Tropical Rainforests

Advantages of CITES

180 countries have signed up. It protects a wide variety of species. Has had some key successes such as reducing the Ivory trade. Worked very well for so-called high-profile cute and cuddly animals.

What percentage of the worlds species live in the rainforest?

50%

Boreal Forest economic activity in Canada

500,000 people employed in jobs relating to the industry Generates US$15 Billion annually.

What percentage of the Earth is rainforest?

6%

What is a large decay transfer?

A large decay transfer is when litter stores decay quickly due to hot wet conditions

What are Tar sands

A mixture of fossil fuel oil and sediment that can be mined and heated to separate the oil

What is acid rain

Acid rain is rain with a pH lower than 5.7.

Why does deforestation happen in the boreal forest.

Almost all paper production comes from Soft wood trees that grow in the worlds Northern forest. 80% of all trees cutdown each year are softwoods. Many of the worlds largest paper produces our countries which have huge areas of coniferous forest e.g. Canada and the US. Softwood is also used in construction timber. Mining - oil and gas extraction as well as ores.

Definition of biotic?

Living

Name two case studies Relating to boreal forests.

Athabasca tar sands Canada and James Bay HEP project Canada

Biodiversity in the boreal forest

Biodiversity is low As Plants and animals can only survive if they are specially adapted to the winter. Little food.

Predictions of drought

By 2100 between 30% and 60% of the Amazon rainforest could become a dry Savannah.

Describe vegetation.

Coniferous trees, spruce and pine in order to shed winter snow. Branches are flexible in order to shed without breaking. Leaves are protected by waxy coating preventing frost damage. Roots or shallow to support the trees but avoid the permafrost (Frozen soil)

What is CITES

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. It is an international treaty that aims to stop the buying and selling of endangered species so that illegal hunting will stop.

Describe the model.

Core Area -no human use or settlement only scientific research permitted. Buffer area-Limited settlement and use, mainly eco-tourism and local people educated in sustainable use of the reserve. Transition more 'normal' economic activity but still limited and protected in protected

Direct threat to the boreal forest.

Countries which chop down the most trees are those with boreal forests. Canada and Russia account for over 40% of all deforestation between 2000 and 2013.

What is litter?

Decaying leaves and twigs that return nutrients to the soil

Impacts of Athabasca Tar sands

Deforestation and strip mining (Digging large holes in the ground to extract the ore) destroying ecosystems. Creates toxic waste. Tar sands lie under an area of 150,000 km²

Impacts of Athabasca tar sands

Deforestation and stripmining (digging large holes in the ground) destroying ecosystems. Produces Toxic waste. 1.7 trillion barrels of oil lay in tar sands on the earth.

Name three examples of direct threats

Democratic Republic of Congo- Coltan which is a mineral used in mobile phones is dug from the ground by poor families and sold to TNCs. Brazil - the Tucurui dam was built and forest destroyed in order to build it as well as this the majority of the electricity is used for mining by TNCs Indonesia - Palm oil plantations. There are 6million hectares of Parm oil plantations, palm oil is used in food and cosmetics and biodiesel. Huge areas of forest are burnt for the plantations.

Challenges facing world heritage sites

Despite the extra level of protection policing mining, hunting and deforestation is difficult.

What are the two types of threats forests?

Direct threats and indirect threats

What are direct threats

Direct threats involve deliberately cutting down trees

Advantages of our REDD

Eco-tourism is being developed to provide extra income for families. The funding has also built seven schools and added solar panels. Without protection 60% of Jumas forest would have gone by 2050.

List advantages of sustainable forest management.

Economic -Reduces poverty by creating income from alternative livelihoods e.g. eco-tourism. Social - may involve improving facilities to benefit the community e.g. schools. Environmental - protect forest biodiversity and other resources such as rivers using renewable energy to limit pollution.

Name the three different types of plants?

Epiphytes Lianas Drip tip leave

Describe the layers of the tropical rainforest.

