Biogeography: Climate, Biomes, and Terrestrial Biodiversity

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Biogeography Climate, Biomes, and Terrestrial
Biodiversity
G. Tyler Millers Living in the Environment 13th
Edition Chapter 6
Dr. Richard Clements Chattanooga State Technical
Community College Modified by Charlotte
Kirkpatrick
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Key Concepts

• Factors influencing weather

• Factors influencing climate

• Effect of climate on distribution of biomes

• Characteristics of major biome types

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Weather and Climate A Brief Introduction

• Weather short term properties of the troposphere
  at a particular place and time

• Physical properties
• Temperature, Pressure, Humidity, Precipitation,
  Sunshine, Cloud cover, Wind direction and speed

• Weather Model Meteorologists use a variety of
  devices (weather balloons, aircraft, radar
  satellites) to gain data on atmospheric
  pressures, precipitation, temperatures, wind
  speeds, and locations of air masses and fronts.

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Air Masses and Fronts

• Air Masses moving air across the land or sea.
  They contain air that is wet or dry, warm or
  cold, and high or low pressure

• Front Boundary between two air masses with
  different temperatures and densities

• Warm front Advancing warm air mass replacing a
  cooler one. Rises up and over a mass of cool air
  due to density difference.

• Cool front Advancing cool air mass replacing a
  warm one. Stays close to the ground and wedges
  under the warm air due to density difference.
  Creates thunderheads.

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Air Masses and Fronts
Warm front
Cold front
Fig. 6-2 p. 111
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Highs and Lows

• High pressure system Cool dense air that
  descends toward the earth and becomes warmer.
  Fair weather.

• Low pressure system less dense warm air spirals
  inward toward the center of a low pressure air
  mass. Center of the low rises and its warm air
  expands and cools. Stormy weather.

• Air always flows from areas of high pressure to
  areas of low pressure, aiming to reach the
  equilibrium. But, because of the deviating force
  caused by the rotation of the Earth (namely
  Coriolis effect) it does not flow in a straight
  line. Instead of it, the winds form a spiral
  inwards and upwards in low pressure systems,
  downwards and outwards in high pressure systems.

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Tornadoes and Hurricanes
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Tornadoes and Hurricanes
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Tornadoes and Hurricanes
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Climate

• Temperature

• Precipitation

• Uneven heating

• Seasons

• Earths rotation Coriolis Effect

• Properties of airand water

See Fig. 6-4 p. 124
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Seasons
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Uneven Heating of the Earths Surface
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Air Circulation
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Air Circulation and Climate Zones
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Major Climate Zones
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Figure 6-10Page 117
LOW PRESSURE
HIGH PRESSURE
Heat released radiates to space
Condensation and precipitation
Cool, dry air
Rises, expands, cools
Falls, is compressed, warms
Warm, dry air
Hot, wet air
Flows toward low pressure, picks up moisture and
heat
Moist surface warmed by sun
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Figure 6-12Page 118
Solar radiation
Convection cell
Equator
Warm current
Cool current
Warm air
Cool current
Warm water
Warm current
Polar front
Cool air
Cold water
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El Nino and La Nina
La Nina
El Nino

• Prevailing westerly winds weaken or cease.
• Surface water along the south and north American
  coasts becomes warmer and
• The normal upwellings of cold, nutrient rich
  water are suppressed, which decreases primary
  productivity and causes a decline in some fish
  populations.
• Can trigger extreme weather along 2/3rds of the
  globe (pacific and Indian oceans.

