Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity Chapter 7 Connections between

Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity Chapter 7

Connections between Wind, Climate, and Biomes § Wind • Indirect form of solar energy • Circulates 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Heat Moisture Plant nutrients Soil particles (phosphates) Long-lived air pollutants

What Factors Influence Climate? Concept An area's climate is determined mostly by 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. solar radiation earth’s rotation global patterns of air and water movement gases in the atmosphere earth’s surface features.

Different Climates § Weather – short lived and localized § Climate – long and broad ranging § Air circulation in lower atmosphere due to 1. Uneven heating of the earth’s surface by the sun (equator receives more) 2. Rotation of the earth on its axis (create prevailing winds due to heat rising) 3. Properties of air, water, and land (evaporation transfers heat from water to atmosphere)

Global Air Circulation Prevailing winds can direct ocean currents

The Earth Has Many Different Climates § Currents • Prevailing winds • Earth’s rotation • Redistribution of heat from the sun § Link between air circulation, ocean currents, and biomes

Greenhouse Gases Warm the Lower Atmosphere § Greenhouse gases (heat lower atmosphere) • • H 2 O CO 2 CH 4 N 2 O water vapor carbon dioxide methane nitrous oxide § Greenhouse effect (natural warming) § Human-enhanced global warming (burning fossil fuels, agriculture, & clearing forests)

The Earth’s Surface Features Affect Local Climates § Heat absorption by land water § Effect of • Mountains • Rain shadow effect Sierra Nevada Mountains Mojave Desert • Cities create microclimates (bricks, asphalt, tall buildings)

How Does Climate Affect the Nature and Locations of Biomes? § Differences in average annual precipitation and temperature lead to the formation of • • • Tropical Temperate Cold deserts Grasslands Forests this variety creates biodiversity and largely determine their locations.

Climate Affects Where Organisms Can Live § Major biomes § Latitude and elevation § Annual precipitation § Temperature

Staying Alive in the Desert § Plant adaptations 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Drop leaves Store water in fleshy (cactus) areas Needles protect against being eaten Transpiration occurs at night Shallow, spread out roots for fast water absorption Waxy layer (cuticle) § Animal strategies and adaptations 1. Small 2. Burrow 3. Nocturnal 4. Scales seal in water 5. Little urination

Three Major Types of Deserts § Tropical deserts § Temperate deserts § Cold deserts § Fragile ecosystem • • Slow plant growth Low species diversity Slow nutrient recycling Lack of water

Three Major Types of Grasslands § Tropical Savanna • Grazing / browsing animals § Temperate • Tall-grass prairies • Short-grass prairies § Arctic/Alpine tundra • fragile biome • Small/short plants • Permafrost 1. 2. 3. 4. Seasonal droughts Frequent fires limit trees Herbivores Frozen soil

Temperate Shrubland: Nice Climate, Risky Place to Live § Chaparral § Near the sea: nice climate § Prone to fires in the dry season FOREST FIRES IN CALIFORNIA

There Are Three Major Types of Forests (2) § Tropical rain forests • • • NPP Temperature and moisture Stratification of specialized plant and animal niches Little wind: significance Rapid recycling of scarce soil nutrients Impact of human activities § Temperate deciduous forests • • Temperature and moisture Broad-leaf trees Slow rate of decomposition: significance Impact of human activities Temperate rain forest § Evergreen coniferous forests: boreal / taigas • Temperature and moisture • Few species of cone: bearing trees • Slow decomposition: significance

Mountains Play Important Ecological Roles § Majority of the world’s forests § Habitats for endemic species (unique to that area) § Help regulate the earth’s climate (reflecting heat off snow tops) § Can affect sea levels – glacial ice § Major storehouses of water (role in hydrologic cycle)

Texas is Unique

Natural Capital Degradation --impact by humans