Characteristics of natural zones of Eurasia. “Climate, natural zones of Eurasia

On the vast territory of Eurasia, the planetary law of the Earth's landmass is more fully manifested than on others. All geographical zones of the northern hemisphere and the corresponding types of natural zones are expressed here.

As a rule, the zones extend latitudinally from west to east. However, the large extent of Eurasia from west to east causes significant differences in nature between the oceanic and continental sectors of the continent. Forests predominate on the humid oceanic margins; in the interior regions of the continent they are replaced by deserts.

The widest part of Eurasia is located in the temperate and subtropical zones. Due to the complexity of this territory, the alternation of vast plains and highlands framed by high mountain ranges, the natural zones are elongated not only in the latitudinal direction, but also have the shape of concentric circles or giant ovals.

In the tropical latitudes of the continent, the monsoon type and the meridional location of mountain ranges-barriers contribute to the change of natural zones in the meridional direction.

In areas of mountainous terrain, widely represented, latitudinal and meridional zoning is combined with vertical zonation of landscapes. The number of altitudinal zones increases when moving from high to low latitudes (from arctic to equatorial latitudes).

Let us consider the characteristic features of the natural zones of Eurasia.

The zone of hard-leaved evergreen forests and shrubs in the Mediterranean is particularly unique. There are dry and hot summers and wet and warm winters. Plants are adapted to the following climatic conditions: waxy or pubescent leaves, thick or dense leathery bark. Many plants produce essential oils. Fertile brown soils are formed in this zone. - an area of ​​​​ancient civilization, therefore forests have been cut down over large areas, and their place on lands inconvenient for cultivation has been taken by shrub formations. The remaining forests are dominated by evergreen oaks, noble laurel, wild olive, subtropical pine species, and cypress trees. In the undergrowth there are shrubby forms of oaks, myrtle and strawberry trees, rosemary and many others. These species form the basis of the shrub vegetation of the zone. On the plantations of the zone, olives, citrus fruits, grapes, tobacco, and essential oil crops (sage, lavender, rose, etc.) are grown. Previously, goat and sheep breeding was widespread in this area. Because of this, many areas of the Mediterranean have lost not only shrub vegetation, but also soil cover as a result of overgrazing. There are few wild animals and they are preserved in remote mountain areas (wild rabbits, porcupines, wild goats and mountain sheep, small predators - genetta, vultures and eagles). But there are a lot of reptiles (snakes, lizards, chameleons) and insects (brightly colored butterflies, cicadas, mantises).

The zone of monsoon evergreen mixed forests is expressed in the Pacific sector of the subtropical belt. The climatic conditions here are different: precipitation falls mainly in the summer - during the growing season. The forests are ancient - relict, very rich in species. Magnolias and camellias, ginkgo and camphor laurel, tung tree, native species of oak, beech and hornbeam alternate with groves of subtropical species of pines, cypresses, cryptomeria and thuja. There is a lot of bamboo in the undergrowth. Fertile red soils and yellow soils are formed under these forests. However, natural vegetation in China gave way to plantations of tea, citrus fruits, cotton, and rice.

The subequatorial belt covers the peninsulas and the north. This belt has different moisture conditions. The subequatorial forest zone stretches along the western coasts and receives up to 2000 mm of precipitation per year. The forests here are multi-tiered and distinguished by a variety of species composition (palm trees, ficus, bamboos). Zonal soils are red-yellow ferralitic.

Zones of seasonally wet monsoon forests, shrubs and woodlands are represented where precipitation decreases from 1000 to 800-600 mm. Monsoon forests now occupy no more than 15% of the area; they have suffered greatly from the cutting down of valuable tree species (teak, sal, sandalwood, satinwood). On the Deccan Plateau and the interior of the Indochina Peninsula, sparse woody vegetation (groves of palm trees, banyan trees, acacias, mimosa) alternates with spaces covered with tall grasses (bearded grass, wild sugar cane, etc.). Thanks to the traditions and religious beliefs of the population, a unique fauna has been preserved in the Asian belt: tigers and rhinoceroses, wild bulls and buffaloes, a variety of monkeys, snakes, bats, birds and others. The soil cover is dominated by red, red-brown and red-brown soils.

Rainforests are represented mainly in the south. In terms of climatic conditions, they are similar to the forests of the equatorial belt of other continents. However, the equatorial forests of Asia have a number of specific features. In terms of flora composition, these are the richest forests on the globe (over 45 thousand species). The species composition of tree species is 5000 species (in Europe there are only 200 species). There are more than 300 types of palm trees (palmyra, sugar, sago, coconut, rattan palm and many others). Tree ferns and bamboos and ramps are numerous. Mangrove forests grow on the coasts. Lots of vines and epiphytes.

The zonal type of soil is leached and podzolized laterites. The fauna of the zone is rich and diverse. Apes (orangutans), as well as gibbons, macaques and others live here. There are wild elephants, tigers, leopards, and sun bears. Various snakes and lizards (reticulated python, giant monitor lizard, tree snakes); There are gharial crocodile in the rivers.

