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Geography > Theme 2 - 2.5 - Climate And Natural Vegetation > Flashcards

Theme 2 - 2.5 - Climate And Natural Vegetation Flashcards

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1
Q

What are the characteristics of equatorial climates?

A
  • Within 5* either side of the Equator
  • High and constant temperature (26-27*C)
  • Low seasonal ranges (1-2C) but high diurnal ranges (10-15C)
  • High rainfall (2000mm) all year round + Frequent thunderstorms -> Convectional rainfall
  • Some places have drier months when sun is at opposite Tropic
  • Days start off warm and then temperature and humidity build up
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2
Q

In what climate do rainforests grow?

A

Equatorial climate

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3
Q

Describe the global distribution of rainforests.

A
  • In the equatorial region -> And between the Tropics
  • Approx. half of the tropical rainforest is in the Amazon basin, but south east Asia and Central Africa also have a large amount
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4
Q

Name the main areas in which there is the equatorial climate.

A

• Drainage basin of the Amazon + Congo rivers
• South-east of Asia
(Basically, anywhere where there is rainforest)

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5
Q

What are the important things to look at when analysing a climate graph?

A
  • Mean temperature of the hottest month
  • Mean temperature of the coolest month
  • Annual temperature range
  • Amount and seasonal distribution of rain
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6
Q

What factors may affect the climate in a region?

A
  • Latitude
  • Pressure systems + Winds
  • Distance from sea
  • Altitude
  • Ocean currents
  • Aspect
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7
Q

Define ecosystem.

A

A biological environment consisting of all the living organisms within a particular area and the non-living matter that interacts with the organisms.

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8
Q

Define biome.

A

An ecosystem, working on a GLOBAL SCALE. For example, a rainforest.

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9
Q

Give some examples of an ecosystem.

A
  • Forest
  • Desert
  • Polar
  • Grassland
  • Pond
  • Sea
  • Woodland
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10
Q

What are the technical names for plants and animals?

A 
Plants = Flora
Animals = Fauna
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11
Q

What makes up the non-living environment in an ecosystem?

A
  • Water -> Rain or in the soil
  • Air -> Provide oxygen and CO2
  • Solar energy -> Primary energy source + Heat + Light
  • Rocks -> Provide nutrients
  • Soils
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12
Q

What does a food chain show?

A

Feeding connections in an ecosystem.

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13
Q

Define trophic level.

A

The position that an organism has in a food web. Producers are in the lowest trophic level, while alpha predators are in the top trophic level.

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14
Q

Define autotroph.

A

A.K.A. Producer
An organism that produces complex organic compounds from simple inorganic molecules using energy from the light or inorganic chemical reactions. Autotrophs are vegetation.

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15
Q

Define heterotroph.

A

A.K.A. Consumer

An organism that requires organic compounds in order for it to grow (i.e. It needs to eat other plants or animals)

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16
Q

Define alpha or apex predator.

A

The top predator in a food chain.

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17
Q

Define carnivore.

A

An animal that eats mainly or solely meat.

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18
Q

Define herbivore.

A

An animal that only eats vegetation.

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19
Q

Define omnivore.

A

An animal that eats both meat and vegetation.

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20
Q

Define decomposed.

A

An organism that breaks down dead or decaying matter. They are vital in the nitrogen cycle.

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21
Q

Describe the path of energy transfer in an ecosystem.

A

Non-living environment -> Producers -> Consumers (Herbivores) -> Consumers (Carnivores) -> Decomposers

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22
Q

How does latitude affect the climate in a palace?

A

Areas closer to the equator receive more heat than the poles because:

  1. Incoming solar radiation is more concentrated near the equator and dispersed near the poles
  2. Radiation hitting the poles has to pass through a greater amount of atmosphere and there is more chance of it being reflected back
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23
Q

How does altitude affect the climate of a place?

A
  • Temperature decreases with altitude
  • On average, it drops about 1*C for every 100m
  • This is because air thins and becomes less dense at high altitudes
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24
Q

How does distance from the sea affect the climate in a place?

A

Water takes longer to heat up than land, but it also cools more slowly. This means places near the sea are cooler during the day, but milder at night.

