Global Environments Introducing Physical Environments.
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Transcript of Global Environments Introducing Physical Environments.
Global Environments
Introducing Physical Environments
Key Terms: physical environments
• A community of interacting plants and animals and their physical surroundings
Ecosystem
• Water-based communities of plants and animals
Aquatic Ecosystem
• Land-based communities of plants and animals
Terrestrial Ecosystem
• A vegetation community occupying a large area of the earth’s surfaceBiome
• The long-term weather pattern for a place or regionClimate
Understanding The Text
Read pages 104-5 of Global Explorations and answer the following questions: Define the term ‘ecosystem’ in your own
words Distinguish between aquatic and
terrestrial ecosystems What important role does climate have
in determining the type of ecosystems that exist in an area?
Activity: Interpreting Photographs
Photo
Type of physical environment or ecosystem
Dominant Features Climate
1 Coniferous forest Tall trees with thin branches
Cool (mist/leaves)
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Examine the photographs on page 106 of Global Explorations and complete the following table. See unit 5.1 for help identifying the ecosystems.
Types of Ecosystems
Aquatic
Oceans River estuaries
Coastal Wetlands
Coral Reefs
Terrestrial
Tropical Rainforest Tropical Savanna
Temperate grassland Forest
Mangroves Tundra
Which terrestrial ecosystem was missing from the sorting vortex?
Key Terms: weather & climate
• The weight of the air pressing down on the earth’s surface
Atmospheric Pressure
• A large body of air with similar temperature and moisture characteristicsAir mass
• The boundary between two air massesFront
• Any moisture reaching the surface of the earth, such as rain, snow and sleetPrecipitation
• Rainfall that occurs when warm, moist air is forced to rise by a mountain barrier. The rain falls on the mountain’s windward side
Orographic rainfall
• The conversion of liquid water into water vapourEvaporation
Understanding the Text
Read page 108 of Global Explorations and answer the following questions: Explain the difference between weather and
climate. Explain how high-pressure and low-pressure
systems develop. Describe the type of weather usually associated with each.
What are air masses? What is precipitation? Name the various
types.
Understanding the Text
Read pages 109-112 of Global Explorations and answer the following questions: Explain why temperatures are lower at higher
latitudes. Explain how seasonal differences affect climate. Describe how elevation affects climate. Outline the ways in which mountain ranges affect
climate. Explain how distance from the sea affects climate. Describe the impact that warm and cold ocean
currents have on climate.
Key Terms: The Water Cycle
• The conversion of water vapour into droplets of liquid vapour
Condensation
• The loss of water vapour from the leaves of plants
Transpiration
• The movement of water down through the soilInfiltration
• The movement of water down through the soil to become groundwater
Percolation
• The movement of surface water down slopesRunoff
Key Terms continued
• The ability of some rock types to store air or water in small spaces between the material it is made from
Porous
• Water stored beneath the earth’s surfaceGroundwat
er
• A layer of rock in which water is foundAquifer
• The level to which an aquifer is filledWater Table
Understanding the Text
Read pages 113-4 of Global Explorations and answer these questions: What is the water cycle? Why is the water cycle referred to as a closed system? What powers the water cycle? What is evaporation? What determines the amount of water vapour in the air? Why do regions near the Equator receive more rainfall than
other areas? What name is given to the process by which water vapour
is converted into droplets of liquid water? Describe what happens to precipitation once it reaches the
earth’s surface.
Key Terms: Ecosystems and food webs
• Organisms (plants) that produce their own food via the process of photosynthesis
Producers
• An organism that gains its energy requirements by eating plant or animal matter
Consumer
• Organisms that break down the remains of other living things
Decomposers
• The process by which green plants trap the energy from sunlight and use it to make food (such as sugars) from water and carbon dioxide
Photosynthesis
Key Terms continued
• Animals that eat only plants
Herbivores
• Animals that eat only meat
Carnivores
• Animals that eat both plants and meat
Omnivores
Game: Herbivore, Carnivore or Omnivore?
Understanding the Text
Read page115-6 of Global Explorations and answer these questions: What does each ecosystem have? Outline the factors that interact to
produce the variety of ecosystems on earth.
Understanding the Text
Read pages 117-9 and answer these questions: Explain how ecosystems get their energy. Explain the difference between a producer and a consumer
in a food chain. Outline how green plants manufacture their own food. Explain the difference between a herbivore and a
carnivore. What is an omnivore? Outline the role of decomposers in the food chain. Explain why there is no waste in an ecosystem. Identify what a food web shows that a food chain does not. What happens to the energy that is taken in by an animal
when it eats some grass?