Geography - Living World

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Ecosystem
All the living and non-living components in an environment and how they interact with one another.
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Organisms
The organisms in an ecosystem can be classed as producers, consumers or decomposers.
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Producers
An organism that uses sunlight energy to make food.
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Consumers
An organism that gets its energy from eating other organisms - it eats producers or other consumers.
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Decomposer
An organism that gets its energy by breaking down dead material e.g. dead producers or consumers and fallen leaves.
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Food Chain
Shows a chain of what eats what in an ecosystem.
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Food Web
Shows lots of food chains and how they overlap and affect one another.
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Decomposition
When dead material decomposes, nutrients are released into the soil; these nutrients are taken up by plants through their roots. The plant may then be eaten by a comsumer, and when that consumer dies and decomposes, the nutrients are re-released.
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Hot Desert Locations
Mostly located above the equator in the Eastern Hemisphere around the Tropic of Cancer (23.5*N). Central Australia is desert and is located along the Tropic of Capricorn (23.5*S). Countries include: North Africa, the Middle East, SW USA and Austalia.
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Hot Desert Climate
There's very little rainfall - when it rains also varies as it may be only once every two or three years. Temperatures are extreme - they range from very hot in the day (45*C) to very cold at night (5*C).
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Hot Desert Soil
The soil is usually shallow and coarse, with a gravelly texture. There's hardly any rainfall or leaf fall so the soil isn't very fertile.
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Hot Desert Vegetation
Plant growth is sparse due to the lack of rainfall. Plants that are well adapted to the dry conditions include Cacti and Thrombushes.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Locations
Mostly conentrated in the Northern Hemisphere between the Tropic of Cancer (23.5*N) and 60*N. Focused around the North Atlantic Ocean. Countries include: Most of Europe, China, Japan and SE USA.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Climate
Four distinct seasons - spring, summer, autumn and winter. The summers are warm and the winters are cool. There's rainfall all year round.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Soil
The soil is deep and very fertile because there is a thick layer of leaf fall.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Vegetation
There are three plant layers; the undergrowth contains brambles, mosses, ferns and lichens, the shrub layer contains small trees 5-20m tall e.g. hawthorn, and the tree layer contains 30m tall trees e.g. oak.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Soil Adaptations
Wildflowers e.g. bluebells are adapted to grow on the forest floow in spring before the trees grown their leaves and block out the light from the sun.
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Temperate Desiduous Woodland Climate Adaptations
The trees are desiduous; they drop their leaves in autumn and re-grow new ones in spring. This reduces water loss from leaves in months where it's harder to get water from soil because it may be frozen and there's not much light for photosynthesis.
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Deforestation
Removal of trees from a forest is called deforestation. It's happening on a huge scale in tropical rainforests such as the Amazon Rainforest.
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Causes of Deforestation - Farming
Forest is cleared to set up small subsistence farms or large commercial catle ranches. The 'slash and burn' technique is used; forest is cut down and left to dry and then burnt.
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Causes of Deforestation - Mineral Extraction
Minerals e.g. gold and iron ore and mined and sold to make money. Trees are cut down to expose ground and to clear access routes.
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Causes of Deforestation - Population Pressure
As the population of the area increases, trees are cleared to make land for new settlements to cope with the amount of people.
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Causes of Deforestation - Road Building
More settlements and industry e.g. logging and mining lead to more roads being built. Trees along the path of the road have to be cleared to make them.
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Causes of Deforestation - Commercial Logging
Trees are felled to be sold ot make money.
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Effects of Deforestation - Environmental
Loss of habitats, heavy rain washes away soil, soil seeps into rivers killing fish and wildlife, lack of the canopy makes areas prone to flooding, no leaf fall means nutrients aren't recycled, less photosynthesis and burning trees releases more CO2.
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Effects of Deforestation - Social
The quality of life for some improves with more job opportunities. Native tribe shas been forced to move off heir land and this creates conflict with the locals, landowners, mining companies and logging companies.
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Effects of Deforestation - Economic
Logging, farming and mining create jobs. A lot of money is made from selling timber, mining and commercial farming.
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Effects of Deforestation - Political
There's pressure from foreign governments to limit and stop deforestation.
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

The organisms in an ecosystem can be classed as producers, consumers or decomposers.

Back

Organisms

Card 3

Front

An organism that uses sunlight energy to make food.

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

An organism that gets its energy from eating other organisms - it eats producers or other consumers.

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

An organism that gets its energy by breaking down dead material e.g. dead producers or consumers and fallen leaves.

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
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