The mountains of Eurasia are diverse. The number of altitudinal zones in the mountains always depends on which natural zone is located on the plain at the foot of the mountains; on height and slope exposure. For example, the northern, drier slopes facing the Tibetan Plateau do not have forest belts. But on the southern slopes, which are better moistened and heated, there are several Bulgarians (Vitosha, Golden Sands) and others. In Asia, natural landscapes are preserved in two ways.

Firstly, in the deserts of Central Asia, in the Karakorum, Kunlun, and Tibet, there are territories completely undeveloped by man, where nature is preserved in its original form. Secondly, more than 80 national and natural parks have also been created in foreign Asia. The national parks of India (Sanjay Gandhi), (Komodo), Japan (Fuji-Hakone-Izu) and others are world famous.

It is characteristic that more economically developed countries are now more acutely aware of the importance of the problem of nature conservation. Thus, in Japan, despite the high population density and the development of industrial production, about 25% of the country’s territory is protected.

Russia is located on the most interesting and diverse continent of the planet, which has collected almost a little bit of everything.

So what place does the Eurasian continent occupy in the world?

Characteristics of the largest continent on Earth

There are 6 continents in total on the planet. Eurasia (Eurasia in English) is the largest.

Characteristics:

1. Area – 55,000,000 km².
2. There was no such explorer who discovered Eurasia entirely. Different peoples discovered it piece by piece, and great ancient civilizations were formed at different periods. The term "Eurasia" was introduced in 1880 by Eduard Suess.
3. The continent is so large that on the map it can be seen in 3 hemispheres at once: northern, eastern and western.
4. Population density is about 94 people per square meter. km.
5. Eurasia is the continent with the largest population. As of 2015, the number is 5 billion 132 million.

Extreme points on the Eurasian continent with coordinates

List of Eurasian countries with capitals

Countries on the mainland are usually divided into European and Asian countries.

European countries with capitals:

Asian countries with capitals:

What oceans wash Eurasia

The main feature of the geographical location of Eurasia is that the continent is washed by almost all oceans. And since in some countries the 5th Ocean (Southern) has not yet been recognized, it can be partly argued that Eurasia is washed by all existing oceans.

Which parts of the continent are washed by oceans:

• Arctic - northern;
• Indian - southern;
• Pacific Ocean - eastern;
• Atlantic - Western.

Natural areas of Eurasia

The territory contains all existing types of natural areas. They extend from west to east and from north to south.

How are they located geographically:

• Arctic– islands in the very north;
• and forest-tundra- in the north beyond the Arctic Circle. In the eastern part there is an expansion of the zone;
• taiga– located a little further south;
• mixed forests - located in the Baltic states and in the eastern part of Russia;
• broadleaf forests– zones in the western and eastern parts of the continent;
• hardleaf forests– located in the Mediterranean region;
• forest-steppe and steppe– located in the central part south of the taiga;
• deserts and semi-deserts– are located south of the previous zone, as well as in the eastern part of China;
• savannah– Indian Ocean coast;
• variable-humid forests– the most southeastern and southwestern regions, as well as the Pacific coast;
• rainforests- islands located in the Indian Ocean.

Climate

Due to the geographical location of the continent, the climatic conditions on its territory are quite varied. All climatic indicators differ in different regions: temperature, precipitation, air masses.

The southernmost regions are the hottest. To the north the climate gradually changes. The central part is already characterized by moderate climatic conditions. A northern part of the mainland is in the kingdom of ice and cold.

Proximity to the oceans also plays an important role. Winds from the Indian Ocean bring large amounts of precipitation. But the closer to the center, the fewer there are.

In what climatic zones is Eurasia located:

• arctic and subarctic;
• tropical and subtropical;
• equatorial and subequatorial.

Relief

On other continents, a certain type of relief is common. Usually mountains are located on the coast. The relief of Eurasia is different in that the mountainous areas are located in the center of the continent.

There are two mountain belts: the Pacific and the Himalayan. These mountains are of different ages and were formed at different times.

To the north of them there are several plains:

• Great Chinese;
• West Siberian;
• European;
• Turanskaya.

Also in the central part are the Kazakh small hills and the Central Siberian Plateau.

The highest mountains

One of the main features of Eurasia is that the world’s highest mountain, Everest (8848 m), is located on the mainland.

Mount Everest

But there are several more highest mountain peaks:

• Chogori (8611 m);
• Ulugmuztag (7723 m);
• Tirichmir (7690 m);
• Peak Communism (7495 m);
• Pobeda Peak (7439 m);
• Elbrus (5648).

Volcanoes

The highest active volcano in Eurasia is Klyuchevaya Sopka. It is located near the eastern coast of the mainland in Kamchatka.

Volcano Klyuchevaya Sopka

Other active volcanoes:

• Kerinci (Sumatra island, Indonesia);
• Fuji (Honshu Island, Japan);
• Vesuvius (Italy);
• Etna (Sicily, Italy).

Erciyes Volcano

The tallest extinct volcano is Erciyes (Türkiye).

The largest island

Kalimantan is the largest island in Eurasia.

Parts of the island belong to 3 different countries: Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. It is the 3rd largest island in the world.

Peninsulas of Eurasia

The largest river

The largest river in Eurasia, the Yangtze, flows in China.

