Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity Chapter 7 Core Case
Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity Chapter 7
Core Case Study: Connections between Wind, Climate, and Biomes § Wind • Indirect form of solar energy § Circulates • • • Heat Moisture Plant nutrients Soil particles Long-lived air pollutants
Dust Blown from West Africa to the Amazonian Rain Forests
7 -1 What Factors Influence Climate? § Concept 7 -1 An area's climate is determined mostly by solar radiation, the earth’s rotation, global patterns of air and water movement, gases in the atmosphere, and the earth’s surface features.
The Earth Has Many Different Climates (1) § Weather § Climate § Air circulation in lower atmosphere due to • Uneven heating of the earth’s surface by the sun • Rotation of the earth on its axis • Properties of air, water, and land
The Earth Has Many Different Climates (2) § Currents • Prevailing winds • Earth’s rotation • Redistribution of heat from the sun § Link between air circulation, ocean currents, and biomes
Natural Capital: Generalized Map of the Earth’s Current Climate Zones
Global Air Circulation
Cold deserts Air cools and descends at lower latitudes. Westerlies Forests 30°N Northeast trades Hot deserts Warm air rises and moves toward the poles. Air cools and descends at lower latitudes. 60°N Forests Southeast trades Equator 0° Hot deserts Westerlies Forests Cold deserts 60°S 30°S Solar energy The highest solar energy input is at the equator. Fig. 7 -3, p. 142
Energy Transfer by Convection in the Atmosphere
LOW PRESSURE Cool, dry air HIGH PRESSURE Heat released radiates to space Condensation and precipitation Falls, is compressed, warms Rises, expands, cools Hot, wet air Warm, dry air Flows toward low pressure, picks up moisture and heat HIGH PRESSURE Moist surface warmed by sun LOW PRESSURE Fig. 7 -4, p. 143
Connected Deep and Shallow Ocean Currents
Warm, less salty, shallow current Cold, salty, deep current Fig. 7 -5, p. 143
Global Air Circulation, Ocean Currents, and Biomes
Moist air rises, cools, and releases moisture as rain Polar cap Arctic tundra Evergreen 60° coniferous forest Temperate deciduous forest and grassland Desert 30° Tropical deciduous forest Equator 0° Tropical rain forest Tropical deciduous forest 30° 60° Desert Temperate deciduous forest and grassland Polar cap Fig. 7 -6, p. 144
Greenhouse Gases Warm the Lower Atmosphere § Greenhouse gases • • H 2 O CO 2 CH 4 N 2 O § Greenhouse effect § Human-enhanced global warming
Flow of Energy to and from the Earth
The Earth’s Surface Features Affect Local Climates § Heat absorption by land water § Effect of • Mountains • Rain shadow effect • Cities • Microclimates
Rain Shadow Effect
Prevailing winds pick up moisture from an ocean. On the windward side of a mountain range, air rises, cools, and releases moisture. On the leeward side of the mountain range, air descends, warms, and releases little moisture. Fig. 7 -7, p. 145
7 -2 How Does Climate Affect the Nature and Locations of Biomes? § Concept 7 -2 Differences in average annual precipitation and temperature lead to the formation of tropical, temperate, and cold deserts, grasslands, and forests, and largely determine their locations.
Climate Affects Where Organisms Can Live § Major biomes § Latitude and elevation § Annual precipitation § Temperature
The Earth’s Major Biomes
Generalized Effects of Elevation and Latitude on Climate and Biomes
Elevation Mountain ice and snow Tundra (herbs, lichens, mosses) Coniferous Forest Deciduous Forest Latitude Tropical Forest Deciduous Forest Coniferous Forest Tundra (herbs, lichens, mosses) Polar ice and snow Fig. 7 -9, p. 147
Elevation Mountain ice and snow Tundra (herbs, lichens, mosses) Coniferous Forest Deciduous Forest Latitude Tropical Forest Deciduous Forest Coniferous Forest Tundra (herbs, lichens, mosses) Polar ice and snow Stepped Art Fig. 7 -9, p. 147
Natural Capital: Average Precipitation and Average Temperature as Limiting Factors
ld Co Polar Tundra Subpolar Coniferous forest Temperate Desert Hot Deciduous forest Grassland Chaparral Tropical W Desert et Savanna Rain forest Tropical seasonal forest y Dr Scrubland Fig. 7 -10, p. 147
Science Focus: Staying Alive in the Desert § Plant adaptations § Animal strategies and adaptations
There Are 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
Climate Graphs of Three Types of Deserts
Stepped Art Fig. 7 -11, p. 149
There Are Three Major Types of Grasslands (1) § Tropical § Temperate § Cold (arctic tundra)
There Are Three Major Types of Grasslands (2) § Tropical • Savanna • Grazing animals • Browsing animals § Temperate • Tall-grass prairies • Short-grass prairies
There Are Three Major Types of Grasslands (3) § Arctic tundra: fragile biome § Adaptations of plants and animals § Permafrost § Alpine tundra
Climate Graphs of Tropical, Temperate, and Cold Grasslands
Stepped Art Fig. 7 -12, p. 151
Monoculture Crop Replacing Biologically Diverse Temperate Grassland
Temperate Shrubland: Nice Climate, Risky Place to Live § Chaparral § Near the sea: nice climate § Prone to fires in the dry season
Chaparral Vegetation in Utah, U. S.
