the biosphere
TRANSCRIPT
The Biosphere
Earth's Diverse EnvironmentsC.Hill
10/26/2009
Tropical Rain Forest
• Rain is abundant• Poor soil• Large trees• Closed canopy
Tropical Rain Forest
• Found in very humid equatorial areas such as:o Indonesiao Amazon River basin
Savanna
• Dominated by grasses and scattered trees
• Frequent fires• Rapid growing grass, good food
source
Savanna
• tropics in central South America • central and South Africa; home to
giraffes, zebras, antelopes, baboons, lions, and cheetahs.
Deserts
• Sparse rainfall• Rapid evaporation• No perennial vegetation• Scattered shrubs and cacti
Deserts
• Desert plants and animals adapt to drought and extreme temperatures
• Only active during cooler nights• Conserve water and seed-eaters
such as: ants, birds, rodents, lizards, snakes and hawks
Chaparral
• Dense, spiny shrubs• Tough evergreen leaves• Mild, rainy winters• Long, hot, dry summers
Chaparral
• Require occasional fires for long-term maintenance
• Plants regenerate quickly• Animal browsers such as: deer,
fruit-eating birds, seed-eating rodents, lizards, and snakes
Temperate Grasslands
• Mostly treeless• Relatively cold winter
temperatures• Seasonal drought• Fires• Large mammal grazing
Temperate Grasslands
• pampas in Argentina and Uruguay• steppes in Asia• prairies in North America though
little remain due to intensive farming and agriculture.
Temperate Deciduous Forests
• Sufficient moisture• Large trees• Oak, Hickory, Beech, and Maple • Experience each season
Temperate Deciduous Forests
• Dominates most of the eastern United States
• Soil rich in inorganic and organic nutrients
• Support speices such as: arthropods, birds, small mammals, bobcats, foxes, black bears, and mountain lions
Coniferous Forests
• Cone-bearers• Spruce, Pine, Fir, and Hemlock• Harsh winters, short summers• Thin, acidic soil
Coniferous Forests
Taiga, the most extensive, stretchs across North America and Eurasia reaching the southern border of the artic tundra.
Alpine Tundra
• Found in Andes Mountains in Ecuador
• Elevation high enough to produce very cold climate
Arctic Tundra
• Permafrost, continuously frozen ground
• Large mammals with good insulation that include: musk oxen and caribou
• Smaller animals include: lemmings, arctic fox, and snowy owl.
Tundra
•Northernmost limits of plant growth•High altitudes•Little precipitation•Extremely cold winter air temperature•Alaska, Canada, Scandinavia, and Russia
Biomes
• The major terrestrial ecosystems are called Biomes• Cover the land surface of the Earth
Biosphere
Solar energy
Water
Temperature
Wind Physical and chemical factors that influence life in the biosphere