Global Climate Classification and Vegetation Relationships

1. Global Climate Classification and Vegetation Relationships

2. Weather vs. Climate • Weather • short-term condition of the atmosphere • days, weeks • meteorologists • Climate • long-term (30 year) average of weather conditions and extremes • climatologists

3. Climate Determinants • Insolation and Temperature • latitude, altitude, land-water, ocean currents, mountain barriers • Precipitation • Air pressure (ITCZ and Subtropical Highs) • Air mass influences • Prevailing winds

4. The Köppen Climate Classification • A Tropical (equatorial regions) • B Deserts (arid, semiarid) • C Mesothermal (mild winter) • D Microthermal (boreal, cold winter)) • E Polar (always cold) • H Highland (mountains, plateaus)

5. The Köppen Climate Classification 3 letter system First letter = temperature Second letter = precipitation Third letter = finer shades of temp Csb = mediterranean C = middle latitude temps s = summer dry b = warm summers (as opposed to hot [a])

6. Reading a Climograph

7. Koppen’s Categories

8. Climate Regions

9. Vegetation Regions

10. Tropical Climates (A)

11. Tropical Climates (A) • 1/3 of Earth’s total surface (about 20 ºN to 20 ºS) • Consistently warm (all months > 18ºC/64.4 ºF) • Daily temp range exceeds annual temp range • Subcategories based on rainfall (ITCZ influence) • Subcategories based on rainfall distribution: • Tropical rainforest (Af) • Tropical savanna (Aw)

12. Tropical Rainforest (Af) • High rainfall all year (>2” / month) • Warm every month • Precipitation exceeds evaporation. • Straddles Equator by 5o - 10o

13. Tropical Rainforest (Af) • Vegetation : Highest average biomass on earth. Highest biodiversity on earth!Thousands of species, tall trees, many canopy layers, evergreen, broadleaf trees, epiphytes, lianas (vines), climbers, stranglers, ferns • Fauna:More species than all other biomes combined!, colorful insects, amphibians, reptiles, and birds, few large animals, high density of biomass and incredible species diversity • Other: Among most threatened biomes

15. Lianas Epiphytes Buttresses

16. Deforestation, Malaysia Strangler Fig 3-Toed Sloth, Panama

17. Savanna (Aw) – Tropical Grassland Climates • The tropical wet and dry or savanna (Aw) has an extended dry season during winter. • Region/Distribution: Subequatorial Africa, and South America, Southern India (25° N and S Latitude) • Vegetation: Continuous cover of grasses, scattered trees or shrubs • Other: Susceptible to desertification Masai Reserve, Kenya Acacia and Wildebeest Serengeti Plain, Tanzania

18. Dry / Semiarid Climates (B) • Occupy about 1/3 of Earth’s land area (Most extensive climate over land surface) • Evaporation exceeds precipitation (water deficit) • Subcategories • Desert (BW) • Steppe (BS)

19. Dry Arid / Semiarid Climates (B)

20. Deserts (BW): dry

21. Temperature: • Widest range: up to 100oF/day! • Hot at low latitudes, wide variation at higher latitudes Deserts (BW): • Precipitation: • Scarce: <10 inches/year • Unreliable: wide variation from average • Intense: convective downpours • Desert Causation: • High Pressure Cells and resultant stability • Rainshadows

22. True Deserts (BW) • Vegetation: Widely scattered thorny bushes, cacti, small flowers, extensive shallow roots or long tap roots, shrubs, succulents • Fauna: Many rodents, lizards, toads, snakes and other reptiles, many birds, owls, vultures, many insects (adaptive strategies) • Other: Deserts cover roughly 1/3 of earth. May be growing due to desertification. • Steppe: semi-arid high elevation or high latitude

24. Desert Plant Survival Strategies • schlerophyllousadaptations - small, waxy leaves or thorns replace leaves • succulents - stems modified to spongy water storage structures • ephemerals(obligate seeders) - fast reproductive cycle • wide spacing with shallow roots - collect sparse rainfall

