1. Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity
Chapter 5
Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity

2. Blowing in the Wind: A Story of Connections
Wind connects most life on earth.
Keeps tropics from being unbearably hot.
Prevents rest of world from freezing.
Figure 5-1

3. Weather vs. Climate
Weather- changes in properties of the troposphere in a given place and time.
i.e.: temperature, pressure, humidity, wind, air, and cloud cover.
Troposphere- 11 miles above sea level.
Most of the air surrounding earth is in this thin layer.
Mostly nitrogen 78% and oxygen 21% (by volume)
Climate- average weather of an area overtime (30 years)

4. Climate and Air Circulation
Circulation of air over Earth’s atmosphere is the main reason for variation in climates.
Determines average temperature and precipitation
Figure 5-3

5. Air Circulation is Caused by:
1. Changes in solar energy reaching earth
a. Slight changes in earth’s slant
b. Slight changes in shape of orbit
c. Slight changes in solar output overtime

6. Air Circulation is Caused by:
2. Differences in solar energy reaching various parts of earth or uneven heating of earth’s surface
a. Air is heated much more at equator than at poles (direct sun, not angle)

7. Air Circulation is Caused by:
3. Tilt of earth- opposite seasons for N & S Hemisphere (page 102)

8. Air Circulation is Caused by:
4. Rotation of earth
a. Prevents air currents from moving due N or S, p. 102
b. Determines prevailing winds, redistributes air, moisture, and dust over Earth’s surface
c. Coriolis Effect page 102 figure 5.4

9. Air Circulation is Caused by:
5. Properties of air and water
a. Warm= rise, expand p. 103 Figure 5.5
b. Cool=fall, contractc. Results in 6 huge convection cells
p. 103 Figure 5.6

10. Convection Currents
Global air circulation is affected by the properties of air water, and land.
Figure 5-5

11. Convection Cells
Heat and moisture are distributed over the earth’s surface by vertical currents, which form six giant convection cells at different latitudes.
Figure 5-6

12. Climate All of these factors determine the climate
Climate determines flora (plant life)
Flora determines fauna of an area (animal life)

13. Climate and Ocean Currents
1. Large circular water movements are caused by trade winds. Water is pushed westward until it hits land and turns; redistributes heat
Ex: Warm currents make Alaska and Japan warmer than predicted. Page S39 (back index)

14. Climate and Ocean Currents
2. Nutrients from bottom are pushed upward creating an area that can support large numbers of microscopic plants and animals (plankton)

15. Climate and Ocean Currents
3. Areas of increased salinity or cooling water are denser and sink. Forms deep underwater currents known as upwellings
-Nutrients redistributed and temps mixed

16. El Nino - Every few years the E to W pattern is broken by a climate shift.
Usually starts in December (hence the name)
Can last 3 months to 1+ year
Disrupts nutrient cycling off coast of S. America so populations of plankton, fish and birds are effected.

17. Ocean Currents: Distributing Heat and Nutrients
Ocean currents influence climate by distributing heat from place to place and mixing and distributing nutrients.
Figure 5-7

18. Climate and Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere
Certain chemicals determine earth’s avg. temp.
a.CO2, H20 vapor, 03, CH4, NO, CFC’s (carbon dioxide, water vapor, ozone, methane, nitrous oxides, chlorofluorocarbons)
b. Mars has none of these=frozen c. Venus has high levels= burning hot d. Earth has right amount for life, as we know it.

19. Climate and Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere
Most of the gases act like the glass of a greenhouse (allowing in sunlight and holding the heat near the Earth’s surface)
CFC’s tie up oxygen atoms and prevent 03 formation

20. Climate and Chemical Composition of the Atmosphere
03 forms when 02 react with u.v. rays, unstable gas
03 filters u.v. rays so we don’t get too many of these harmful rays
A decrease in 03 or increase on other gases listed may lead to the “Greenhouse Effect” (theory that the Earth is heating more quickly than predicted due to human activity)

21. Ocean Currents: Distributing Heat and Nutrients
Global warming:
Considerable scientific evidence and climate models indicate that large inputs of greenhouse gases from anthropogenic (manmade) activities into the troposphere can enhance the natural greenhouse effect and change the earth’s climate in your lifetime.

22. Climate and Topography (shape of the land)
1. Mountains block storms
Cooler, wetter, windier than lower elevations (west side)
Winds blow from North West.
East side is dry. Rain Shadow Effect p. 105 Figure 5.8
Ex. Sierra Nevada Mtn. Range
West side lush, east side is Mojave Desert

23. BIOMES: CLIMATE AND LIFE ON LAND
Different climates lead to different communities of organisms, especially vegetation.
Biomes – large terrestrial regions characterized by similar climate, soil, plants, and animals.
Each biome contains many ecosystems whose communities have adapted to differences in climate, soil, and other environmental factors.

