Learning Unit 1: Physical Environment

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 Learning Outcomes
• Distinguish between the four spheres as described
• Indicate the relationship between climate, location,
amount of solar radiation and vegetation
• Distinguish between the eight biomes on earth, and
describe and indicate each on a world map
The four subsystems of the environment
Pages 1, 547, 548, 550, 551 in Middleton
Lithosphere  Earth’s crust and upper part of mantle.
 Consists of rocks (igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary), soil
and sediments.
 Weathering occurs where the lithosphere is exposed to the
atmosphere. This gives rise to the formation of soil.
Atmosphere  Gaseous layer surrounding earth
 Extends to a height of approximately 480 km above the earth's
surface.
 Divided into four parts (temperature change with height):
troposphere, stratosphere, mesosphere and thermosphere
 Weather occurs in the troposphere, the lowest part of the
atmosphere
 Responsible for the distribution of climates
Biosphere  The part of the earth where all organisms live.
 The atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere function together to
create the environment of the biosphere.
Hydrosphere  The water at or near the Earth’s surface as liquid, solid or gas.
 Includes oceans, lakes, rivers, streams, groundwater and water
vapour in the atmosphere.
 Biomes
Pages 3-7 in Middleton
 Tundra
• Absence of trees
• Vegetation: grasses, herbs, mosses,
lichens, small woody plants adapted to
a short summer growing season
• Receives little precipitation and soils
are nutrient poor.
• Cold climate
• Shallow soils are deeply frozen
(permafrost) for much of the year
• Animals hibernate or migrate in the
colder season
• Located north of the Arctic Circle
 Coniferous forest (boreal forest/taiga)
• Winters are very cold, summers are
longer than in the tundra
• Most of the trees are conifers – pine, fir
and spruce
• Trees are tall and have a narrow, pointy
shape and needles can shed snow more
easily than broad leaves.
• Subject to periodic fires
• Burn-regeneration cycle is important for
deer, bears and insects
• Soils are acidic
 Temperate forest
• Trees are deciduous
• Occur almost exclusively in the northern
hemisphere (northern Europe, eastern
China, eastern and Midwest USA, small
patches in South America and New
Zealand)
• Tall broadleaf tress
• Climate is seasonal with abundant water
supply during the growing season
• Amphibians (salamanders and frogs) also
occur here
 Tropical rainforest
• High amounts of rainfall and warm
temperatures throughout the year
• Trees are evergreen, broad-leaved and
most are pollinated by animals
• Many kinds of vines and epiphytes (ferns
and orchids) are found here
• Most of the nutrients are stored in the
biomass and soils contain little organic
matter
• Display multi-layered canopy, with low
levels of vegetation on the ground due to
lack of light
• Large biodiversity
 Savanna
• Savanna belts flank tropical rain forests in the
African and South American tropics
• Trees are widely spaced which allows grass to
grow between them
• Herds of grazing mammals occur here, along with
large carnivores such as lions, jackals and
hyenas
• These mammals also provide food for large
scavengers such as vultures
• Climate is warm all year, with a dry season for
several months during which fires occur
• Fires maintain the openness of the savanna
ecosystem and are important in nutrient cycling.
 Temperate grassland
• Great expanses of this biome are
located in Eurasia (steppe), North
America (prairie) and South America
(pampa) with smaller patches in South
Africa (veld).
• Trees are absent
• Vegetation is dominated by herbaceous
plants, most are grasses
• Climate is temperate, seasonal and dry
• Soils are deep and rich in organic
matter
 Desert
• Hyper-arid desert supports very little plant life,
with some species adapted to high and variable
temperatures
• Daily temperature range is high due to lack of
moisture and rainfall
• Characterised by bare rock and sand dunes
• Fog is an important source of moisture in
coastal deserts
• Sporadic and intense rain may promote rapid
growth of annual plants and animals, which lie
dormant for many years.
 Chaparral (Mediterranean/ maquis)
• Found around much of the
Mediterranean Basin (maquis), California
(chaparral), southern Australia (mallee),
Chile (mattöral) and South Africa
(fynbos).
• Summers are hot and dry, winters are
cool and moist.
• Low evergreen trees and shrubs have
thick bark and small, hard leaves to
tolerate the climatic extremes
• Soils are low in nutrients
• During summer, the biome is exposed to
fire, which is important for development
and regeneration.