ib geography - ecosystems. biomes - taiga aka coniferous forest
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Biome presentation
Coniferous forest –
Taiga
Location
• Located in: • North America• Scandinavia• Russia• Across Asia: Siberia and
Mongolia • Northern China• Northern Japan
Climate in Taiga
• Sub arctic & cold continental climate
• Cold winds bring bitterly cold air from the Arctic Circle
• Tilted Earth – taiga is turned away from the sun in winter
Winter
• Lasts for 6 months• Cold & severe• Temperature –30°C• Some snowfall
• Lasts for 3 months• Hot & humid• Temperature 30°C• A lot of rain
Summer
Temperature
• Highest temperatures in July & August (30°C)
• Lowest in January & February (–30°C)
• Most rainfall from June to August
• Most snow from December-February
Precipitation
-30
-20
-10
0
10
20
30
40
J F M A M J J A S O N D
Month
Tem
pera
ture
(°C)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
J F M A M J J A S O N D
Month
Prec
ipita
tion
(mm
)
Vegetation
• NPP – 800g/m2/yr• Nutrient cycle:
a) Litter – the largest
b) Biomass – medium
c) Soil – the smallest
Nutrient cycle
Vegetation
• Very few species• Needle leaf trees are
dominant & adapted to the cold
• Coniferous trees can keep they’re needles for 15 years
Advantages1. Needle leaf – have thick
waxy coatings2. Conical shape –
prevents loss of branches
3. Evergreen habit – plants can photosynthesize throughout the year
4. Dark green color – helps to begin the photosynthesis early
VegetationMossesLichen
4 main needle leaf trees in TaigaFirSpruce
4 main needle leaf trees in Taiga
Pine Larch
4 main leaf trees in TaigaAspen Birch
4 main leaf trees in TaigaWillow Rowan
Soil
• Type of soil – podzolic
• Very acidic & sandy• Poor in nutrients• Poor agricultural soil• Leached minerals –
restricts the drainage of water through the soil
Animals in Taiga
• Need to have special adaptations to survive
• Adapted to the climate by hibernation
• Breed and raise the young in the summer
• Constantly changing population – local animals have to change what they are hunting
Food Chain
Animals in Taiga
• The bear – omnivore.• Eats berries and
salmon in the summer• Needs to "fatten up"
for winter hibernation. • Winter – the bear
goes to its cave & sleeps until the spring
Animals in Taiga
• Lynx – carnivore• Eats rabbits, birds,
and other small prey.• Adapts by changing
its coat to disguise itself.
• Soft white in the winter
• Light brown with dark spots in the summer
Animals in Taiga• Snowshoe Rabbit – herbivore• Eats available plants• Has large back feet –
snowshoes.• Grayish brown fur in the
summer• Pure white in the winter• Can run up to 40km/h and
jump 90cm in one hop.• An expert at escaping
predators like the wolf or lynx.
• Good swimmers – will swim to make an escape.
Conclusion
• Largest biome• Cold & sever winters• Hot & humid
summers• Dominating needle
leaf trees• Poor soil• Few species• Animals need special
adaptations to survive
Bibliography
• http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/taiga_climate_page.htm• http://www.mbgnet.net/sets/taiga/index.htm• http://www.nceas.ucsb.edu/nceas-web/kids/biomes/tundra.htm• http://www.runet.edu/~swoodwar/CLASSES/GEOG235/biomes/
taiga/taiga.html• http://www-eosdis.ornl.gov/NPP/guides/Busing_GSM_NPP.html• http://www.s-cool.co.uk/topic_principles.asp?
loc=pr&topic_id=2&subject_id=6&ebt=192&ebn=&ebs=&ebl=&elc=13
• http://edtech.kennesaw.edu/web/taiga.html• www.slusarczyk.net/winter/• http://www.wildnatureimages.com/S%20to%20Z/TEK-SUMMER..jpg• David Waugh, Geography An Integrated Approach, pg 300, 330-332
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