25. Death Valley, CA

26. Anza-Borrego State Park, CA Winter 2004/2005

29. Organ Pipe CactusOrgan Pipe National Monument, Arizona

30. Steppe (BS): temperate grasslands • more precipitation than BW • narrower temperature ranges • grasslands

32. Temperate Grassland/Steppe (BS) • Region/Distribution: Central North America, parts of Africa, Australia, SE South America (Pampas) • Soil: very fertile soils, best on earth • Vegetation: Grass tall to short prairie, pampas, steppe. Sod forming grasses, Sparse bushes, occasional trees in some areas • Fauna: large grazing animals, bison, antelope, wild horses, kangaroos, giraffes, burrowing animals: rabbits, prairies dogs…; predators: coyotes, lions, leopards…... • Other: Most N. American grasslands have been converted to agricultural fields. Wild grazers replaced by cattle, sheep, goats. Less than 1% of original grasses left.

35. Mesothermal Climates/Temperate (C) • True seasonality (air mass conflict) • Subdivisions based on precipitation variation • Humid Subtropical (Cfa) • Mediterranean (Cs) Humid Subtropical Broad-leaf Deciduous Forest Allegheny Mtns., Pennsylvania Mediterranean Coastal Sage ScrublandChannel Islands N.P., California

36. Subtropical Forest Sarasota, Florida Mesothermal Climates (C) Humid Subtropical (Cfa)Mediterranean (Cs)

37. Humid SubtropicalMidlatitude Forests • Hot summer, substantial year-round precipitation • Low latitude east coasts (warm currents). • Summer max precipitation. • Cold spells; seasonality. Cfa - New Orleans, LA

38. Temperate Broad-leafed Forest (Deciduous) • Region/Distribution: Western Europe, East Asia, Eastern U.S.. Between 30-50° north or south • Soil: brown soils, good for agriculture • Vegetation: Broad-leafed deciduous trees, (120-150’ tall), oaks, hickories, maples, … • Fauna: mammals such as white tail deer, porcupines, raccoons, rabbits, squirrels, most carnivores eliminated by hunting i.e. wolf, mountain lion, bobcat; many birds; frogs and salamanders, snakes • Other: Plants and animals well adapted to seasonality including hibernation, migration

40. Mediterranean • Dry summers (shifting subtropical highs) • Surrounds Mediterranean • Also on west coasts near 30o N and S (Australia, S. Africa, Chile)

41. Mediterranean • Region/Distribution: West coast and Central California, SW. Australia, tip of S. Africa, West Peru. Chile, Mediterranean (good wine places!) • Vegetation: Scrubland, scattered trees (oaks, eucalyptus), grasses. Fire tolerant, sclerophyllous (hard-leafed) evergreens, chaparral (scrubby evergreen) • Fauna: Burrowers like ground squirrels, gophers; deer, mountain lions, coyotes, many birds • Other: Susceptible to fire during dry season, some species need fire to regenerate; susceptible to erosion and desertification, development; threatened biome

43. Chaparral

44. Manzanita

46. Microthermal Climates (D) Only found in Northern Hemisphere

47. Subarctic Climates (Boreal or Taiga) • 50o-70o N latitude • long, bitterly cold winters • highest annual temp range: up to 100O F • Great annual temperature ranges (continentality, air mass conflicts) Dw – Calgary, Canada

48. Coniferous (Boreal) Forest – Koppen D • Region/Distribution: Northern parts of North America, Europe and Asia, South So. America, much of Russia • Vegetation: Coniferous (mostly evergreen) forest, ex. Spruce, Fir, Pine, Larch, needle-leaved • Fauna: Large herbivores: moose, elk; small herbivores: squirrels snowshoe hare, beaver; Predators: wolves, foxes, bears, lynx, weasel family; Mosquitoes in summer • Other: Acid rain, logging , oil drilling, hunting of predators

49. Fir Trees, Alaska Spruce Needles British Columbia

50. Polar Climates (E)- all months < 50OF