Terrestrial Environment Flashcards
removal of moisture
desiccation
what resulted in the need to remain erect against gravitational force in terrestrial environments
structural materials
- skeleton (animals)
- cellulose (plants)
percent of light reflected by top of canopy (forest)
10%
percent of light absorbed by forest
- 79%
- 7%
- 2%
percent of light that reach the ground in forest
2%
percent of light reflected by top of canopy (meadow)
20%
percent of light absorbed by the meadow
- 5%
- 36%
- 34%
percent of light that reach the ground in meadow
5%
the amount of light reaching the ground in teresstrial vegetation varies with what
season
in forests, how much percent of light striking the canopy reaches the ground
1-5%
enables plants in the forest floor to endure shaded conditions
sunflecks
- natural product formed and synthesized by the weathering of rocks and the action of living organisms
- collection of natural bodies of earth
- composed of mineral and organic matter that is capable of supporting plant growth
soil
soil is a natural product of what?
- unconsolidated mineral
- organic matter
what is the soil
- medium for plant growth
- factor controlling fate of water in land
- nature’s recycling system
- habitat to a diversity of animal life
soil formation begins with what?
weathering of rock and minerals
what breaks down rock in mechanical weathering
- water
- wind
- temperature
- plants
what breaks down rock in chemical weathering
- activity of soil organisms (acid they produce)
- rainwater
what wearaway the rock’s surface
wind-borne particles
what split the rock open
- water between crevices freezing and expanding
- growing roots
Five factors that forms soil
- parent material
- climate
- biotic factors
- topography
- time
provides the substrate from which soil develops
parent material
shapes soil development through temperature, precipitation, and its influence of vegetation and animal life
climate
- vegetation, animals, bacteria, and fungi
- add organic matter and mix it with mineral matter
biotic factors
influences the amount of water entering the soil and the rates of erosion
topography
can affect how climate influences the weathering process
contour of land
- crucial element in soil formation
- forming well-developed soils may require 2000 to 20,000 years
time
years required to create well-developed soils
approx. 2000 - 20,000 years
physical properties of soil
- color
- texture
- depth
has little direct influence on soil function
soil color
proportion of different-sized soil particles
soil texture
soil particles
- sand
- silt
- clay
what determines soil texture
- parent material
- soil-forming process
varies across landscape, depending on slope, weatherin, parent materials, and vegetation
soil depth
soil develop in layers called __
horizons
Four horizons in soil
O - organic layer
A/E - topsoil
B - subsoil
C - unconsolidated material
accumulation of organic matter
A/E horizon
mineral materials accumlate
B horizon
unconsolidated material underlying the subsoil and extending downward to the bedrock
C horizon
What are the four layers of the rainforest
- emergent layer
- canopy layer
- understory
- forest floor
- top layer of the rainforest
- trees as tall as 60 meters (200 feet) dominate the skyline
emergent layer
- deep layer of vegetation roughly six meters (20 feet) thick
- its dense network of leaves and branches forms a roof over the two remaining layers.
- blocks winds, rainfall, and sunlight, creating a humid, still, and dark environment below
canopy layer
- several meters below the canopy,
- even darker, stiller, and more humid environment
understory layer
- darkest of all rainforest layers, making it extremely difficult for plants to grow
- Leaves that fall here forest floor decay quickly
- Decomposers, such as termites, slugs, scorpions, worms, and fungi, thrive
forest floor
quantifies the amount of leaf material in a canopy
Leaf area index (LAI)
dark, organic material that forms in soil when plant and animal matter decays
Humus
water remaining in a soil after it has been thoroughly saturated and allowed to drain freely, usually for one to two days
Field capacity
held in pores that are small enough to hold water against gravity, but not so tightly that roots cannot absorb it
Capillary water
point when there is no water available to the plant
Wilting point
- amount of water that a soil can store that is available for use by plants
- water held between field capacity and the wilting point
Available water capacity
Five process of soil formation
- Laterization
- Calcification
- Salinization
- Podzolization
- Gleization
- pedogenic process (soil formation) found in tropical and subtropical environments (humid environment)
- involves chemical and physicochemical changes and conversion of primary rock-forming minerals into compounds rich in lattice clay minerals and laterite constituents
Laterization
What is formed in laterization
compounds rich in lattice clay minerals and laterite constituents
- evaporation or uptake of plants exceed precipitation
- minerals are left behind
- accumulation and precipitation of calcium carbonate (CaCO₃) in soil
Calcification
- same with calcification but on drier climates
- excessive accumulation of water-soluble salts
Salinization
- occurs in cold, moist climates
- conifer vegetation dominate
- dominant soil forming process, with organic acids leaching iron (Fe) and Al from surficial mineral soil layers (eluviation) and depositing them as organic Fe and Al complexes in lower mineral soil layers (illuviation)
Podzolization
- high rainfall
- accumulation in upper area
- formation of gley (sticky clay soil)
- associated with poor drainage
Gleization