Its length is approximately 6,300 km, and the basin area is 1,808,500 km².

The largest lake

Lake Baikal is the largest in Eurasia and in the world.

Its area is 31,722 km². The lake is located in the eastern part of Siberia. It is truly unique because it is not only the largest, but also the deepest in the world. The maximum depth of Lake Baikal is 1,642 m.

1. The capital of Iceland, Reykjavik, is the northernmost in the world.
2. One plant that is interesting is bamboo. It is capable of growing up to 90 cm per day.
3. “Altai” translated from Mongolian means “Golden Mountains”.

In Eurasia, more fully than on other continents, the planetary law of geographical zoning of land landscapes is manifested. All geographical zones of the northern hemisphere are expressed here, and the large extent of the continent from west to east determines the differences in nature between the oceanic and continental sectors.

The widest part of Eurasia is located in the subtropical and temperate zones. THE NATURAL AREAS HERE are not only elongated in the latitudinal direction, but also HAVE THE FORM OF CONCENTRIC CIRCLES.

In the tropical latitudes of the continent, the monsoon type of climate and the meridional location of mountain ranges contribute to the change of natural zones not from north to south, but from west to east.

In areas of mountainous relief, latitudinal zonality is combined with vertical zonation. As a rule, each zone has its own structure of altitudinal zonation. The range of altitude zones increases from high to low latitudes.

5.1.Geographical zones and zones of Foreign Europe

The nature features of geographical zones in Foreign Europe are determined by its position in the oceanic sector of the continent of the Arctic, subarctic, temperate and subtropical zones.

THE ARCTIC BELT occupies the island outskirts. Low values ​​of the radiation balance (less than 10 kcal/cm2 per year), negative average annual temperatures, and the formation of a stable ice cover over a large area. Spitsbergen is located in the Western European sector of the belt.

Its climate is softened by the warm West Spitsbergen Current. Relatively large amounts of precipitation (300-350 mm) and low annual temperatures contribute to the accumulation of thick layers of snow and ice. The ICY DESERT ZONE predominates. Only a narrow strip on the western and southern coasts is occupied by Arctic STONEY DESERT (about 10% of the area of ​​Spitsbergen). In places where fine earth accumulates, saxifrage grows, snow buttercup, polar poppies, Svalbard carnations. But lichens (lichens) and mosses predominate. The fauna is poor in terms of species: polar bears, arctic foxes, lemmings, the musk ox was introduced. In summer there are extensive bird colonies: guillemots, loons, gulls.

THE SUBARCTIC BELT covers the far north of Fennoscandia and Iceland. The radiation balance reaches 20 kcal/cm2 per year, average temperatures in the summer months do not exceed 10°C. There is no woody vegetation. The dominant zone is the TUNDRA ZONE. There are northern - typical and southern tundra. The northern one does not have a closed vegetation cover; areas with vegetation alternate with patches of bare soil. Mosses and lichens (moss moss) dominate; shrubs and grasses rise above them. Plants do not have time to go through the entire development cycle from germination to seed ripening in a short summer. Therefore, biennials and perennials predominate among higher plants. Due to low temperatures, physiological dryness. On dry hills, reindeer moss (Yagel tundra), buttercups, saxifrage, poppies, partridge grass (Drias), some sedges and grasses. Shrubs - blueberries, lingonberries, cloudberries.

Southern (shrub) tundra is characterized by a predominance of shrubs and shrubs: dwarf birch, polar willow, wild rosemary, bearberry, lingonberry, crowberry. In depressions (weak winds) there are thickets of dwarf birch (ernik) 1.0 - 1.5 m high.

Soils develop under waterlogged conditions. They are characterized by the accumulation of coarse humic organic matter, the development of gley processes, and an acid reaction. Peat-gley soils predominate.

In Iceland, in the coastal lowlands and valleys, oceanic grass-forb meadows with anemones and forget-me-nots are common, under which meadow-turf soils are formed. In some places there are clumps of low-growing trees: birch, rowan, willow, aspen, juniper.

The animal world is poor. Typical: Norwegian lemming, arctic fox, ermine, wolf, polar owl, ptarmigan, from swamps - geese, geese, ducks.

Reindeer husbandry, in Iceland - sheep breeding.

THE MODERATE BELT occupies most of Northern and all of Central Europe. The radiation balance ranges from 20 kcal/cm2 per year in the north to 50 kcal/cm2 per year in the south. Western transport and cyclonic activity contribute to the supply of moisture from the ocean to the mainland. Average January temperatures range from -15° in the northeast to +6° in the west. Average July temperatures range from +10° in the north to +26° in the south. Forests dominate. In the Atlantic sector, when moving from north to south, zones of coniferous, mixed and deciduous forests replace each other. In the southeastern part, the zone of broad-leaved forests is pinched out and replaced by zones of forest-steppe and steppe.

THE CONIFEROUS FOREST ZONE occupies most of Fennoscandia (southern border at 60°N) and the north of Great Britain. The main species are Norway spruce and Scots pine. The plains of Sweden are dominated by swampy spruce forests on heavy loams. A significant part of Fennoscandia is occupied by pine trees on dry rocky or sandy soils. Forest cover exceeds 60%, reaching 80% in places, and up to 35% in Norway. In the west of the Scandinavian Peninsula, in place of cleared forests, meadows and heaths are common.

