ch. 40.2

biome

a major life zone characterized by vegetation type (terrestrial) or physical environment (aquatic)

why is climate important?

to determine why terrestrial biomes are found in certain areas

what are biomes affected by?

pattern of temperature and precipitation climate.

what does climate have great impact on?

distribution of organisms

disturbance (natural and human-caused)

an event that changes a community by removing organisms and altering resource availability

ex. forest fires, hurricanes

climograph

a plot (graph) of the temperature and precipitation in a region

can be used to illustrate climate

most terrestrial biomes are named for..

their physical and climatic factors and their predominant vegetation

ecotones

the blended area between two different biomes

tropical rain forest

-rainfall relatively constant

-in tropical dry forests, precipitation is highly seasonal

-most diverse biome, home to millions of animal and plant species

desert

-precipitation is low

-may be hot or cold

-common animals include: many kinds of snakes, lizards, migratory and resident birds, and seed-eating rodents

savanna

-precipitation and temperature are seasonal

-grasses and forbs make up most of the ground cover

-common animals include: insects and mammals such as zebras, wildebeests, lions, and hyenas

chaparral

-climate highly seasonal, with cool rainy winters and hot dry summers

-dominated by shrubs, small trees, grasses and herbs, many of which are adapted to fire

-animals include amphibians, birds and other reptiles, insects, small mammals and browsing mammals (mammals that eat high growing plants such as leaves)

temperate grassland

found on many continents

-winters cold and dry, summers wet and hot

-dominant plants are grasses and forbs, adapted to drought and fire

-native mammals include large grazers and small burrowers

northern coniferous forest (taiga)

extends across north America and Eurasia and is the largest terrestrial biome on earth

-winters are cold and long while summers may be hot

-animals include migratory/resident birds and large mammals

temperate broadleaf (deciduous) forest

-winters are cool, summers are hot and humid; significant precipitation falls year round as rain and snow

-temperate broadleaf forests have vertical layers dominated by deciduous trees in the Northern Hemisphere, evergreen and eucalyptus in Austrailia

-in the Northern Hemisphere, many mammals hibernate in the winter

tundra

-covers expansive areas of the Arctic; alpine tundra exists on high mountaintops at all latitudes.

-winters long and cool, summers relatively cool

-commonly has permafrost

-vegetation is herbaceous

permafrost

permanently frozen layer of soil, prevents water infiltration

as altitude increases, what happens to plant height?

plant height decreases

aquatic biomes

characterized by their physical environment, chemical environment, geological features, photosynthetic organisms, and heterotrophs

they account for the largest part of the biosphere, can contain salt water or freshwater

a lake environment is classified by..

light penetration, distance from shore/water depth, and whether the environment is open water or bottom

what percentage of the earths surface does the ocean cover?

75%

oligotrophic lakes

nutrient-poor and generally oxygen-rich (clear)

eutrophic lakes

nutrient-rich and often depleted of oxygen if ice covered in winter (murky and bad)