, specifically their range, intensity and time between fires
29
Q

How do forest fires affect Taiga biodiversity?

A
  • Forest may not have time to regenerate, meaning less tolerant species of trees may die out, which can cut off a food supply for many animals
  • Fire-tolerant vegetation may become more dominant, especially shrubs, so only animals that eat these shrubs will be able to survive
30
Q

What are some areas of the Taiga classed as, and what does this do?

A
  • Classed as Areas of Wilderness
  • This means they are untouched by humans, and remain unaffected by human activity
31
Q

What are two ways of protecting the Taiga?

A

Wilderness Areas and National Parks
Sustainable Forestry

32
Q

What can restrictions in wilderness areas and national parks include?

A
  • Bans on motorised transport or heavy vehicles
  • Restrictions on recreational activities (such as camping)
  • Complete bans on logging, mining, resource extraction and road building
33
Q

What is sustainable forestry?

A
  • Where forestry activities such as logging are carried out with low environmental impact
34
Q

What are some examples of sustainable forestry practices?

A
  • Limits on the amount of trees allowed to be cut down
  • Selective logging rather than clear cutting
  • Tree replanting to balance deforestation
  • Monitoring of forestry businesses and practices
35
Q

What is an example of a Sustainable Forestry practice? (one)

A
  • Forest Certification scheme
  • This is where businesses can be certified as a sustainable forestry business if they prove their practices are environmentally, economically and socially beneficial
36
Q

What challenges are protection efforts presented with?

A
  • Taiga forests are massive areas to monitor, which requires huge amounts of time, money and resources.
  • There can be conflicts between land-owners and local businesses, and governments
  • Replanting is slow
  • Money and resources are needed for all protection and conservation efforts
37
Q

Who believes in protection of the Taiga?

A

Indigenous people
Environmental groups
Tourists
Climate scientists

38
Q

Who believes in exploitation of the Taiga?

A

Oil companies
Logging companies
HEP companies
Mining companies

39
Q

Why do indigenous people want the Taiga to be protected?

A
  • Many rely on the goods and services of the land to live (e.g hunting, gathering, firewood)
  • In indigenous culture, the forest is often viewed spiritually, so degradation of the forest goes against their spiritual values, heritage and tradition
40
Q

Why do Environmental groups want to protect the Taiga?

A
  • Groups like WWF and Greenpeace want to protect areas from exploitation due to endangered species and the vulnerable ecosystem
  • Exploitation also contributes to fossil fuel emissions and climate change
41
Q

Why do tourists want to protect the Taiga?

A
  • Some want to visit the area for recreational activities like camping, birdwatching and hiking, so they want the area to be protected so they can enjoy the natural environment
  • However, this means they don’t want the forests to be restricted protected areas
42
Q

Why do climate scientists want to protect the Taiga?

A
  • They understand the taiga’s importance to the environment, especially as a carbon sink and store

Making Geographical Decisions (4 decks)

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