• Cooling counterpart that follows El Nino.
• More Atlantic Ocean Hurricanes
• Colder winters in Canada and NE
• Warmer and drier winters in the SE and SW U.S.
• Wetter winters in the Pacific NW
• Torrential rains in SE Asia
• Lower wheat yields in Argentina
• More wildfires in Florida

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Short-Term Climate Changes ENSO
Fig. 6-14 p. 119
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Figure 6-13Page 119
Upwelling
Movement of surface water
Wind
Diving birds
Fish
Upwelling
Zooplankton
Phytoplankton
Nutrients
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Figure 6-15 page 120
El Niño
Drought
Unusually high rainfall
Unusually warm periods
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Figure 6-16Page 121
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Greenhouse Effect

• Greenhouse gases H2O (v), CO2, CH4, N2O, and
  CFCs

Fig. 6-17 p. 121
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Rain Shadow Effect

• MicroclimatesLocal climatic conditions due to
  topography of the area

Fig. 6-19 p. 122
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Sea Breeze and Land Breeze

• Sea Breeze is the movement of cool air on land to
  replace the the warm air as it ascends. At
  daytime
• Land Breeze is the movement of cool air from land
  to sea as the warm air ascends. At nightime.

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Biomes Climate and Life on Land

• Relationship between latitude and altitude

• Succulent plants

• Evergreen plants

• Deciduous plants

• Coniferous plants

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Figure 6-20Page 123
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Biomes Latitude and Altitude
Fig. 6-22 p. 124
Refer to Fig. 6-20 p. 123
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Biomes Characteristics

• Average temperature range
• Average precipitation
• Latitude/Altitude
• Adaptations

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Desert Biomes

• Tropical deserts

• Temperate deserts

• Cold deserts

Refer to Fig. 6-25 p. 127
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Figure 6-23Page 126
Desert Biomes
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Figure 6-25Page 127
Temperate Desert Food Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
All producers and consumers to decomposers
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Figure 6-26Page 128
Human impact on Deserts
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Grassland, Tundra, and Chaparral Biomes

• Tropical grasslands

• Temperate grasslands

• Polar grasslands (Arctic tundra)

• Permafrost

• Alpine tundra

• Chaparral

Refer to Figs. 6-29, 6-30, and 6-32 pp. 130-133
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Figure 6-27Page 129
Distribution of Grasslands
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Figure 6-29 (1)Page 130
African Savanna Animals These grazing species
share vegetation resources by having different
feeding niches
Dry Grassland
Moist Grassland
Cape buffalo
Wildebeest
Beisa oryx
Topi
Grant's zebra
Warthog
Thompson's gazelle
Waterbuck
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Figure 6-29 (2)Page 130
Dry Thorn Scrub and Riverine Forest
Riverine Forest
Giraffe
African elephant
Dry Thorn Scrub
Gerenuk
Black rhino
Greater kudu
Bushbuck
Dik-dik
East African eland
Blue duiker
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Figure 6-30Page 131
Temperate Tall Prairie Food Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
All producers and consumers to decomposers
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Figure 6-32Page 133
Arctic Tundra (polar grassland) Food Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
All consumers and producers to decomposers
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Figure 6-33Page 134
Human impacts on grasslands
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Forest Biomes

• Tropical rainforest

• Tropical deciduous forest

• Temperate deciduous forest

• Evergreen coniferous forest (boreal forest)

• Temperate rain forest

Refer to Figs. 6-34, 6-37, 6-38, and 6-40 pp.
135-140
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Figure 6-35Page 136
Forest Biomes
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Figure 6-34Page 135
Tropical Rainforest Food Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
Slaty-tailed trogon
All producers and consumers to decomposers
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Figure 6-37Page 137
Rainforest Niche Stratification
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Figure 6-38Page 138
Temperate Deciduous Forests Food Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
All producers and consumers to decomposers
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Figure 6-40Page 140
Evergreen Coniferous (Taiga or Boreal)Forest Food
Web
Producer to primary consumer
Primary to secondary consumer
Secondary to higher-level consumer
All producers and consumers to decomposers
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Figure 6-41Page
Human impact on forests
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Mountain Biomes

• Mimic latitude

• Snow line

• Islands of biodiversity

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Figure 6-42Page
Human impact on mountains