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25
Q

How does wind affect the climate in a place?

A
  • Some winds bring cold air from cold regions, such as Siberia. • Other winds bring warm air from warm regions, such as the mid Atlantic.
  • The wind also depends on pressure systems, which may affect rainfall too.
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26
Q

How does aspect affect the climate in a place?

A

In the northern hemisphere, south-facing places are warmer than north and east-facing places.

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27
Q

Describe the nutrient cycle in the rainforest.

A
  1. Nutrients are in the soil
  2. These are taken up by plants and are stored as biomass
  3. When the plants die or leaves fall, the material is know as litter
  4. The nutrients in the litter are decomposed and become part of the cycle
  5. The cycle repeats

Some additional nutrients are added to the soil by weathering of a parent rock, while some are lost due to leaching.

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28
Q

Describe the structure of the rainforest.

A
  • Emergents
  • Canopy
  • Understorey
  • Shrub layer
  • Humus layer
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29
Q

What is the emergent layer of the rainforest?

A

Tall trees that grow above the canopy in order to reach sunlight. They can reach over 50m.

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30
Q

What is the canopy layer of the rainforest?

A

The canopy contains about 50% of the rainforest wildlife. It is very thick.

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31
Q

What is the under storey layer of the rainforest?

A

Less dense vegetation is here due to the shade from the canopy and the plants do not benefit from rainfall on the forest floor.

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32
Q

What is the shrub layer of the rainforest?

A

Near the forest floor and is extremely dense. Many adaptations are needed to survive.

33
Q

What is the humus layer of the rainforest?

A

A layer of decaying biological matter on which the rainforest soils are dependent. If the humus is removed through deforestation, the soils degrade very quickly.

34
Q

Describe how convectional rainfall works.

A
  1. Morning - Sun causes evaporation to happen
  2. Early Afternoon - Water condenses as it rises and forms cumulonimbus clouds
  3. Afternoon - These clouds often give thunderstorms
35
Q

What are the three types of rainfall?

A
  1. Relief rainfall
  2. Frontal rainfall
  3. Convectional rainfall
36
Q

Describe how frontal rainfall works.

A
  1. Warm air is forced to rise over cold air

2. The moisture in the warm air condenses as it cools, which creates clouds and rain

37
Q

Describe how relief rainfall works.

A
  1. Air has been blown over the sea and up over an area of high land
  2. The air cools as it goes over and the moisture condenses to give rain
38
Q

Describe the Hadley cell.

A
  1. Radiation from the Sun heats the equator, causing air to heat up and rise
  2. The air cools and condenses to form thunderstorm clouds
  3. The air moves outwards and begins to cool
  4. The cooler air becomes more dense and sinks around the Tropics
  5. This creates high pressure at the Tropics and low pressure at the equator
  6. This results in trade winds toward the equator as air moves back
39
Q

Why is the rainforest soil infertile?

A

The heavy rain washes out much of the clay, salts and other nutrients.

40
Q

Give some rainforest plant and tree adaptations.

A

Plants:
• Shed leaves at different times of the year -> Constant supply of light
• Large, wide leaves -> Catch light and water
• Segmented leaves -> Excess water can drain away
• Drip tips -> Stops leaves being damaged and weighed down by water
Additional tree adaptations:
• Buttress roots -> Support trees and take in lots of nutrients
• Thick bark -> Limits evaporation

41
Q

Name some plants which are adapted to living in the rainforest.

A
  • Lianas
  • Strangler fig
  • Fan palm
  • Trees
42
Q

How are lianas adapted to living in the rainforest?

A
  • Thorns and spikes -> Attach liana to tree

* Sucke roots -> Attach liana to tree

43
Q

How are fan-palms adapted to living in the rainforest?

A
  • Large, fan-shaped leaves -> Good for catching sun and water
  • Segmented leaves -> Excess water can drain away
44
Q

Name some animals which are adapted to living in the rainforest.

A
  • Primates

* Birds

45
Q

How are primates adapted to living in the rainforest?

A
  • Long arms -> Can swing through trees
  • Some are nocturnal -> Large eyes -> Let light in
  • Long fingers -> Scooping out insects
46
Q

How are birds adapted to living in the rainforest?