Altitudinal zones are developed in the mountains. Coniferous forests on slopes up to 800-900 m in the south and 300 m in the north. Further there is open birch forest up to 1100 m. The upper parts of the mountains are occupied by mountain-tundra vegetation.

In the coniferous forest zone, thin acidic podzolic soils, poor in humus, predominate. In the depressions there are peat-bog and gley-podzolic soils with low fertility.

The fauna is diverse: moose, wolves, lynxes, brown bears, foxes. Birds: hazel grouse, partridges, wood grouse, owls, woodpeckers.

Scandinavian countries are the most forested in Foreign Europe. Forest plantations on drained peat bogs are widely developed. Livestock farming for meat and dairy production has been developed. The structure of crops on cultivated lands is subordinated to it. Agriculture is developed in a limited area. In the north of the zone there is reindeer husbandry, in the mountains there is sheep breeding.

THE MIXED FOREST ZONE occupies small areas in the southwest of Finland, partly the Central Swedish Lowland and the northeast of the Central European Plain. Among the species appear pedunculate oak, ash, elm, Norway maple, and heart-shaped linden. The undergrowth has abundant herbaceous cover. Zonal soils are soddy-podzolic - up to 5% humus.

The fauna is richer than in coniferous forests: elk, bear, European roe deer, wolf, fox, hare. Birds: woodpeckers, siskins, tits, black grouse.

Forest cover is up to 20%, the largest tracts are preserved in the Masurian Lake District. Agricultural production.

The broad-leaved forest zone occupies the southern part of the temperate zone. Warm summers, a mild climate, and a favorable ratio of heat and moisture contribute to the spread of predominantly beech and oak forests. The richest forests in terms of species are confined to the Atlantic part. Here the forest-forming species is chestnut. In the undergrowth there is holly oak and berry yew. Beech forests are usually monodominant, dark, and the undergrowth is poorly developed. In transitional climates, beech is replaced by hornbeam and oak. The oak forests are light, with hazel, bird cherry, rowan, barberry, and buckthorn growing in the undergrowth.

Along with forest vegetation, in the zone of broad-leaved forests there are formations of shrubs - heathers on the site of cleared forests (European heather, juniper, gorse, bearberry, blueberry, blueberry). Heather heaths are characteristic of northwestern Great Britain, northern France, and the west of the Jutland Peninsula. On the Baltic and North Sea coasts, large areas are occupied by pine and pine-oak forests on dunes.

Vertical zonality is most represented in the Alps and Carpathians. The lower slopes of the mountains up to 600-800 m are occupied by oak-beech forests, giving way to mixed ones, and from 1000-1200 m - spruce-fir forests. The upper border of the forest rises to 1600-1800 m, above which there is a belt of subalpine meadows. At an altitude of 2000-2100 m, alpine meadows with brightly flowering herbs grow.

The main type of soil in deciduous forests is forest brown soil (up to 6-7% humus), which has high fertility. In more humid places, podzolic-brown earths are common, and on limestones - HUMUS-CARBONATE (RENDZINS).

Red deer, roe deer, wild boar, bear. Small ones include squirrel, hare, badger, mink, and ferret. Birds include woodpeckers, tits, and orioles.

Forests in the zone make up 25% of the area. Indigenous oak and beech forests have not survived. They were replaced by secondary plantations, coniferous forests, wastelands, and arable lands. Reforestation work.

FOREST-STEPPE ZONES have a limited distribution and occupy the Danube plains. Almost no natural vegetation has been preserved. On the Middle Danube Plain, in the past, areas of broad-leaved forests alternated with steppes (pushta), now the plain is plowed. Chernozem soils and favorable climatic conditions contribute to the development of agriculture, gardening, and viticulture.

On the Lower Danube Plain, where there is less moisture, the landscapes are close to the Ukrainian and South Russian steppes. Zonal soil type - leached chernozems. In the eastern parts they are replaced by dark chestnut soils, also plowed.

The SUBTROPICAL BELT is somewhat smaller in area than the temperate one. Radiation balance 55-70 kcal/cm2 per year. In winter, the belt is dominated by polar masses, and in summer by tropical masses. Precipitation decreases from coastal areas inland. The consequence is a change in natural zones not in the latitudinal, but in the meridional direction. Horizontal zoning is complicated by vertical zoning in the mountains.

The southern part of Foreign Europe is located in the Atlantic sector of the belt, where the climate is seasonally humid, Mediterranean. Minimum precipitation in summer. Under conditions of prolonged summer drought, plants acquire xerophytic characteristics. The Mediterranean is characterized by a ZONE OF EVERGREEN LEAF FORESTS AND SHRUBS. Oak dominates in forest formations: in the western part cork and stone, in the eastern - Macedonian and Walloon. They are mixed with Mediterranean pine ( Italian, Aleppo, seaside) and horizontal cypress. In the undergrowth are laurel, boxwood, myrtle, cistus, pistachio, and strawberry tree. Forests have been destroyed and have not been regenerated due to grazing, soil erosion, and fires. Shrub thickets have become widespread, the composition of which depends on the amount of precipitation, topography, and soils.

