Soil Order and Their Associated Environmental Climates - Essay Example

The vertisol order of arid soils comprises soils that contain swelling clays that develop deep wide cracks at specific periods of the year. Entisol, on the other hand, comprises soils that exhibit very little or absolutely no signs of the formation of pedogenic horizons.

From the surface, arid soils comprise torrifluvents followed by torriorthents as one digs deeper beneath. Torrifluvents are recent deposits of alluvial plains that are flooded periodically. They make up the irrigated soils in arid climates. Torriorthents, on the other hand, have highly soluble salts and aridic moisture conditions because they are found deeper beneath the surface (Dregne 92).

Associated climate

The climate in the arid regions experiences largely uninterrupted sunshine for the entire year. This comes as a result of the high pressure in the air and the stable descending air. Arid regions are found 30 degrees latitudes north and south of the equator. Temperatures in these regions range between 400C and 450C all around the year. Ordinarily, arid regions have little rain during winter. However, they are devoid of rain all through the year. Usually, the difference between the highest and the lowest rainfall in arid regions that are recorded in different years is approximately 50% of the mean annual rainfall (Schwabe 76).

Associated vegetation

Arid regions have scarce vegetation. The plant forms in these regions can be distinguished into 3. These are:

• Ephemeral annuals
• Succulent perennials
• Nonsucculent perennials

The ephemeral annuals are plants that appear after the rains and complete their life cycles in a short season of about 8 weeks. Succulent perennials accumulate and store the absorbed water. These are cacti. Nonsucculent perennials make up the majority of vegetation or plants in arid regions. They include hardy grasses, shrubs, and woody herbs that can endure the harsh environmental conditions in arid zones (Ribot, Antonio 95).

It goes without noticing the adaptive features of the vegetation that thrives in the arid zones. For instance, some have extensive root systems that run deep beneath the surfaces to reach the relatively moisturized strata of soil. Some also reduce their transpiration surfaces by either shading their leaves during summer or by rolling their leaves. This helps in regulating water loss through transpiration (Dregne 132). Other plants in these regions also have heavily wax-coated leaves that lessen transpiration. Plants with this adaptation are called sclerophylls.

Representative location (country)

The countries in which arid conditions are experienced include:

Region

Countries

West Africa

Benin

Mauritania

Burkina Faso

Ghana

Nigeria

Liberia

Sierra Leone

Mali

Senegal

East and Southern Africa

Angola

Eritrea

Botswana

Ethiopia

Madagascar

Kenya

Lesotho

Malawi

Rwanda

Sudan

Namibia

South Africa

South Sudan

Mozambique

Swaziland

Uganda

Zambia

Tanzania

Zimbabwe

Central Asia

Kazakhstan

Turkmenistan

Tajikistan

Kyrgyzstan

Uzbekistan

South Asia

Bangladesh

Pakistan

India

Sri Lanka

Central Africa

Cameroon

Gabon

DR of the Congo

Chad

Niger