Atmospheric Conditions and Climate Factors: Review and Key Concepts

Chapters 7 and 8 Review

A local area’s short-term atmospheric conditions are known as _________ while long-term conditions are known as ________

Which of the following determine an area’s climate? • Average temperature • Average humidity • Average Precipitation Choose 1, 2, or all 3

Which of the following do not influence global air circulation? • Seasonal changes in temperature and precipitation • Rotation of Earth on its axis • Properties of air water and land • Uneven heating of the Earth’s surface • Disruptions in cloud circulation patterns

Ocean currents such as the Gulf Stream are important in global distribution of • Heat • Aquatic species • Nutrients Choose 1, 2, or all 3

Terrestrial regions characterized by similar climate, soil and organisms are called • Biomes • Ecosystems • Continents • Ecological footprints • communities

Deserts • Are biomes in which evaporation exceeds precipitation • Are found at 30º latitude • Are located in the leeward side of mountains • Can be found in tropic, temperate and polar regions Choose 1, 2, 3, or all 4

Which is not an adaptation for survival in deserts? • Plants with deep roots for ground water • Lack of leaves on plants • Concentrated urine and feces • Nocturnal animals • Reduced or no no hair on animals

Desert ecosystems have very long recovery times due to • Fast plant growth • High species diversity • Slow nutrient cycling • Abundance of water • Concentrated bacterial colonies in the soil

Grasslands exist where it’s too moist for desert and too dry for forests. Therefore they are found • Along continental coastlines • At the base of continental divides • In the interior of continents • Primarily in the Northern Hemisphere

Grasslands include • Savannas • Prairies • Tundras Choose 1, 2, or all 3

True or False • Tropical rainforests have fairly constant temperatures year-round. • Temperate deciduous forests have prolonged below-freezing average temperatures. • Tropical rainforests have distinct wet and dry seasons • Temperate forests receive their rainfall throughout the year (fairly even distribution)

Since heat is absorbed and released more slowly from water than land, the climate of areas located near large bodies of water typically • Has more extreme seasons • Has cooler and windier winters • Has warmer and more humid conditions • Has a more moderate climate

Boreal forests have all of the following EXCEPT • Coniferous trees • High plant diversity • Nutrient-poor acidic soil • Subarctic climate • Long, cold winters

Mountains are significant contributors to ecosystems because they • Reflect solar radiation • Release water steadily to streams and ecosystems • Have high biodiversity • Contain the majority of the Earth’s forests 1, 2, 3, or all 4

Which is NOT true of ENSO? • Occurs regularly, every 5 years in the Pacific • Prevailing winds in the tropical Pacific weaken or even change directions • The warming of the western Pacific causes a reduction in upwelling nutrients and an increase in rainfall • Typical monsoon season in the E. Pacific is reduced and sometimes there are droughts • Changes distribution patterns of pelagic species

Elevation changes affect biomes • As elevation gains solar radiation it becomes stronger and biomes become more tropical • As elevation increases it demonstrates a similar pattern to increasing latitude • As elevation increases, climate is more effected by prevailing winds • As elevation decreases rainfall increases

As precipitation decreases along a similar latitude, which sequence of biomes occurs? • Deciduous forest, chaparral, grassland, desert • Rainforest, coniferous forest, desert • Desert, savanna, scrubland, tropical forest • Scrubland, chaparral, coniferous forest, tundra

Which is NOT true of permafrost? • It is water drenched soil which remains frozen all year. • It allows for the formation of shallow lakes, marshes, and bogs • It is found in both arctic and alpine (mountain) tundra • It limits the root depth of tundra species • Its recent melting has caused the soil to sink, damaging, roads, houses and other structures.

