GEOG 120 Lecture Notes - Lecture 22: Biogeography, Seral Community, Pedogenesis
Document Summary
Module 12: biogeography: describe environmental factors influencing the distribution of organisms, explain the concept of ecological succession, identify the major global biomes and describe their general distribution. they do, and how did they get there?) Biogeography: the patterns of distribution (why do the things live in the places. Studies the how and why of geographic distribution of living things. Vegetation provides a good basis for identifying distinct biotic spatial units. Climatic conditions strongly influence, even control, vegetation. Plant structures and life cycles necessarily include adaptations to climate variability. Variability occurs at macro-, meso-, and micro- climate scales. Moisture, heat, light, atmospheric gases, nutrients vary spatially, and temporally. Environmental stress determines an organism"s tolerance limits and adaptation requirements. Limiting factors influence or control distribution see tolerance limits diagram in text for number of individuals affected by amounts of limiting factors. Different strategies used to evade, escape or endure environmental stresses and limiting factors.