A

• Long beaks -> Help reach food

47
Q

What causes the rainforest/equatorial climate to be as it is?

A
  • Hot -> Near the equator, where radiation is strong
  • Wet -> Hadley Cell causes convectional rainfall
  • Thunderstorms -> Convectional rainfall produces stormy cumulonimbus clouds
  • Unchanging temperature, etc. -> Sun always directly overhead
  • Light winds -> Trade winds towards equator in Hadley Cell
48
Q

What does ITCZ stand for?

A

Inter-tropical Convergence Zone

49
Q

What is the ITCZ?

A

A zone of convergence near the equator where the north and south trade winds converge. It moves throughout the year. It is a low pressure belt.

50
Q

How does the ITCZ move and why?

A

It moves with the moving thermal equator. When the Sun moves relative to the Earth (north and south), the trade winds move too and converge more north or more south.

51
Q

What are the effects of the ITCZ?

A

When the ITCZ moves over an area, the north and south trade winds converge over that place. When the two air masses (Tropical Continental and Tropical Maritime) converge, the moist air is forced upwards and this results in heavy rainfall and thunderstorms.

52
Q

From which direction does Tropical Maritime air reach the equator in Africa?

A

South-west (they are the south trade winds)

53
Q

From which direction does Tropical Continental air reach the equator in Africa?

A

North-east (they are the north trade winds)

54
Q

What does STHP stand for?

A

Sub-Tropical High Pressure

55
Q

What is STHP?

A

The point at which air descends in the Hadley Cell, resulting in high pressure.

56
Q

What are some causes of rainforest deforestation?

A
  • Farming -> Slash and burn + Subsistence farming + Cattle ranching
  • Transport
  • Resources -> Mining + Timber + Hydro-electricity
  • Settlement
57
Q

What are some effects of rainforest deforestation?

A
  • Reduced biodiversity -> Less medicine and food
  • Climate change -> Less CO2 taken in + Burning releases CO2
  • Lower oxygen supply
  • Disruption to the circulation and storage of nutrients
  • Surface erosion + compaction of soils
  • Sandification -> Erosion of fine particles
  • Increased flooding and sediment content of rivers
  • Displacement of native tribes -> Amerindians
58
Q

How can the rainforest be protected against deforestation?

A
  • Agro-forestry -> Growing trees and crops simultaneously
  • Selective logging -> Felling only the tallest trees
  • Education
  • Afforestation -> Replacing cut-down trees
  • Forest reserves -> Ateas protected from exploitation
  • Monitoring
  • Reducing use of heavy machinery
  • Consumer labelling -> People only buy wood based products from a sustainable source
  • Ecotourism
  • Recycling
  • Global initiatives
59
Q

Give some reasons why rainforests are important.

A
  • Biodiversity
  • Photosynthesis -> Reduce CO2 and produce O2
  • Flood control
  • Control of soil erosion
  • Source of nutrients to humus layer
  • Medical remedies
  • Cash crops and agricultural products -> E.g. Coffee
  • Ecotourism
  • Home to indigenous tribes
60
Q

Describe the global distribution of deserts.

A
  • Near the Tropics -> Between 15 and 30* north and south of the equator
  • Usually north or south of tropical rainforests, in areas of high pressure
  • In areas of rain shadow
  • Far from the sea
  • Where there are cold offshore currents
  • Most deserts are in Africa and Western Asia
61
Q

What does HOMR stand for?

A

High pressure
Ocean currents
Mid-continentality
Rain shadow effect (and prevailing winds)

62
Q

What characterises a hot desert climate?

A
  • High daytime temperatures (30-40*C)
  • Very cold at night (below 0*C)
  • Large temperature difference between day and night
  • Low and unreliable rainfall (under 250mm)
  • Unable to support appreciable plant life
63
Q

Explain why deserts are dry.

A

The air that descends over them is dry because the moisture has fallen as rain over the Equator and the air does not travel over the sea, but over land, meaning no additional moisture is picked up. Also, it dries as it descends.

64
Q

Explain why desert climates are hot in the day, but cold at night.

