Geography 132 & 132L
Physical Geography: Natural Landscapes
Lab VIII
Chapter 20
(55 points)
Instructions
· Read the information provided and answer the following questions in this document.
The grading of all your answers will be based on how much detail you provide. This does not mean length. Go in depth and use the appropriate punctuation.
· Do not use the expressions “I think”, or “I believe”. Base your answers on the information you learned from your textbook.
· Do not paraphrase the textbook, use your own words to provide value to the answer.
· Add a reference page for your sources.
· Always read all the instructions carefully.
· Grading: the questions are worth 52 points, and 3 points are earned by following the instructions provided above.
Chapter 20: Terrestrial Biomes
Section 20.1: Biomes
A biome is a large geographical area of distinctive plant and animal groups, which are adapted to that particular environment. The climate (average precipitation and temperature) of a region determines what type of biome can exist in that region. Major biomes include deserts, forests, grasslands, tundra, and several types of aquatic environments. Each biome consists of many ecosystems whose communities have adapted to the small differences in climate and the environment inside the biome. All living things are closely related to their environment. Any change in one part of an environment, like an increase or decrease of a species of animal or plant, causes a ripple effect of change through other parts of the environment. The earth includes a large variety of living things, from complex plants and animals to very simple, one-celled organisms. But large or small, simple or complex, no organism lives alone. Each depends in some way on other living and nonliving things in its surroundings.
(Source: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/world_biomes.htm)
1. In your own words define what a biome is (1 point).
Instructions
· Go to ArcGIS online
· Sign in with the Username: geog132_labuser and the Password: fall15phys.
· In the search box type: Lab 12 Biomes.
· Click the “Open” button.
· Click the “Show Contents of Map” button. This map contains several layers of information to help you answer the following questions. These layers include a Basemap with topographic features and names, an Ecoregions layer, a Biomes layer which displays the geographical distribution of 15 different biomes, a layer displaying Ocean Currents, a layer displaying Climate Zones, and a couple of layers with lines of latitude and longitude. You may turn on and off layers as necessary to improve your analysis. Start by making sure the Basemap and Biomes layers are turned on, all other layers can be turned off for now.
Questions
2. Zoom into South Dakota. What two biomes are present in South Dakota? (1 point)
3. The majority of South Dakota is in one type of biome. What part of South Dakota is the other biome? (1 point)
4. Why is that biome in South Dakota different from the majority of the state? Hint: besides the vegetation and climate, what geographic feature is different in this region from the rest of the state? (3 points)
5. Describe the biome in which Brookings, South Dakota is located (2 points)
Turn layers on and off, zoom in and out, and pan around as necessary to answer the following questions.
6. Places such as northern Spain, Switzerland, Nepal, and Tibet are areas where there is a transition from one biome to another. Why is that? (2 point)
7. The Sahara is an example of a tropical desert and is characterized by a desert biome. What about the Sahara’s particular latitude, and the corresponding latitude in the southern hemisphere, allows for the desert biome to exist at these particular parallels? (2 points)
8. A lot of times deserts occur at the same latitudes. Name both a desert and a country, in the southern hemisphere that is at the latitude that corresponds with the Sahara’s northern latitude (2 points).
9. Antarctica is also a desert. Why does Antarctica not have a desert biome? (2 points)
10. Why is there not much area of Boreal Forest/Taiga biome in the southern hemisphere? (2 points)
11. Both the California coast and most of Portugal share a similar biome. What is the name of that biome? (2 points)
12. What are the similarities between the California coast and Portugal that allows these places to have the same biome? (2 points)
Section 20.2: Ecoregions
Ecoregions denote areas of general similarity in ecosystems and in the type, quality, and quantity of environmental resources. They are designed to serve as a spatial framework for the research, assessment, management, and monitoring of ecosystems and ecosystem components.
