Concept Checks: Ch. 34 The Biosphere
ANSWERS
Concept Check 34.1
1. Draw a diagram showing the relationship among the five levels of ecological study.
Will vary by student – should have individual, population, community, ecosystem, and then biosphere
2. Describe what is meant by the "patchiness" of the environment.
Ecosystems are unevenly distributed on Earth due to different abiotic factors
3. Explain the importance of sunlight as an abiotic factor in terrestrial ecosystems.
Sunlight is the energy source for photosynthesis in plants- main producers in terrestrial biomes
4. Define biotic and abiotic factors and give an example of each for a particular ecosystem.
Biotic factors are like a tree, abiotic are nonliving physical and chemical conditions like sunlight
5. Explain why it is more accurate to define the biosphere as the global ecosystem than as the global
community.
Ecosystem encompasses biotic and abiotic factors, communities only have biotic factors
Concept Check 34.2
1. Explain how the uneven heating of Earth's surface creates different temperature zones.
Sun’s rays hit most directly at Earth’s equator, higher latitudes less heat is absorbed as solar energy spreads
over larger area, regions closet to the equator form warmest zone, farthest from equator coldest zones
2. How do surface currents affect climate patterns?
Some surface currents carry warm water from tropics to poles’ others carry cold water back. This affects
climate of nearby continents
3. Why might a town located on a large lake be cooler in the summer than a town 100 kilometers away from the
lake?
Water tends to absorb and release heat more slowly than other substances. Because lake waters warm more
slowly than land after a cold winter, in summer the town on the lake tends to be cooler than the inland town.
4. Give an example of a microclimate.
Bear hibernating in the winter takes advantage of the den’s microclimate
Concept Check 34.3
1. What factors determine the type of biome in an area?
Abiotic, especially climate, determines the biomes that exist at different latitudes.
2. Compare and contrast tropical rain forests, temperate deciduous forests, and coniferous forests.
Tropical rain forest: most rain, year-round warm temperatures, greatest diversity of life
Temperate Deciduous forest: moderate rain, warm summers, cold winters, trees shed leaves
Coniferous forests: drier and colder, trees do not lose their leaves
3. Give an example of how a desert organism has adapted to the abiotic conditions there.
Mammals that burrow or active in evening, cactus with pleats that expand to store water
Concept Check 34.4
1. Describe the abiotic factors that affect organisms in ponds, streams, and estuaries.
Salt content, temperature, sunlight, depth, width, and nutrient availability
2. Compare and contrast the intertidal zone, neritic zone, and oceanic zone.
Intertidal: closest to shore, has benthic organisms adapted to surf and changes in temperature and moisture
Neritic: from low tide line edge to the continental shelf; sunlight reaches bottom in most places
Oceanic: from continental shelf outward; zooplankton, dolphins, whales, squid, and many species of fish
3. Discuss sunlight as an abiotic factor in coral reefs and vent communities.
Readily available sunlight so many photosynthetic organisms, sunlight never reaches hydrothermal vents so
organisms use chemical energy to make food