Exam 53: The Physical Environment and Biogeography of Life

Cool, dry air at latitudes of approximately 30° N and S sinks due to high atmospheric pressure, and warms.At these latitudes are found the world's largest _______.

Wilson and MacArthur's theory of island biogeography is based on two processes that balance each other.These two processes are

A person standing near the equator experiences a given set of wind circulation patterns in relation to the movement of Earth beneath her.Compared to a person standing near the North Pole, the person at the equator will experience wind that is

Short-term atmospheric conditions at a particular time and place are known as the _______.

Refer to the figures, showing the locations of two biomes. Which biomes do these figures most likely represent?

A river begins high in the mountains and flows downstream until it finally discharges its water into an estuary.Compared to the river's characteristics at its origin, the river as it enters the estuary will be

In the Amazon rainforest, experiments show that, after deforestation, bird species diversity declines more slowly in larger forest fragments.Discuss the likely implications for species diversity in these fragments for small, nonflying rainforest species, such as frogs, lizards, and tree-dwelling mammals.

The sun's rays are most concentrated at the equator and least concentrated at the poles.What is the main reason for this difference in solar intensity?

The term describing the continual movement of continents over time is _______.

Parcels of air at the poles are most like those at 30° latitude because both are

The ultimate "snowbird" might be an American who spends the American winter in Australia, or an Australian who spends the Australian winter in the United States.What is responsible for the opposite seasons in these two countries?

The species diversification rate and species diversification time in a coastal ecosystem are similar to other ecosystems at the same latitude.However, this particular system has much higher species diversity.The difference might exist because this area has much higher _______.

A large city is located in a valley.A warm, stable air mass settles over the valley, holding the air and its pollutants in place.After a few days, the city issues a smog alert.This situation is a result of a

During the last ice age, an advancing ice sheet cut through the range of ancestral brown bears in North America.Isolated in different environments, these ancestors eventually evolved into the modern brown, grizzly, and polar bear species.Thus, their evolution resulted from the process called _______.

Which statement best describes the difference in the day length at the equator and at the poles as a result of the tilt of Earth's axis?

In the mid-1800s, Montana's Glacier National Park had 150 glaciers.In 2016, it had 25.The melting of these glaciers resulted from

Two islands are approximately the same distance from the mainland.One island is small and has low species diversity.The other is larger and has much higher species diversity.It is likely that the larger island has a lower rate of _______.

An ecologist is studying the relationship between human population growth and loss of habitat in a specific region of a rainforest.Which statement best expresses how this modern-day study differs from historical ecological studies?

Refer to the figure below. Based on the figure, the spherical nature of Earth has what effect on sunlight striking Earth?

Which feature is most characteristic of the tundra biome?