The Living World Flashcards
The Living World
What 2 factors affect the climate of a biome?
- Latitudes - affects the incoming solar radiation
- Atomspheric Circulation - affects how dry/wet a place is.
The Living World
Describe 3 Plant adaptations in the rain forest?
- Drip tip + waxy leaves - allow excess water/ rainfall to slide off
- Buttress roots - thick to stabalise the tree so it doesnt topple over. Roots ontop of the ground as thats where most of the nutrients is so the roots spread on the forest flour rather than going deep into the soil and ground
- Lianas - Wind up trees to reach the canopy for light for photosynthesis. Hollow to allow water to pass the through provideing water for the tree they have wound up.
The Living World
Describe 3 animal adaptations in the rain forest?
- Keel-billed Toucan - Large beak to break open brazil nuts
- Chameleon - Camoflage
- Poison arrow frog - Bright clours to warn off predators
The Living World
Describe 4 main reasons for deforestation in the tropical rainforests?
- Commercial Logging - Timber companies interested in hardwoods such as Mahogany and Teak; sell them onto other countries for furniture.
- Mieral Extraction - In the Amazon it is mainly due to gold. In 1999 10,000 hectares of the forest were used for gold mining now its over 50,000
- Commmercial Farming: Cattle -Rearing cattle has been said to account for 80% of the tropical rainforest destruction in Brazil.
- Commercial farming: crops - Land cleared to make way for vast plantations for banna, palm oils, pineapples, tea and coffee.
The Living World
What are the impacts of deforestation in tropical rainforests ( Global)?
- When tress are cut down and burnt they release stored up carbon dioxide
- Less trees means less absorbtion of carbon dioxide for the atmosphere
- loss of habitats
Key Fact: The Amazon accounts for 25% of all carbon removed from the air
The Living World
cWhat are the impacts of deforestation on the tropical rainforests (Locally)?
- Scpecies and habitat loss sould lead to extinction
- Less tress to intercept the rain cuases leaching
- No transpiration
- Mining watse pollutes water causing secondray impacts on fish
- Indigenous tribes loe their way of life and habitats
The Living World
How can rainforests be managed sustainably on an international level?
Agreements on hardwoods. All timber internationally must have a stamp to prove it has been grown sustainably.
- Illegal to buy it without stamp
The Living World
How can selective logging help manage the rainforests more sustainably?
Selective logging is the cutting down of small amounts of trees, then moving in sequence, allowing patches to grow back. This is done instead of cutting down large areas whcih can lead to land being infertile.
The Living World
How can debt reduction help to manage the rainforests more sustainably?
Debt reduction is when another country offers to write off a debt. In return the country that was in debt, protects an are a of the rainforests
The Living World
How can education and conservation help to maintain rainforests sustainably?
- You can educate the locals on the importance of trees
- buy land to conserve and protect it
The Living World
What is agroforestry?
- cut down some trees
- grow crops inbetween the the remaining trees
The Living World
Describe the different zones of biosphere reserves?
- Core - nothing allowed excepts scientists and indigenous tribes
- Buffer - Science, indigenous tribes, family and tourism
- Transition - settlements sustainable farming and agroforestry
The Living World
What is ecotourism and an example of it?
Morgan’s Rock
14 hour flight so lots of carbon dioxide released
- heating and power produced by solar panels
- lighting is sympathetic to local wildlife
- 70% of the food eaten is grown their reducin food miles
- 100,000 trees have been planted as an exercise for tourists
