Topic 7 - People And The Biosphere Flashcards
What 7 biomes are there?
Tropical forest
Temperate forest
Boreal forest
Tropical grassland
Temperate grassland
Desert
Tundra
What is a biome?
Large scale, global ecosystems with distinctive vegetation.
What is an ecosystem?
It includes all the living and non-living things in an area.
What is the climate?
The climate in an area determines what type of biome forms.
So different parts of the world have different biomes because they have different climates.
What is the climate of a tropical forest?
Same all year round, no definite seasons.
Hot, 20-28°C, it’s near the equator so the sun is overhead all year round.
12 hours of day light each day all year round.
Rainfall is high, 2,000mm per year.
How does the Tropical Rainforests climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - most trees are evergreen so they grow quickly and are adapted to take in maximum light.
Animals - dense vegetation give lots of food and different habitats, meaning a lot of different wildlife.
Soil - fallen leaves decompose quickly for a constant supply of nutrients in the soil, they’re are recycled.
What climate does a temperate forest have?
4 distinct seasons, warm summers, cold winters.
High rainfall of 1,500mm per year.
Days are shorter in winter and longer in summer, hours of sunlight vary throughout the year.
How does the Temperate Forest climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - the mild, wet climate gives shrubs and broad-leaved trees and undergrowth (ferns), less than tropical rainforest more than boreal forest.
Animals - mammals (foxes), birds (woodpecker), insects (moths).
Soil - thick and nutrient rich due to leaves falling and decomposing in autumn.
What climate does a boreal forest have?
Cold, dry climate
Short summers (average temp is about 10°C ) with long winters (average temp is below -20°C)
Rainfall is low with 500mm per year.
Clear skies and lots of sunlight during summer but little or non during winter.
How does the Boreal Forest climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - trees are evergreen, coniferous trees such as pine and fir are common with low-growing mosses and lichen.
Animals - low amount of species because of less food and need to be adapted to the cold conditions, such as black bears, eagles.
Soil - needles from trees decompose slowly giving a thin, nutrient-poor, acidic soil. Some is frozen for most of the year.
What climate does the Desert have?
Low Rainfall, less than 250mm a year.
Temperatures range from above 45°C in the day, to below 0°C at night.
More daylight during the summer and the winter per, due to little cloud coverage.
How does the Desert climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - growth is sparse, cacti.
Animals - only those adapted can survive the desert do few species, lizards, scorpions and snakes.
Soil - little leaf litter as there’s sparse vegetation, soils are thin and nutrient-poor due to a slow decompose of organic matter.
What is the climate in the Tundra?
Cold, dry climate
5-10°C in summer, lower than -30°C in the winter.
Rainfall is low at 250mm per year.
Found at high latitudes, more cloud cover in summer but continuous daylight and no daylight in the winter.
How does the Tundra climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - mostly mosses, grasses a d low shrubs as it’s hard for plants to grow, very cold.
Animals - lack of vegetation means a small amount of species such as artic hares and foxes.
Soil - the sparse vegetation produces little leaf litter and in cold, dry climate decomposes slowly, so soil is thin and nutrient-poor. A layer of permafrost below the soil surface can stop water from draining away.
What is the climate of the Tropical grasslands?
Low rainfall (800-900mm per year).
Distinct wet and dry seasons.
High of 35°C and a low of 15°C, about.
Found at equator so get rainfall all year round.
What climate does the temperate grasslands have?
Hot summers (up to 40°C) and cold winter (down to -40°C). Low rainfall (250-500mm per year). Far from equator so sunlight varies throughout the year.
How does the Tropical Grassland climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - Scattered acacia trees, with grass, shrubs and small plants.
Animals - lots of insects and larger animals like lions and giraffes.
Soil - Grass dies back during the dry season forming a thin, nutrient-rich soil, but nutrients are washed out of the soil during the wet season.
How does the Temperate Grasslands climate affect plants, animals and soil?
Plants - Dominated by grasses and small plants, and have very few trees.
Animals - fewer than tropical grasslands with mammals and rodents.
Soil - high temperatures mean that decomposition is fast, so soils are relatively thick and nutrient-rich.
How does altitude affect biome distribution?
Higher the altitude the colder so there’s less plants and limits the number of animals.
Not much organic matter is there so soil is thin.
How does rock type affect biome distribution?
Some are easily weathered to form soils and the minerals present vary affecting how nutrient-rich it is.
Some are permeable and some are impermeable.
How does soil type affect biome distribution?
More nutrients = more plants = more animals
Acidity and drainage of soils also varies affecting the plants that can grow
Example: peat soils are very acidic so only acid resistant plants can grow such as conifers, clay soils are sticky, so water can’t flow through very easily.
How does soil stay healthy, the cycle?
What is the water cycle?
What does the graph of Malthus’s theory look like?
Point of catastrophe is when the population starts to decrease after this, until it is low enough that there are enough resources to support it again.