Forest floor - it is very dark, ferns with large leaves dwell here and mammals live here. Under canopy - contains younger trees and those with large leaves to capture sunlight. Huge number of insects live here Dense canopy layer - home to tree snakes, birds and other animals because there is so much food available. Emergent layer - hardwood, evergreen trees have broken through the dense canopy layer to reach the sunlight. Monkeys and birds live here.

What is GIS?

Geographic Information System

How might GIS prevent future deforestation?

Geographic information systems like Google Earth can show the rate of deforestation on a wide scale and therefore you can work out what needs to be protected.

Define sustainable forest management.

He considers forest by ensuring they are not used faster then they can be renewed.

Why are rates of deforestation in different countries different

In Low income countries there are high levels of deforestation because economic development is more important then Conservation. In middle-income countries forest areas are often protected so there is lower rate of deforestation In other countries places are isolated and difficult to access so rates of deforestation are lower

What are national parks in the Russia, US and CANADA

In national parks in the US, Canada and Russia conservation takes priority over the exploitation of resources. These usually exceed a Thousand hectares in size, they have legal protection on a budget with park rangers to monitor the area

How do invasive species effect boreal forests

In recent decades the increase in insect infestation has increased disease affecting the coniferous trees. They reduce the value of the forest. They can kill trees affecting the food web therefore altering biodiversity Forest trees that can resist pests and diseases can grow (biodiversity declines)

What are indirect threats

Indirect threats come from pollution global warming or disease

What are intact forests.

Intact forests are original forests not replanted forest, the large forest area allow animals to move and migrate.

Describe the climate.

It has a sub Arctic climate. Maximum temperatures of 20°C with short wet summers. Temperatures as low as -20°C with long winters. Low precipitation only as much as the 750 mm per year

What is the climate of the tropical rainforest like?

It has high temperatures are between 26 and 32°, on average there is up to 3 m of rain per year and there is no dry season.

What is the nutrient cycle?

It is a circulation of nutrients between abiotic and biotic parts of the ecosystem

Disadvantages of our REDD

It is a large area and hard to police so illegal logging may continue. It relies on donations from TNCs and banks. Money for families is less than one dollar per day whereas the reserve manager and $25,000 a year.

Why does the nutrient cycle in the tropical rainforest have a large biomass store?

It is because layers of vegetation and huge trees store large amounts of nutrients.

Where is it located.

It is located between 50 and 70° latitude and mainly in the northern hemisphere. (Russia and Canada)

Disadvantages of CITES

It protects species not ecosystems. Relies on countries setting up and funding all of the monitoring needed, which many L ICs can't afford. Species have to be under threat to get on the list by which time the problem may be too serious to solve

Example of REDD

Juma sustainable forest preserve in Brazil. Local people are paid not to cut down the rainforest and provides an alternative income so the forest is no longer needed to cut down due to eco-tourism. It works through the government and TNCs funding the projects.

Name a case study of the sustainable management of an ecosystem.

Kilum-Ijim Forest in Cameroon Africa

Describe the Kilum-Ijim project.

Kilum-Ijim is home to3 tribes Of 250,000 people. It is under pressure from farming and logging for timber and fuel. In 1987 a conservation organisation called birdlife international started a project to create a sustainable forest reserve in the area. They worked with local communities to: Mark out reserve forests and made lists of resources. They created rules for the sustainable use of the forest. They educated communities about replanting trees and safe levels of hunting and logging.

Impacts of acid rain

Lakes become acidic, fish and aquatic life die. Trees become weaker, soil becomes damaged and this also destroys nutrients.

How have drip tip leaves adapted?

Most rainforest plants have thick waxy leaves with drip tips the shed water quickly to prevent leaves rotting

What is NPP

Net primary productivity, it is a measure of how much new plant and animal life(biomass) is added to a biome each year it is measured in grams per square metre.

Definition of abiotic

Non-living

What are invasive species?

Non-native species that have been introduced to the ecosystem and can overrun the ecosystem

Why is deforestation a problem in The sense of the nutrient cycle

Nutrients in the tropical rainforest are stored in biomass so if the forest is cut down the nutrients or destroyed. Without the forest protecting the litter and soil it is easily eroded by the heavy rain.