In a marine climate, MAKVIS is widespread, which includes shrubs and low (up to 4 m) trees: tree heather, wild olive, laurel, pistachio, strawberry tree, juniper. The bushes are intertwined with climbing plants: multi-colored blackberries, mustachioed clematis.

In areas of the continental climate of the Western Mediterranean, on rocky mountain slopes with intermittent soil cover, GARRIGA is common - sparsely growing low shrubs, subshrubs and xerophytic herbs. Low-growing thickets of garrigue are widely found on the mountain slopes of southern France and the east of the Iberian and Apennine peninsulas, where shrubby kermes oak, prickly gorse, rosemary, and orchard tree predominate.

The Balearic Islands, Sicily and the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula are characterized by palmito thickets, formed by a single wild palm chamerops with a short trunk and large fan leaves.

In the interior parts of the Iberian Peninsula, the TOMILLARY formation is developed from aromatic subshrubs: lavender, rosemary, sage, thyme in combination with herbs.

In the eastern Mediterranean, FRIGANA is found on dry rocky slopes. It includes astragalus, spurge, gorse, thyme, and acantholimon.

In the east of the Balkan Peninsula, in conditions of hot summers and rather cold winters, SHIBLJAK predominates, formed mainly by deciduous shrubs: barberry, hawthorn, thorn, jasmine, rose hips. The southern ones are mixed in with them: dwarf tree, mackerel, wild almond, pomegranate.

Evergreen subtropical vegetation is confined to the plains and lower parts of the mountains up to a height of 300 m in the north of the zone and 900 m in the south. Deciduous broad-leaved forests grow up to an altitude of 1200 m: downy oak, sycamore, chestnut, silver linden, ash, walnut. Often pine grows in the middle mountains: black, Dalmatian, coastal, armored. Higher up, with increasing humidity, dominance passes to beech-fir forests, which from 2000 m give way to conifers - Norway spruce, white fir, Scots pine. The upper zone is occupied by shrub and herbaceous vegetation - juniper, barberry, and grasses (bluegrass, bromegrass, white grass).

In the zone of evergreen hard-leaved forests and shrubs, brown and gray-brown soils (up to 4-7% humus) with high productivity are formed. On the weathering crust of limestones, red-colored soils develop - TERRA ROSS. Mountain-brown leached soils are common in the mountains. There are podzols suitable only for pastures.

The fauna has been greatly exterminated. Among mammals there are civet genet, porcupine, mouflon sheep, fallow deer, local species of red deer. Reptiles and amphibians predominate: lizards (gecko), chameleons, snakes, snakes, vipers. Rich world of birds: griffon vulture, Spanish and rock sparrow, blue magpie, mountain partridge, flamingo, rock thrush.

High population density. Plowed lands are confined to coastal plains and intermountain basins. Main crops: olives, walnuts, pomegranate, tobacco, grapes, citrus fruits, wheat.

Eurasia is the largest continent on Earth, consisting of two parts of the world - Europe and Asia. Together with the islands, Eurasia occupies an area of ​​about 53.4 million km2, of which the islands account for about 2.75 million km2. Extreme continental points of Eurasia:

in the north – Cape Chelyuskin (770 43’ N, 104018’ E);

in the south – Cape Piai (1°16’N, 103030’E);

in the west – Cape Roca (38048’ N, 90 31’ W);

in the east - Cape Dezhnev (660 05'N, 169°40" W)