A

Lack of moisture means there are very few clouds, so the desert is exposed to a lot of radiation. However, at night this means a lot of radiation can escape at night, making it cold.

65
Q

What is HOMR used to remember?

A

The factors that influence the global distribution of hot deserts.

66
Q

How does the H of HOMR influence the distribution of deserts?

A

High-pressure
• When the air descends at about 30* north and south of the equator, it is dry (and it is warmed as it descends even more as it descends).
• This low humidity and heat means there are no clouds, meaning areas near the Tropics are likely to be deserts.

67
Q

How does the O of HOMR influence the distribution of deserts?

A

Ocean currents
• Around the Tropics, there are cold ocean currents travelling south from Antarctica
• The makes the air about the ocean cooler also
• Cold air holds less moisture than warm air
• Cold air that blows onshore contains little water vapour

68
Q

How does the M of HOMR influence the distribution of deserts?

A

Mid Continentality
• Water that is evaporated from the ocean precipitates on coastal areas
• By the time it reaches mid-continent, the air is usually very dry, meaning that deserts are common there

69
Q

How does the R of HOMR influence the distribution of deserts?

A

Rain shadow effect
• Mountains stop trade winds and force the air to be pushed over them
• As the air rises, it cools and condenses to form clouds and heavy rain
• Once the air has passed over the mountains, it is dry because all the moisture has been precipitated out

This effect can be seen with the Atacama desert, which is west of the Andes.

70
Q

Give some examples of plants found in desert climates.

A
  • Cactus
  • Joshua tree
  • Brittle bush
71
Q

Give some examples of animals found in desert climates.

A
  • Hoover mammals -> Camel

* Insects and reptiles

72
Q

How is a camel adapted to the desert climate?

A
  • Large, flat feet to spread weight
  • Thick fur on top of body -> Shade
  • Thin fur elsewhere to allow heat loss
  • Large SA:V ratio for heat loss
  • Slit-like nostrils and two rows of eyelashes to keep sand out
  • Lose little water through urination
  • Humps -> Store fat
  • Leathery patches on knees -> Kneeling down
  • Ability to drink over 50 gallons of water -> Allows long distance movement without constant water supply
73
Q

How is a cactus adapted to the hot desert climate?

A
  • Long taproots to reach groundwater
  • Stems that can store water
  • Widespread root system
  • Spines instead of leaves -> Protection + Reduced water loss
  • Some species flower at night -> Ensures pollination by attracting insects active during cooler times
  • Varied germination and dormancy times -> Allows for reproduction in a small favourable climatic window of time
74
Q

What is desertification?

A

The transformation of arable or habitable land to desert, as by a change in climate or destructive land use.

75
Q

What is land degradation?

A

Generally signifies the temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of the land as a result of biophysical processes.

76
Q

What are some causes of desertification?

A
  • Overgrazing
  • Overcultivation
  • Deforestation -> Trees protect land
  • Poorly drained irrigation systems -> Turn croplands salty
  • Increasing population -> Pressure on land
  • Removal of vegetation cover
  • Toyotarisation -> Driving 4x4 vehicles on the land
  • Climate change -> Decrease in rainfall
77
Q

What are the effects of desertification?

A
  • Dust storms
  • Drought and food shortages
  • Reduced crop yields
  • Conflict (over land)
  • Traditional way of life may have to change
78
Q

What are some responses to desertification?

A
  • Crop rotation + Fallow period -> Growing different crops each year and allowing periods of rest
  • Shelter belts -> Areas of forest or hedge left untouched to protect farmland from erosion
  • Reforestation and afforestation
  • Irrigation -> Watering dry land
  • Grazing quotas -> Limiting grazing
  • Population control
  • GM crops
  • Stone lines to trap moisture
  • Turning to other sources of income rather than agriculture
79
Q

What are some threats to deserts (i.e. destroying deserts)?

A
  • Extraction of minerals
  • Hunting
  • Tourists damaging dunes
  • Overgrazing
  • Fertiliser and pesticide use
  • Overcultivation
  • Deforestation
  • Toyotarisation -> Driving 4x4 over the desert
  • HYV and GM crops -> Encouraged overcultivation

Geography (20 decks)

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