What are nutrients?

Nutrients or chemical elements like nitrogen and phosphate the plants need to grow and survive

James Bay HEP project impacts

One of the worlds largest HEP stations. Cost over US$20 billion 10,000 km² flooded Mercury polluted Rupert and other local rivers

Name four indirect threats.

Pollution, drought, global warming and disease

Challenges for the future of Kilum-Ijim.

Population growth is bound to increase putting pressure to deforest areas. Money and technical support from international donors of the project could end. Climate change could begin to degrade the forest.

Name four direct threats to the tropical rainforest and explain

Poverty - many low income countries local people cut down small areas of forest for land to farm in order to make a living. Debt - countries are driven to cut down forests to export timber or grow cash crops in order to pay off debt Economic development - most tropical rainforests are in the developing world in order to develop their economies forest is sacrificed in place of roads expanding cities and hydroelectric power Demand for resources - tropical rainforests contain more materials such as oil gas and gold. To get these forests have to be destroyed as well as this land is needed to feed brain populations

Define conservation

Protecting threatened biomes by setting up national parks or banning activities that Would contribute to endangering the ecosystem.

What is REDD?

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation. What is a united nations project with the aim to stop deforestation. It works for governments and TNCs in developed countries funding projects to conserve forests.

Explain how global warming is an indirect threat to deforestation?

Rising populations and resource consumption of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere which causes the climate change. Global warming because to rapidly for many species to adapt to the change in climate. Bird migration patterns are changing and the Arctic tundra is warm and rapidly. Just with a 1° temperature rise 10% of land species face extension, with a 2° temperature rise up to 40% of land species face extinction. Extreme weather events such as heat waves in places will affect pollination and migration of tropical rainforest.

Why is there a large Weathering input?

Weathering processes are faster in hot climates

What is selective logging

Selecting individual trees (normally larger and more valuable) to cut over a large area. Normally trees are replanted

How does drought affect deforestation?

Severe droughts put forest under pressure, in the Amazon two droughts in 2005 and 2010 caused the Amazon to switch from absorbing carbon dioxide to emitting it as Plants stopped growing. Drying leaf litter causes decomposer organisms to die out threatening the nutrient cycle. Drought causes leaves in the canopy to die reducing the food supply. Fewer trees lead to less evaporation and transpiration. Meaning fewer clouds and less rainfall.

Name the animals that live in the forest?

Sloths, primates and birds

Name of the adaptations of the named animals?

Sloths- Huge clause allows lost to hang upside down and green algae growing in their fur helps camouflage them. Primates - monkeys have evolved to live in the canopy where there is food as they have long tails that are used to balance and strong claws to grip trees Birds - have very loud Calls to find their mates rather than see them in the dense canopy. Parrots have powerful beaks to break open Nuts.

DeScribe the nutrients cycle in the boreal forest

Slower than the rainforest. Litter decays slowly Small biomass store because trees grow only a few months a year

Clear Cutting Problems

Soil erosion is more likely, destroying already small amounts of nutrients Landslides and river bank erosion is more common.

Examples of invasive species and disease

Spruce Park Beatles - global warming means larvae don't die in winter. They destroy spruce trees. 2.5 million hectors of trees have been destroyed by the beetle in Alaska. Mountain Pine beetle - in Canada it has destroyed 16 million hectors of pine forest as milder winters and warm summers have led to the spread of the beetle which introduced the fungus to the trees White pine blister rust - a fungal disease that attacks white pine trees.

Why do forest fires occur

Summers can be hot and sometimes dry The Pineneedle litter is perfect Tinder to start a fire Summer stalls generate lightning strikes. Coniferous trees resin burns easily Increasing since 1990 due to global warming

Describe the food web

Sunlight creates primary producers through photosynthesis. The web starts with a primary producer to a primary consumer, then to a secondary consumer and finally to a tertiary consumer.

Challenges faced by the WBNP

Tar sands mining is still proposed nearby and this could pollute the Athabasca river that runs through the park endangering wildlife including the Mountain Bisons. HEP Dams could disturb river flow. In 2015 the UNESCO warned the Canadian government ti wasn't doing enough to protect the lands.