A number of islands in southeastern Eurasia are located in the Southern Hemisphere. Eurasia is washed by oceans: in the west - the Atlantic, in the north - the Arctic, in the south - the Indian, in the east - the Pacific, and their marginal seas. In the southeast, the Australasian seas separate Eurasia from Australia, in the northeast, the Bering Strait from North America, in the southwest, the Strait of Gibraltar, the Mediterranean and Red Seas from Africa, with which Eurasia is connected by the Suez Canal. The continuity of the landmass, the modern tectonic consolidation of the continent, the unity of many climatic processes, the significant commonality of the development of the organic world and other manifestations of natural historical unity, as well as the need to take into account the importance of territorial integrity for the assessment of socio-historical phenomena, caused the need for a name that unites the entire continent. The concept of “Eurasia” introduced into geology and geography by E. Suess in 1883 turned out to be most convenient.
Eurasia is the arena of ancient civilizations. Thousands of years of agricultural culture have transformed the natural landscape of the low-lying plains of South and East Asia, the oases of Central, Central and Western Asia, and the southern coasts of Europe. The territory of most of Europe underwent radical transformations, and a significant part of Asia was developed. The modern cultural landscape dominates the territory of most of Europe, the plains of Great China, the Indo-Gangetic plains, the Indochina Peninsula, the islands of Java and the Japanese archipelago.
Eurasia is distinguished by the significant complexity of its geological history and mosaic geological structure. The skeleton of Eurasia is fused from fragments of several ancient continents: in the north-west - Laurentia, the eastern part, which, after the Cenozoic subsidence in the Atlantic Ocean, separated from North America and formed the European ledge of Eurasia; in the northeast - the Angarides, which in the late Paleozoic was articulated with Laurentia by the folded structure of the Urals, resulting in the formation of Laurasia, which existed until the middle of the Mesozoic; in the south - Gondwana, after the collapse of which the Arabian and Indian platforms were attached to Eurasia.
The structural plan of the modern relief of Eurasia was laid down in the Mesozoic, but the formation of the main features of the surface is due to the latest tectonic movements that swept Eurasia in the Neogene-Anthropocene, and these movements manifested themselves here more intensely than anywhere else on Earth. These were vertical movements of large scale - arch-block uplifts of mountains and highlands, lowering of depressions with partial restructuring of many structures. The uplifts covered not only the Alpine folded structures, but also rejuvenated and often revived the mountainous relief in older structures that experienced leveling in the Cenozoic. The intensity of recent movements has determined the predominance of mountains in Eurasia (the average height of the continent is 840 m) with the formation of the highest mountain systems (Himalayas, Karakorum, Hindu Kush, Tien Shan) with peaks exceeding 7-8 thousand m. The massive Western Asian highlands were raised to significant heights, Pamir, Tibet. These uplifts are associated with the revival of mountains in the vast belt from Gissar-Alai to Chukotka, the Kunlun, Scandinavian and many others. Rejuvenation during the latest uplifts was experienced by the middle mountains of the Urals, Central Europe, etc. and, to a lesser extent, by extensive plateaus and plateaus (Central Siberian Plateau , Dean, etc.). From the east, the continent is bordered by marginal uplifts (Koryak Highlands, Sikhote-Alin Mountains, etc.) and is accompanied by mountain-island arcs, among which there are East Asian and Malay arcs. Rift structures also play a major role in the relief of Eurasia - the Rhine graben, the basins of Baikal, the Dead Sea, etc. Young folded belts and structures of revived mountains are characterized by particularly high seismicity - only South America can be compared with Eurasia in terms of intensity and frequency of destructive earthquakes. Volcanism often participated in the creation of the relief of young uplifts (lava sheets and volcanic cones of Iceland and the Armenian Highlands, active volcanoes of Italy, Kamchatka, island arcs in the east and southeast of Asia, extinct volcanoes of the Caucasus, Carpathians, Elbrus, etc.).
Recent subsidence has led to the flooding of many of the outskirts of the continent and the isolation of the archipelagos adjacent to Eurasia (the Far East, the British Isles, the Mediterranean Sea basin, etc.). The seas have repeatedly attacked different parts of Eurasia in the past. Their deposits formed the sea plains, which were subsequently dissected by glacial, river and lake waters. The most extensive plains of Eurasia are the East European (Russian), Central European, West Siberian, Turanian, Indo-Gangetic. In many areas of Eurasia, sloping and basement plains are common. Ancient glaciation had a significant impact on the relief of the northern and mountainous regions of Eurasia. Eurasia contains the world's largest area of ​​Pleistocene glacial and aquiglacial deposits. Modern glaciation is developed in many highlands of Asia (Himalayas, Karakoram, Tibet, Kunlun, Pamir, Tien Shan, etc.), in the Alps and Scandinavia, and is especially powerful on the Arctic islands and Iceland. In Eurasia, underground glaciation - permafrost and ice wedges - is more widespread than anywhere else in the world. In areas where limestone and gypsum occur, karst processes are developed. The arid regions of Asia are characterized by desert forms and types of relief.

1. The concept of natural areas and the reasons for their formation

Physical-geographical zones are natural land zones, large divisions of the geographical (landscape) shell of the Earth, naturally and in a certain order replacing each other depending on climatic factors, mainly on the ratio of heat and moisture. In this regard, a change of zones and belts occurs from the equator to the poles and from the oceans to the interior of the continents. They are usually elongated in the sublatitudinal direction and do not have clearly defined boundaries. Each zone has typical features of its constituent natural components and processes (climatic, hydrological, geochemical, geomorphological, soil nature, vegetation and fauna), its own type of historically established relationships between them and the dominant type of their combinations - zonal natural territorial complexes. Many physical-geographical zones are traditionally named according to the most striking indicator - the type of vegetation, reflecting the most important features of most natural components and processes (forest zones, steppe zones, savannah zones, etc.). The name of these zones is often assigned to individual components: tundra vegetation, tundra-gley soils, semi-desert and desert vegetation, desert soils, etc. Within the zones, which usually occupy vast strips, narrower divisions are distinguished - physical-geographical subzones. For example, the savannah zone as a whole is characterized by a seasonal rhythm of development of all natural components, determined by the seasonal supply of atmospheric precipitation. Depending on the amount of the latter and the duration of the rainy period, subzones of wet tall grass, typical dry and desert savannas are distinguished within the zone; in the steppe zone - dry and typical steppes; in the temperate forest zone - subzones of taiga (often considered an independent zone), mixed and deciduous forests, etc.

