Chapter 4 Highlights Global Climates and Biomes Denise Thompson 2014 AP Environmental Science

Warm Up Copy this week’s learning targets and agenda Don’t forget to bring in bottles for the eco- column lab! Turn in completed reading guides

Key Ideas Explain the forces that drive global circulation patterns Describe factors that influence climate Predict how changing climate could effect major biomes

Climate The Earth’s atmosphere and oceans circulate Patterns of circulation => weather and climate Changes is circulation patterns => cause change in weather and climate Weather is mostly the result of activity in the lowest layer of the atmosphere called the Troposphere

Atmosphere Circulates due to uneven heating caused by the Earth’s tilt Hotter air rises, cooler air sinks Warm air holds more water than cold air Where ever there is warm, moist, rising air….you produce precipitation Cool, dry, sinking air causes evaporation

Atmosphere Hadley Cell

Oceans Circulate due to differences in heating AND differences in salinity The science word for that is Thermohaline Circulation Cold, high saline water sinks Warm, low saline water rises Gyre

El Nino/ La Nina Caused when the trade winds weaken Allowing warm water to flow back towards the eastern pacific Slows upwelling along the West coast of North and South America Decreases the amount of nutrients available to coastal oceanic ecosystems (bad for fish, plants, reefs etc)

Terrestrial Biomes and Climate Oceans Close to ocean decreases the temperature range Far from ocean increases the temperature range Wind Direction Air blowing off of large bodies of water are moister and result in more precipitation Air blowing off of continents is drier and has less precipitation Latitude Places closer to the equator are warmer Places closer to the poles are cooler Elevation Places that are at higher elevations are cooler Places that are at lower elevations are warmer May also cause differences in precipitation due to “rain shadow”

Aquatic Biomes Depend on salinity, depth and water flow High water flowLow water flow High Salinity Open Ocean Shallow= photic zone Deep = aphotic zone Shallow= Coral Reefs Deep = ocean trench Medium Salinity Estuary Intertidal Zone Deep = Mangrove Swamp Shallow = Salt Marsh Low Salinity (fresh water) Stream or River Deep=Lakes and Ponds Shallow = wetland

Biome Matching Activity Analyze each of the 6 climatograms Decide which biome’s climate is represented Share amongst your table group….only one climatogram for each biome Exit Pass— Paste your climatogram to a blank sheet of paper This climatogram represents ______________ biome because….. – Give at least two reasons

Grassland/Savannah /images/biome_map_trop_savanna.jpg