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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

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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.

Flow of Energy to and from the Earth

The Earth Has Many Different Climates (1)

§  Weather = local short-term atmospheric conditions (e.g., temp., humidity, wind…)

§  Climate = general long-term(decades to

centuries) patterns of weather/atmospheric conditions

§  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

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Fig. 7-3, p. 142

Cold deserts 60°N

Air cools and descends at lower latitudes.

Westerlies Forests Northeast trades Hot deserts

30°N

Warm air rises and moves toward the poles.

Equator Forests 0° Solar energy

Air cools and descends at lower latitudes.

The highest solar energy input is at the equator.

Southeast trades Hot deserts 30°S

Westerlies Forests

Cold deserts 60°S

Global Air Circulation

Animation: Seasonal variation

The Earth Has Many Different Climates (2)

§  Ocean Currents & Atmosphere Relationship… •  Prevailing winds •  Earth’s rotation •  Redistribution of heat from the sun

§  Link between air circulation, ocean currents, and biomes (Fig. 7-2)

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Natural Capital: Generalized Map of the Earth’s Current Climate Zones

Active Figure: Climate and ocean currents map

Animation: Upwelling along western coasts

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Animation: El Nino Southern Oscillation

Greenhouse Gases Warm the Lower Atmosphere

§  Greenhouse gases contribute to climate… •  H2O •  CO2

•  CH4

•  N2O

§  Greenhouse effect

§  Human-enhanced global warming

Animation: Greenhouse effect

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Animation: Increasing greenhouse gases

The Earth’s Surface Features Affect Local Climates

§  Heat absorption by land and water (thermal inertia)

§  Effect of •  Mountains

•  Rain shadow effect •  Cities

•  Microclimates

Animation: Coastal breezes

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Fig. 7-7, p. 145

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.

Rain Shadow Effect

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 (Fig. 7-8)

§  Latitude and elevation (Fig. 7-9) §  Annual precipitation (Fig. 7-10)

§  Temperature (Fig. 7-10)

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The Earth’s Major Biomes

Generalized Effects of Elevation and Latitude on Climate and Biomes

Fig. 7-10, p. 147

Cold Polar

Tundra Subpolar

Temperate Coniferous forest

Desert

Deciduous forest

Grassland Chaparral Tropical

Hot

Desert Wet Rain forest Savanna

Tropical seasonal

forest

Dry

Scrubland

Temperature & Precipitation

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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

Fig. 7-11, p. 149 Stepped Art

There Are Three Major Types of Grasslands (1)

§  Tropical

§  Temperate

§  Cold (arctic tundra)

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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

Fig. 7-12, p. 151 Stepped Art

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Video: Caribou on tundra

Arctic Tundra Grazers: Moose and Caribou near Nome, Alaska

Monoculture Crop Replacing Biologically Diverse Temperate Grassland

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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.

There Are Three Major Types of Forests (1)

§  Tropical

§  Temperate

§  Cold •  Northern coniferous and boreal

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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

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Climate Graphs of Tropical, Temperate, and Cold Forests

Fig. 7-16, p. 155

Blue and gold macaw

Harpy eagle

Ocelot

Squirrel monkeys

Climbing monstera palm

Katydid Slaty-tailed trogon

Green tree snake

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

Tropical Rain Forest

Fig. 7-17, p. 156

45 Harpy eagle

Emergent layer

40

35 Toco toucan

30 Canopy

25

Hei

ght (

met

ers)

20 Wooly

opossum Under story

15

10

Brazilian tapir

Shrub layer 5

Black-crowned antpitta

Ground layer 0

Stratification of Plant and Animal Niches

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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.

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Active Figure: Rainforest food web

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.

Fig. 7-20, p. 158

NATURAL CAPITAL DEGRADATION

Major Human Impacts on Terrestrial Ecosystems Deserts Grasslands Forests Mountains

Large desert cities Conversion to cropland

Clearing for agriculture, livestock grazing, timber, and urban development

Agriculture

Soil destruction by off-road vehicles

Timber extraction Release of CO2 to atmosphere from burning grassland Conversion of

diverse forests to tree plantations

Hydroelectric dams and reservoirs

Mineral extraction

Soil salinization from irrigation Increasing tourism

Overgrazing by livestock Depletion of

groundwater Damage from off-road vehicles

Urban air pollution Increased ultraviolet radiation from ozone depletion Land disturbance

and pollution from mineral extraction

Oil production and off-road vehicles in arctic tundra

Pollution of forest streams

Soil damage from off-road vehicles