Natural zones, if they are formed under more or less similar geological and geomorphological (azonal) conditions, are repeated in general terms on different continents with a similar geographical location (latitude, position in relation to the oceans, etc.). Therefore, zone types are distinguished, which are typological units of the territorial classification of the geographical envelope (for example, tropical western oceanic deserts). At the same time, the local features of a particular territory (relief, rock composition, paleogeographical development, etc.) give individual features to each zone, and therefore specific natural zones are considered as regional units (for example, the Atacama Desert, the Himalayas, a desert Namib, West Siberian Plain.). In the physical-geographical atlas of the world for 1964, the distinction of 13 geographical zones was adopted, based on the climatic classification of B. P. Alisov: an equatorial zone and two (for both hemispheres) subequatorial, tropical, subtropical, temperate, subpolar and polar (supporters of the thermal factor, as the main one in the formation of zoning, are limited to identifying only five or even three zones). Inside the belts, it is possible to identify sub-belts or stripes.

Each belt and each of its large longitudinal segments - sectors (oceanic, continental and transitional between them) are characterized by their own zonal systems - their own set, a certain sequence and extension of horizontal zones and subzones on the plains, their own set (spectrum) of high-altitude zones in the mountains. Thus, the forest-tundra zone is inherent only in the subpolar (subarctic) zone, the taiga subzone is characteristic of the temperate zone, the “Mediterranean” subzone is characteristic of the western oceanic sector of the subtropical zone, the monsoon mixed forest subzone is of its eastern oceanic sector, and forest-steppe zones exist only in the transition sectors. The forest-tundra spectrum of altitudinal zones is characteristic only of the temperate zone, and the hyleinoparamos spectrum is characteristic only of the equatorial zone. Depending on the position in a particular sector or on a particular morphostructural basis, smaller taxonomic units can be distinguished within zones and subzones - typological: Western-oceanic dark-coniferous taiga, continental light-coniferous taiga, etc., or regional: Western- Siberian taiga, Central Yakut taiga, West Siberian forest-steppe, etc.

Since natural zones are determined mainly by the ratio of heat and moisture, this ratio can be expressed quantitatively (the physical and quantitative basis of zonality was first formulated in 1956 by A. A. Grigoriev and M. I. Budyko). For this purpose, various hydrothermal indicators (most often moisture indicators) are used. The use of these indicators helps, first of all, to develop theoretical issues of zoning, identify general patterns, and objectively clarify the characteristics of zones and their boundaries. For example, with values ​​of the radiation index of Budyko dryness less than 1 (excessive moisture), humid zones of forests, forest-tundra and tundra dominate, with values ​​greater than 1 (insufficient moisture) - dry zones of steppes, semi-deserts and deserts, with values ​​close to 1 (optimal moisture) , - zones and subzones of forest-steppes, deciduous and light forests and wet savannas. The definition and further refinement of quantitative indicators are also of great practical importance, for example, for the application of various agricultural activities in various sectors, zones, subzones. At the same time, it is very important to take into account not just the similarity of the final indicators, but also what exact quantities they are made up of under given conditions. Thus, establishing the “periodic law of zonality,” A. A. Grigoriev noted the periodic repetition of identical values ​​of the radiation index of dryness in zones of different zones (for example, in the tundra, subtropical hemihylea and equatorial forest swamps). However, despite the generality of the index, both the annual radiation balance and the annual amount of precipitation in these zones are sharply different, just as all natural processes and complexes as a whole are different.

Along with zonal factors, the formation and structure of zonal systems is greatly influenced by a number of azonal factors (in addition to the primary distribution of land and oceans, which largely determines circulation, currents and moisture transfer). First of all, there is a polar asymmetry of the landscape shell of the Earth, expressed not only in the greater oceanicity of the Southern Hemisphere, but also in the presence, for example, of the subtropical hemihyla subzone peculiar only to it and, on the contrary, in the absence of many zones and subzones of the Northern Hemisphere (tundra, forest-tundra, taiga, deciduous forests, etc.). In addition, the configuration and size of land area in certain latitudes play a significant role (for example, the widespread distribution of tropical deserts in North Africa and Arabia or Australia and their limited territory in the smaller tropical zones of North America or South Africa). The nature of large relief features also greatly influences. The high meridional ridges of the Cordillera and Andes enhance continentality and determine the presence of corresponding semi-desert and desert zones on the internal plateaus of the subtropical and tropical zones. The Himalayas contribute to the immediate proximity of the high-mountain deserts of Tibet and the moist forest zonal spectrum of the southern slopes, and the Patagonian Andes are even the root cause of the presence of semi-desert zones in the temperate zone in the east. But usually the influence of regional factors only strengthens or weakens general zonal patterns.

Of course, zonal systems underwent significant changes in the process of paleogeographical development. Belt and sector differences have already been established for the end of the Paleozoic. Later, changes occurred in the distribution of land and sea, macroforms of relief, and climatic conditions, and therefore, in the emerging zonal systems, some zones disappeared and were replaced by others, and the extent of the zones varied. Modern zones are of different ages; Due to the enormous role that Pleistocene glaciation played in their formation, the youngest zones are the high latitude zones. In addition, the increased temperature contrast between the poles and the equator in the Pleistocene increased the number of physiographic zones and significantly complicated their system. Human influence also had a great influence, in particular on the boundaries of zones.

