ASIA: CLIMATE, NATURAL

VEGETATION AND WILDLIFE

GIVE REASONS:
1. The monsoon winds blow in summer
from south west to north east.
A. During summer the main land of Asia
gets heated and develops low pressure
where as Indian Ocean has high
pressure. As winds always blow from
high pressure to low pressure in summer
they blow from south west to north east.
2. The Ocean currents affect the climate
of a region.
A. The cold and warm Ocean currents
affect the climate of a region.
Ex: The cold Oyashio current, which
comes from the north and washes the
western coast of Japan ,affects the
climate of Japan by making it extremely
cold, where as the east coast of Japan is
washed by the warm Kuroshio current
that makes the winter milder.
3. The climate of Indonesia is equatorial
type.
A. The equatorial type of climate is
found between 100N to 100 S latitudes.
Indonesian islands are located in this
region. So, the climate of Indonesia is
equatorial type.

DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN THE

FOLLOWING
1. Tundra and equatorial type of
vegetation.
A. Tundra type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation is found in
northern Russia, bordering the Arctic
Ocean.
 The vegetation consists of mosses
and lichens.
Equatorial type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation found in
Malaysia, Indonesia and parts of
Philippines.
 The vegetation consists of a
variety of trees, palms and ferns with
dense undergrowth of shrubs and
creepers.
2. Deciduous and desert vegetation.
A. Deciduous type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation is found in
south, southeast and east Asia.
 Vegetation consists of species like
teak, sal, sandalwood, peepal, neem
and bamboo.
 Desert type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation found in
south west and central Asia.
 Vegetation consists of Acacia,
cacti, date palms.
3. Monsoon and Taiga type of
vegetation.
A. Monsoon type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation is found in
south, southeast and east Asia.
 Vegetation consists of species like
teak, sal, sandalwood, peepal, neem
and bamboo.
Taiga type of vegetation:
 This type of vegetation found in a
broad belt in the central part of
Siberia.
 Vegetation consists of pine, fir,
cedar and spruce.

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS

1. Describe the factors that affect the
climate of Asia.
A. The factors that affect the climate of
Asia are:
 Latitudes
• Monsoon winds
 Direction of the mountain ranges
  Distance from the sea
 Ocean currents.
2. Compare and contrast the summer
and winter conditions of Asia.
A. Summer conditions in Asia:
During the summer when the sun is
directly above the tropic of cancer, the
main landmass of Asia develops low
pressure. The surrounding seas being
cooler develop high pressure. Since
winds blow over the oceans, they pick up
moisture and give heavy rainfall in south
Asia. These are known as southwest
monsoon winds as they blow from
southwest to northeast.
Winter conditions in Asia:
During winter, when direct rays of the
sun fall on the tropic of Capricorn,
central Asia becomes extremely cold and
develops high pressure. Northeast
monsoon winds blow from northeast to
southwest. They pick up moisture from
Bay of Bengal and give rainfall to
eastern coast of India.
3. Where are the Coniferous forests
found in Asia?
A. Coniferous forests are found in a
broad belt in the central part of Siberia,
located to the south of Tundra region.
4. Compare and contrast the natural
vegetation of equatorial region and
tundra region.
A. Equatorial evergreen forests:
 These forests thrive because of
large amount of rainfall due to hot
and wet climate.
 Hence evergreen rainforests are
found in Malaysia, Indonesia and
parts of Philippines.
 These forests consist of a variety
of trees, palms and fens with dense
undergrowth of shrubs and creepers.
Tundra type of vegetation:
  This type of vegetation is found in
northern Russia, bordering the
Arctic Ocean.
 The vegetation consists of mosses
and lichens.
 This area is covered with snow for
most of the year.
5. How do Himalayas affect the climate
of Asia?
A. The east west trend of Himalayas in
south Asia prevents the cold winds from
central Asia to enter the subcontinent in
winter. They force the monsoon winds to
shed their moisture in the south during
the rainy season.