24. Biomes p-106 Figure 5.9
Precipitation, latitude, altitude determine type of biome.
Know basic characteristics of major biomes.
1. Desert= <10 inches of rain/yr
2. Grassland= low precipitation
3. Forest = moderate to high precipitation
4. Ocean = open sea
5. Coastal=coastal reefs, coastal wetlands, estuaries (fresh mixes w/salt water.) Salinity varies w/time, partially enclosed, water moving.
6. Fresh water lakes and streams and inland wetlands contain water all a part of year.

25. Tropic of Cancer Equator Tropic of Capricorn High mountains Polar ice
Polar grassland (arctic tundra)
Tropic of
Capricorn
Figure 5.9
Natural capital: the earth’s major biomes—the main types of natural vegetation in various undisturbed land areas—result primarily from differences in climate. Each biome contains many ecosystems whose communities have adapted to differences in climate, soil, and other environmental factors. Human ecological footprints (Figures 3 and 4 on pp. S12–S15 in Supplement 4) have removed or altered much of the natural vegetation in some areas for farming, livestock grazing, lumber and fuelwood, mining, and construction.
Temperate grassland
Tropical grassland (savanna)
Chaparral
Coniferous forest
Temperate deciduous forest
Tropical forest
Desert
Fig. 5-9, p. 106

26. Vocabulary for this unit:
Keystone species- a species that many other species depend upon.
Persistence—resistance to change
Constancy- ability to maintain population size w/in limits
Resilience- ability to come back after disaster (food, fire, etc.)
Stability - combines above 3 terms- develop your own definition, use textbook to help

27. Vocabulary for this unit:
Niche - way of life, role in environment
Symbiosis - intimate relationship between 2 species.
Mutualism - both benefit
Parasitism - one benefits, other is harmed
Predation – one benefits, other is eaten
Commensalism – one benefits, other is unaffected

28. Decreasing precipitation
Cold
Polar
Tundra
Subpolar
Temperate
Coniferous forest
Decreasing temperature
Desert
Deciduous
Forest
Grassland
Tropical
Chaparral
Figure 5.10
Natural capital: average precipitation and average temperature, acting together as limiting factors over a period of 30 or more years, determine the type of desert, grassland, or forest biome in a particular area. Although the actual situation is much more complex, this simplified diagram explains how climate determines the types and amounts of natural vegetation found in an area left undisturbed by human activities. (Used by permission of Macmillan Publishing Company, from Derek Elsom, The Earth, New York: Macmillan, Copyright © 1992 by Marshall Editions Developments Limited)
Hot
Desert
Wet
Savanna
Rain forest
Dry
Tropical
seasonal
forest
Scrubland
Decreasing precipitation
Fig. 5-10, p. 107

29. Elevation Latitude Tropical Forest Deciduous Forest Coniferous Forest
Mountain
ice and snow
Tundra (herbs,
lichens, mosses)
Coniferous
Forest
Latitude
Deciduous
Forest
Tropical
Forest
Figure 5.11
Natural capital: generalized effects of elevation (left) and latitude (right) on climate and biomes. Parallel changes in vegetation type occur when we travel from the equator to the poles or from lowlands to mountaintops.
Tropical
Forest
Deciduous
Forest
Coniferous
Forest
Tundra (herbs,
lichens, mosses)
Polar ice
and snow
Fig. 5-11, p. 108

30. DESERT BIOMES
Deserts are areas where evaporation exceeds precipitation.
Deserts have little precipitation and little vegetation.
Found in tropical, temperate and polar regions.
Desert plants have adaptations that help them stay cool and get enough water.

31. DESERT BIOMES
Variations in annual temperature (red) and precipitation (blue) in tropical, temperate and cold deserts.
Figure 5-12

32. GRASSLANDS AND CHAPARRAL BIOMES
Variations in annual temperature (red) and precipitation (blue).
Figure 5-14

33. Temperate Grasslands
The cold winters and hot dry summers have deep and fertile soil that make them ideal for growing crops and grazing cattle.
Figure 5-15

34. Chaparral
Chaparral has a moderate climate but its dense thickets of spiny shrubs are subject to periodic fires.
Figure 5-18

35. FOREST BIOMES
Variations in annual temperature (red) and precipitation (blue) in tropical, temperate, and polar forests.
Forests have enough precipitation to support stands of trees and are found in tropical, temperate, and polar regions.
Figure 5-19

36. Evergreen Coniferous Forests
Consist mostly of cone-bearing evergreen trees that keep their needles year-round to help the trees survive long and cold winters.
Figure 5-23

37. Temperate Rain Forests
Coastal areas support huge cone-bearing evergreen trees such as redwoods and Douglas fir in a cool moist environment.
Figure 5-24

38. MOUNTAIN BIOMES High-elevation islands of biodiversity
Often have snow-covered peaks that reflect solar radiation and gradually release water to lower-elevation streams and ecosystems.
Figure 5-25

39. HUMAN IMPACTS ON TERRESTRIAL BIOMES
Human activities have damaged or disturbed more than half of the world’s terrestrial ecosystems.
Humans have had a number of specific harmful effects on the world’s deserts, grasslands, forests, and mountains.