These ‘general purpose’ regions are critical for structuring and implementing ecosystem management strategies across federal agencies, state agencies, and nongovernment organizations that are responsible for different types of resources within the same geographical areas. The approach used to compile this map is based on the premise that ecological regions can be identified through the analysis of patterns of biotic and abiotic phenomena, including geology, physiography, vegetation, climate, soils, land use, wildlife, and hydrology. The relative importance of each characteristic varies from one ecological region to another. A Roman numeral hierarchical scheme has been adopted for different levels for ecological regions. Level I is the coarsest level, dividing North America into 15 ecological regions. Level II divides the continent into 52 regions (Commission for Environmental Cooperation Working Group, 1997). At Level III, the continental United States contains 104 regions whereas the conterminous United States has 84 (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2005). Level IV ecoregions are further subdivisions of Level III ecoregions. Methods used to define the ecoregions are explained in Omernik (1995, 2004), Omernik and others (2000), and Gallant and others (1989). (Source: US EPA).
13. In your own words, define what an ecoregion is (1 point).
Instructions
For this section, you will need the Basemap and Ecoregions Level III and IV layers, so you should turn these layers on, and turn all of the other layers off at this point. Zoom in to eastern South Dakota.
Questions
14. What level III ecoregion (number) is Brookings, SD located within? (1 point)
15. What type of landforms do you expect to be in Brookings’ level III ecoregion? (2 points)
Zoom out and then zoom into the eastern edge of the United States.
16. The eastern edge of the US is comprised of numerous level III ecoregions. What physiographic features allow for the presence of so many level III ecoregions in that relatively narrow region? (2 points)
Section 20.3: Critical Thinking
Use these three links to answer the following question:
· https://blog.nwf.org/2019/02/the-pika-predicament-wildlife-the-climate-crisis/
· https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Threats-to-Wildlife/Habitat-Loss
· https://www.nwf.org/Educational-Resources/Wildlife-Guide/Mammals/American-Pika
17. What similarities and/or differences do you find between the pika and other species (such as the polar bear, for instance) that live in tundra or other arctic biomes when it comes to how their population is affected by climate change? (3 points)
Section 20.4: Biomes and Human Interaction
This activity incorporates biomes and the humans that live in them. Biomes are at the end of the book, because all the factors that we’ve studied this semester contribute their definition. The plants and animals that live here are the direct result of the how much rain falls from the sky to the soil horizons deep in the earth, and all the biogeochemical cycles in between.
In my mind, understanding biomes is one of those basic levels of understanding Earth. Sort of like knowing what the lines represent on a sheet of music or subject-verb agreement when you write a sentence. Biomes have great implications to a host of local and environmental issues, and when you hear that there are wildfires burning in southern California (Mediterranean Shrubland), then you automatically relate that to the biome and its characteristics. For instance, Mediterranean Shrubland is characterized by a dry summer and wet winter (the opposite of most places). Because of the extreme dryness in the hottest part of the year, the plants typically have waxy leaves (to reduce evapotranspiration), some of which burn like mad. Fires in southern California can be devastating, but should also be expected.
I really want you to understand and think about biomes and their implications, and the best way to do that is to start with the book’s maps and descriptions. The one thing it doesn’t tell you is how humans use these landscapes.
Instructions
18. From chapter 20, pick one terrestrial biome and find the following information:
a. Three different places on earth with this biome (1 point)
b. Vegetation and climate type (2 points)
c. At least three examples (listed as bullet points) of how does this biome contribute to human life: what it ultimately provides to humans? Think of products and services (For instance, olive oil is produced in Mediterranean biomes) (2 points)
d. Explain how humans affected this biome (For instance, deforestation, the extraction of one particular resource, etcetera). This may extend to previous chapters (that’s the idea). Do not just name it, but briefly explain how (3 points)
19. For this segment you will work with your region (where you live).
Name the place:
a. What is the main biome? (1 point)
b. Three different places on earth with this biome (1 points)
c. Vegetation and climate type (2 points)
d. How does this biome contribute to human life: what it ultimately provides to humans? (2 points)
e. How humans affected this biome. Again, this may extend to previous chapters (that’s the idea). Do not just name it, but briefly explain how (3 points).
20. With the information from your book and the supplemental material provided below, discuss the causes of human impact on the ecosystem (why is this happening), and the importance of finding ecosystem homeostasis. In other words, why is it important to humans if there are, for instance, endangered species (4 points)
– TED Talk: Why is Biodiversity so important?
– Human Impacts on Biodiversity – Ecology and Environment
– Climate Change: Earth’s Giant Game of Tetris
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