Why is destruction of the boreal forest less of an issue

The biome is very large Much of the boreal forest is isolated and ' out of sight' There are fewer species under threat.

Differences of NPP between the taiga and rainforest

The boreal forest has lower productivity then the tropical rainforest as there are higher temperatures and plenty of sunlight and rain in the tropical rainforest

Successes of the Kilum-Ijim project.

The forest area has increased by 8% since the project began. The reserve follows the UNESCO reserve morrow where land is divided into zones, the zones are used for different purposes and have different levels of protection. There is a core conservation area surrounded by a buffer zone where more human activity is allowed. Different zones include eco-tourism and selective logging as well as areas that are completely protected.

What is the UNESCO reserve model.

The model is where different areas have different uses and different protections

What has happened in the Amazonia to slow deforestation?

The rate of the deforestation has slowed since 2004 as since 2006 an area the size of France has been protected by the government Global recession in 2008 reduced demand for resources. Forest code laws requiring landowners to preserve up to 80% of forest Land has been strictly enforced. Resilience have become more green 19% vote is the Green party candidates in the 2010 election. The government has cracked down on illegal logging.

Definition of biodiversity

The variety of life in a specific area.

Describe the Taiga (boreal forest)

The worlds largest biome makes up 30% of the worlds forest. The trees are coniferous and have adapted to the cold climate.

Why does the tropical rainforest have a high biodiversity?

There is year round growth due to the climate. It is a stable climate so thousands of different species have evolved. The different layers in a tropical rainforest provide numerous specialist habitats.

How are nutrients added to the ecosystem?

They are added by precipitation and weathering.

How can Nutrients be removed?

They can be removed by run-off, when nutrients are washed out of the soil by water

How have lianas adapted?

They have evolved to climb up the trees to the sunlight while getting the nutrients and water from the soil below

How have epiphytes adapted to the rainforest?

They live in the canopy on trees and have evolved to get all the nutrients from water and air so their roots dangle in mid air.

Adaptions of animals.

Thick oily fur such as bears and wolves to retain heat Hibernation

Why is there a large growth transfer

This is because plants grow all year so they draw nutrients up from the soil rapidly

Why is there a large run-off output?

This is due to the constant flow of water through the soil as the rainforest is extremely wet.

What happens when certain type of trees disappear

This leads to a loss of biodiversity as less types of trees around and habitats are destroyed.

What Are the two types of forest?

Tropical rainforests and boreal forests

How do UK national parks differ

UK national parks are much smaller and mostly privately owned with a larger resident population. They are based on the UNESCO model.

What are RAMSAR wetlands?

Wetland sites that are protected and seen as areas of global importance.

Describe the nutrient cycle

When animals die the nutrients from those animals are released into the soil. Plants then take these the nutrients to grow. Plants are then eaten by consumers. When plants or consumers die they return the nutrients to the soil.

How is acid rain made

When fossil feels are burnt they release nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide this reacts with water in the clouds and forms an acid

List three 'natural threats' to the Boreal Forest

Wild Fires, Invasive species and Acid rain.

What are wilderness areas?

Wilderness areas isolated places with little human interference. In the US and Canada it is an official type of land use that is government owned and human interference is banned. 4.5% of US land is Wilderness.

What are wildfires and how do wildfires affect boreal forests

Wildfires are uncontrolled fires, they burn rapidly and can "jump" roads and rivers. Fires are also a natural part of the ecosystem it allows forests to regenerate themselves fires can create biodiversity as newly burnt areas support different species. Although this is true it does mean forests cannot regenerate properly at times due to the fires and fire tolerant species can become dominant

What is World Buffalo National Park, Canada

Worlds second largest National Park Protects Mountain Bison from Hunting Is a UNESCO world heritage site. It lies north of the Athabasca tar sands mining area

Define clear cutting

cut down and remove every tree in an area.

What is HEP

hydro-electric power.

Define deforestation

loss of forests