Limiting factors in the Tropical Rainforest include all EXCEPT • Soil nutrients • Wind for pollination • Water • Sunlight • space

Biome with the greatest storehouse of nutrients in leaf litter is • Tropical rainforest • Tropical grasslands • Chaparral • Temperate forest • tundra

Redwood forests have coniferous trees and remain moist most of the year. The biome is • Temperate rainforest • Taiga • Temperate deciduous forest • Boreal chaparral • Alpine evergreen forest

Wind • Transports nutrients from one place to another • Is an indirect form of solar energy • Transports moisture and weather • Circulates heat • All of the above

Global oceanic currents move in roughly circular patterns between continents. They travel __________ in N. Hemisphere and _________in S. Hemisphere

Name the Biome • Often found near coastal areas, limited moisture is from winter rains and seasonal fog. Prone to wildfires • Contain stratified broadleaf evergreen vegetation • Distinct seasonal changes shown in dominant tree species

Name the part of the stream • A cold-water tolerant fish with a flattened body would be found here. • The zone that absorbs and slows the velocity of floodwater from storms, cyclones and tsunamis

Name the primary reason inland wetlands have been lost. mining, agriculture or mosquito prevention?

Where is the littoral zone?Where is the highest biodiversity?

Which is an ecological service of coral reefs? • Add carbon dioxide to the atmosphere • Protect coastlines from erosion • Increase oceanic temperatures • Increase terrestrial temperature • Provide jobs and building materials

When coral is stressed and the algae die, the process is called • Coral bleaching • Coral erosion • Algae bloom

Both fresh and marine water have weakly swimming, free floating organisms called • Nekton • Benthos • Plankton • littoral

Photosynthesis in the ocean is limited to the upper layer called Disphotic zone Aphotic zone Littoral zone Euphotic zone Benthic zone

Highest levels of NPP in the ocean are in the coastal areas. High light levels, high nutrient levels, high density Which of these factors (1, 2, or all 3) are responsible for this?

Which is NOT an ecological service of mangrove forests? • Provide lumber for building • Filtering of toxic pollutants • Reducing storm damage • Providing food and habitat for aquatic species • Filtering excess plant nutrients

A common stressor for intertidal zone organisms is • Lack of light • Physical force of incoming waves • Decreased number of predators • No seasonal change in temperature • Constant immersion in water

Why are barrier islands so fragile? • Erosion during storms causes loss of sand/substrae on beaches • Global warming may cause rising sea levels that cover barrier islands • Developers remove protective dunes and increase flooding 1, 2, or all 3

Why does open sea make the largest contribution to overall NPP of the Earth? • High levels of nutrients • Large amounts of light for photosynthesis • It covers a large amount of the Earth’s surface • Primary produces have few predators • Significant amounts of large aquatic plants

What percentage of the US population lives along or near coastal areas? • More than 30% • More than 40% • More than 50% • More than 60%

Why are oxygen levels lower in the profundal zone of a freshwater lake? • High numbers of fish use up the oxygen • Low light levels decrease photosynthesis • High levels of algae use up the oxygen • High light levels increase photosynthesis • Low number of fish use up the oxygen

A lake with excessive supply of nutrients from human inputs is referred to as • Mesotrophic • Oligotrophic • Culturally eutrophic • Naturally eutrophic • Culturally Mesotrophic

Which of these is NOT an ecological service of inland wetlands? • Filter and degrade toxi waste and pollution • Reduce flooding and erosion by absorbing stormwater • Help maintain biodiversity by providing habitats • Help to moderate global temperatures • Help replenish streams during dry periods

Which of these human activities does NOT affect freshwater systems? • Over harvesting of wetland resources • Cities and farmlands producing pollution which runs off into aquatic systems • Dams and canals altering habitat and reducing flow • Flood control levels disconnect rivers from floodplains and wetlands • Filled-in wetlands to allow for development of farmland or urban areas

What factor determines the major type of organisms found in aquatic life zones? • Temperature • Density • Salinity • Nutrient levels • Elevation

Which is NOT true of benthos species? • They inhabit the benthic zone of lakes • They feed on marine snow in the profundal zone of oceans • They are mostly detrivores feeding on dead matter • They are adapted to darker colder waters • They thrive in oligotrophic conditions

Which is NOT a threat to coral reefs? • Increased temperature • Increased erosion and sedimentation • Increased UV exposure • Increased sea levels • Increased salinity

Which best describes the abyssal zone? • Dark, cold, high DO • Dark, warm, high DE • Dark, warm, low DO • Dark cold, low DO • Dark, warm fluctuating DO

The land area that delivers runoff, sediment and dissolved substances to a stream is a • Watershed • Source zone • Inland wetland • Coastal delta • Inland floodplain

Atmospheric Conditions and Climate Factors: Review and Key Concepts