Biogeochem - Geoecology Flashcards
(52 cards)
What are the driving factors that influence what vegetation is found where?
pH of the soil (influenced by the geology)
human impact
geology of the site
rainfall rate (leaching)
What is the CLORPT equation (what do they stand for)
Soil properties = f (climate, organisms, relief/topography, parent material, time
What is a physiological range?
Plants have an optimum range but can grown outside of this range until they reach a physiological stress.
- eg they might grow but not flower…
Examples of physiological ranges
too wet / too dry
too hot / too cold
How is the physiological range determined
It is usually determined in labs
Name an example of a plant that grown in the Alps and what properties does it have?
Saxifraga Bryoides
- can cope with light limtations
- each species has a certain temperature range in which it can survive
what is a zone of intolerance?
A region that is so far removed from an organism’s optimal range for an environmental variable that the organism cannot survive.
What does euryoecious mean / refer to?
A species with a wide ecological tolerance
What does stenoecious mean / refer to
species with a narrow ecological tolerance (can only live in a restricted range of environments)
What does eurytherm, euryphag, euryhaline and euryhydrous refer to?
species with a wide tolerance of
- temperature (eurytherm)
- nutrients (euryphag)
- salt (euryhaline)
- moisture (euryhygrous)
What does stenotherm and stenohaline refer to
Species with a narrow tolerance of
- temperature (stenotherm)
- salt (stenohaline)
What term would be used to describe a species with the highest potential as an indicator for wet or dry conditions?
Stenohygrous
What does an ecogram show?
The dryness vs the acidity
What does a dominant species mean in nature
It means it outcompete other species… NOT that is grows best
What region is it when Scotts Pine dominates?
It dominates in the extreme regions (usually opposites)
very dry and very acidic
very wet and very acidic
very wet and alkaline
Why can’t pine trees grow within its physiological preferred range?
Other trees dominate over it. It has the capability to grow. in its optimum region but other trees dominate over it as pine grows slower.
What are the 7 ecological indicator values/factors
Light (L)
Temperature (T)
Continentality (K)
Soil Moisture (F)
Soil Reaction (R)
Nutrient (N)
Salinity (S)
What is the scale for the 7 indicators?
(hint… 1 exception)
L, T, K, R, N, S all have a scale from 1-9 where 1 means low and 9 means high
F (soil moisture) has a scale from 1-12 where 1 is completely dry and 12 is permanently submerged
9 means very continental so lots of temperature swing… 1 means low continentality so very little temperature swing.
- lower continentality limits the environments in which it can grow
What soil pH is limestone
Alkaline
How does the geology influence/dictate where vegetation grows?
Different rock types (and therefore soils) can accommodate different vegetation
What are calcicoles?
Plant species which require / grow in high calcium levels in the soil
What are calcifuges?
Plant species which don’t require / grow in soils with high calcium levels
Which soil has a higher plant diversity… Calcium rich or calcium poor?
Calcium rich
Name a species that is a Calcicole
Horseshoe Vetch