Stepped Art Fig. 7 -14, p. 152
There Are Three Major Types of Forests (1) § Tropical § Temperate § Cold • Northern coniferous and boreal
There Are Three Major Types of Forests (2) § Tropical rain forests • Temperature and moisture • Stratification of specialized plant and animal niches • Little wind: significance • Rapid recycling of scarce soil nutrients • Impact of human activities
There Are Three Major Types of Forests (3) § Temperate deciduous forests • • Temperature and moisture Broad-leaf trees Slow rate of decomposition: significance Impact of human activities
There Are Three Major Types of Forests (4) § Evergreen coniferous forests: boreal and taigas • Temperature and moisture • Few species of cone: bearing trees • Slow decomposition: significance § Coastal coniferous forest § Temperate rain forests
Climate Graphs of Tropical, Temperate, and Cold Forests
Stepped Art Fig. 7 -15, p. 154
Some Components and Interactions in a Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystem
Ocelot Harpy eagle Blue and gold macaw Squirrel monkeys Climbing monstera palm Katydid Green tree Slaty-tailed snake trogon Tree frog Ants Bacteria Bromeliad Fungi Producer to primary consumer Primary to secondary consumer Secondary to higher-level consumer All producers and consumers to decomposers Fig. 7 -16, p. 155
Stratification of Specialized Plant and Animal Niches in a Tropical Rain Forest
45 40 Emergent layer Harpy eagle 35 Toco toucan Height (meters) 30 Canopy 25 20 15 Under story Wooly opossum 10 Brazilian tapir 5 0 Black-crowned antpitta Shrub layer Ground layer Fig. 7 -17, p. 156
Temperate Rain Forest in Washington State, U. S.
Mountains Play Important Ecological Roles § Majority of the world’s forests § Habitats for endemic species § Help regulate the earth’s climate § Can affect sea levels § Major storehouses of water • Role in hydrologic cycle
Mount Rainier National Park in Washington State, U. S.
7 -3 How Have We Affected the Word’s Terrestrial Ecosystems? § Concept 7 -3 In many areas, human activities are impairing ecological and economic services provided by the earth’s deserts, grasslands, forests, and mountains.
Humans Have Disturbed Most of the Earth’s Lands § Deserts § Grasslands § Forests § Mountains
What are the Major Human Impacts on Terrestrial Ecosystems?
NATURAL CAPITAL DEGRADATION Major Human Impacts on Terrestrial Ecosystems Deserts Grasslands Forests Large desert cities Conversion to Clearing for agriculture, cropland Soil destruction by off Release of CO 2 livestock grazing, -road vehicles to atmosphere timber, and urban from burning development Soil salinization grassland Conversion of from irrigation diverse forests to Overgrazing tree plantations Depletion of by livestock groundwater Damage from off. Oil production road vehicles Land disturbance and off-road and pollution from vehicles in Pollution of mineral extraction arctic tundra forest streams Mountains Agriculture Timber extraction Mineral extraction Hydroelectric dams and reservoirs Increasing tourism Urban air pollution Increased ultraviolet radiation from ozone depletion Soil damage from off-road vehicles Fig. 7 -20, p. 158
NATURAL CAPITAL DEGRADATION Major Human Impacts on Terrestrial Ecosystems Deserts Grasslands Forests Large desert cities Conversion to Clearing for agriculture, cropland Soil destruction by off Release of CO 2 livestock grazing, -road vehicles to atmosphere timber, and urban from burning development Soil salinization grassland Conversion of from irrigation diverse forests to Overgrazing tree plantations Depletion of by livestock groundwater Damage from off. Oil production road vehicles Land disturbance and off-road and pollution from vehicles in Pollution of mineral extraction arctic tundra forest streams Mountains Agriculture Timber extraction Mineral extraction Hydroelectric dams and reservoirs Increasing tourism Urban air pollution Increased ultraviolet radiation from ozone depletion Soil damage from off-road vehicles Stepped Art Fig. 7 -20, p. 158
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