BIO 1306 Chapter Notes - Chapter 52: Herbaceous Plant, Limnetic Zone, Benthic Zone
Document Summary
Chapter 52: an introduction to ecology and the biosphere. Ecology is the scientific study of the interactions between organisms and the environment. These interactions determine the distribution of organisms and their abundance. Four major abiotic components of climate are temperature, precipitation, sunlight and wind. What is the different between weather and climate: climate is affected seasonally, large bodies of water and mountains. Seasonality caused by the tilt of the earth"s axis of rotation and its annual passage ariund the sun. Oceans, their currents, and large lakes moderate the climate or nearby terrestrial environments. Rising air releases moisture on the windward side of a peak and creates a rain shadow as it absorbs moisture on the leeward side. As glaciers retreated 16,000 years ago tree distribution patterns changed. As climate changes, species that have difficulty dispersing may have smaller ranges or could become extinct. Biomes are major life zones characterizes by vegetation type (terrestrial biomes) or physical environment (aquatic biomes)
