Environment, Resources, and Competition Report - Essay Example

Such conditions provide for the specific survival mechanisms for the creatures found in this biome, especially as concerns the plant kingdom (see below). However, annual changes in average temperatures are not so great so as to warrant great differences between the life forms active in different seasons. With respect to precipitation, its levels range between the extremities of 75 and 125 cm/yr, accordingly. The precipitation is often distributed unevenly, with some years seeing the majority of rains falling in spring and early summer, while sometimes late summer and autumn are characterized by the relative lack of precipitation.

Nevertheless, this correlation is now always true, as sometimes the early fall becomes a true time of rains. On the other hand, winter is rather mild and dry here, with little snow falls of any importance being registered in the area. This is directly caused by the lack of prolonged below zero periods (see above). Finally, the impact of close proximity of rivers and lakes should be noted, as they both provide a foundation for the biome’s nutrition and alter the functioning of some climate effects.

For instance, the presence of Lake Erie causes the first fall frost in the area to be delayed for some time. The impact of this phenomenon on the surrounding eco-system is significant in itself, with the habitats around the lake being subject to its influence. Superficially, the adaptive mechanisms of the species living in the area are less developed than those of the more extreme climates. Nevertheless, the species under consideration are rather well prepared to tackle the challenges of their habitats.

The change in seasons entails the respective alterations in the ecological dynamics of the forests, as the warm seasons are accompanied with the great increase of productivity of plant life – while the cold seasons are characterized by the mass drop-off of the trees’ leaves and their subsequent decomposition, which prepares the ground (both literally and causally) for the next flowering of plants in spring. This cycle of growth and decomposition may be less intense than those observed in the tropical forests, but it is still remarkable for its vigor and profound role for the maintenance of the eco-system.

As to the animal kingdom in this biome, the latter is divided into several functional groups that play different roles in the eco-system’s life. The invertebrates dwelling in the decayed leaves provide the source of nutrition for numerous terrestrial amphibians, small mammals, etc., while these latter form the main food resources for the predator populations. 2. Having reviewed the data presented in the temperature and precipitation graphs, it is evident that the diversity of biomes is directly predicated on the differing levels of exposure to temperature and precipitation changes that occur in each of their types.

For instance, while taiga biomes are characterized by the average temperature levels between -10 and 14°C, for a tropical rain forest the temperatures of 20 and 34°C are more typical. The same situation may be observed in the case of precipitation. Here the extremes are found in desert and tropical rain forest biomes. The former are characterized by barely present precipitation of between 0 and 25 cm/yr, and the latter may boast the average precipitation levels of 200 to 400 cm/yr. It is then understandable that the great differences in plant and animal