Geography 316: Biogeography                                       Fall 2002 

Exam 1 Review

Review the following terms and concepts for the exam.

Concentrate on lecture notes, assignments, quizzes.  Rely on the text for clarification or further detail, remember the reserved readings).

Physical Geography Terms and Concepts:
Earth as a Sphere
 earth size/ shape
 meridians/parallels
 latitude/longitude
 earth's rotation
 effects of rotation
 axial tilt
 perihelion/aphelion
 solstice and equinoxes

Rotation and Revolution and their effects on the planet's biosphere
Declination of the sun ( know how to calculate it given a location and date)
Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn

Biodiversity :
  What does it mean?
   terms Species, population, community, ecosystem
  naming things (taxonomy)
Gradients in Biodiversity
    Primary productivity ,   structure and composition
    Diversity in time : Succession: Primary & Secondary, Disturbance
              what types of plants would you expect at the various stages of succession
              Characteristics of each seral stage
Taxonomic Classes (Kingdom. Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species)
Morphological and Biological species concepts

 Ecosystems/Processes
Definitions
Biotic Structure of the Ecosystem
    Laws of Thermodynamics
    Food Chains/Trophic Levels Ecosystems, Food chains

Ecotones
Factors that Influence Ecosystem

Nutrient Cycling
Photosynthesis/Respiration / Gross & Net Production
Types of photosynthesis :  C3 ,  C4 ,  CAM
     Character chart / Comparisons
Implications
  Distribution / Agriculture

Climates
 Definition
  Global processes
           high pressure / low pressure
Global wind patterns
Ocean currents
Precipitation Types
Climatic classification
            General/ Climographs (be able recognize specific Koeppen climate classifications based on climographs)

Biomes
 Definitions
 Structural Components
            (life form, size & stratification, coverage, periodicity, leaf shape & size, leaf texture)
 General Biomes
 Specific Terrestrial Biomes (know the characteristics of each i.e. location, climate, soil, flora and fauna, as well as human impacts)
      Tropical Rainforest /Temperate Deciduous Forest/Temperate Rainforest /
       Northern Boreal Forest / Tropical Grassland & Savanna / Temperate Grassland / Mediterranean/ Desert/ Tundra
 Aquatic Biomes
     Marine / Freshwater Biomes
     
Distribution
 Range of Tolerance
Limiting Factors: Abiotic & Biotic Factors
           intra and interspecific competition,
           predation/parasitism
          amensalism, mutualism