The map in the appendix clearly shows the distribution of zones by zones and sectors and the differences in the manifestation of zonality in the high and middle latitudes of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. In the high latitude belts (polar, subpolar and northern part of the northern temperate zone - the boreal subbelt, absent on land in the Southern Hemisphere) relatively small changes in the ratios of heat and moisture and excess moisture are observed almost everywhere. Natural differentiation is associated mainly with changes in thermal conditions, that is, with an increase in the radiation balance with a decrease in latitude. Consequently, the zones of polar deserts, tundra, forest-tundra and taiga extend sublatitudinally, and sectoral differences are weakly expressed (ice deserts in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic are mainly due to regional characteristics). At the same time, the polar asymmetry of the zonal spectra, caused by contrasts in the distribution of land and oceans in different hemispheres, is most pronounced. In the subboreal subbelts, with an even greater increase in heat supply, the role of moisture also increases. Its increase is determined by the predominance of westerly winds, and in the east by extratropical monsoons. Humidity indices vary significantly both by latitude and longitude, which is associated with the diversity of zones and subzones and differences in their extent. The oceanic sectors are occupied by humid forests, the transitional ones - by forests, forest-steppes and steppes, the continental ones - mainly by semi-deserts and deserts. The most striking manifestation of these zonal features is observed in subtropical zones, within which latitudinal differences in radiation conditions are still large, and moisture comes from both the west (only in winter) and the east (mainly in summer). In low latitude belts (tropical, subequatorial and equatorial), the asymmetry of the hemispheres is smoothed out, the radiation balance reaches its maximum, and its differences by latitude are weakly expressed. The leading role in changes in the ratio of heat and moisture goes to the latter. In tropical (trade wind) zones, moisture enters only from the east. This explains the presence of relatively humid zones (tropical forests, savannas and woodlands) extending submeridionally in the eastern sectors, semi-deserts and deserts filling the continental and western sectors. Subequatorial belts receive moisture mainly from the equatorial monsoons, that is, its amount quickly decreases from the equator to the tropics.

1. Natural areas of the Eurasian continent
1. Location of natural zones on the Eurasian continent and their characteristics

Geographic zoning is a pattern of differentiation of the geographical (landscape) shell of the Earth, manifested in a consistent and definite change in geographical zones and zones, caused, first of all, by changes in the amount of radiant energy from the Sun falling on the surface of the Earth, depending on geographic latitude. Such zoning is inherent in most components and processes of natural territorial complexes - climatic, hydrological, geochemical and geomorphological processes, soil and plant cover and fauna, and partly the formation of sedimentary rocks. A decrease in the angle of incidence of solar rays from the equator to the poles causes the formation of latitudinal radiation belts - hot, two moderate and two cold. The formation of similar thermal and, even more so, climatic and geographical zones is already associated with the properties and circulation of the atmosphere, which is greatly influenced by the distribution of land and oceans (the reasons for the latter are azonal). The differentiation of natural zones on land itself depends on the ratio of heat and moisture, which varies not only by latitude, but also from the coasts inland (sector pattern), therefore we can talk about horizontal zoning, a particular manifestation of which is latitudinal zoning, well expressed on the territory of the Eurasian continent .

Each geographical zone and sector has its own set (spectrum) of zones and their sequence. The distribution of natural zones is also manifested in the natural change of altitudinal zones, or belts, in the mountains, which is also initially determined by the azonal factor - relief, however, certain spectra of altitudinal zones are characteristic of certain belts and sectors. Zoning in Eurasia is characterized for the most part as horizontal, with the following zones identified (their name comes from the predominant type of vegetation cover):

- Arctic desert zone;

— zone of tundra and forest-tundra;

— taiga zone;

— zone of mixed and deciduous forests;

- zone of forest-steppes and steppes;

— zone of semi-deserts and deserts;

- zone of hard-leaved evergreen forests and shrubs (the so-called

"Mediterranean" zone);

— zone of variable-humid (including monsoon) forests;

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On the territory of Eurasia there are all types of natural areas of the Earth. The sublatitudinal extent of the zones is disrupted only in the oceanic sectors and mountainous regions.

Most of the Arctic islands and a narrow strip of coastline lie in Arctic desert zone, there are also cover glaciers (Spitsbergen, Franz Josef Land, Novaya Zemlya and Severnaya Zemlya).

Located further south tundra and forest-tundra, which from a narrow coastal strip in Europe gradually expand in the Asian part of the mainland. Moss-lichen covers, shrubs and shrubby forms of willow and birch on tundra-gley permafrost soils, numerous lakes and swamps, and animals adapted to the harsh northern conditions (lemmings, hares, arctic foxes, reindeer and many waterfowl) are common here.

South of 69°N.

in the west and 65° N. in the east within the temperate zone dominate coniferous forests(taiga). Up to the Urals, the main tree species are pine and spruce; in Western Siberia, fir and Siberian cedar (cedar pine) are added to them; in Eastern Siberia, larch already dominates - only it has been able to adapt to permafrost. Coniferous species are often mixed with small-leaved trees - birch, aspen, alder, especially in areas affected by forest fires and logging sites.

Under conditions of acidic pine litter and leaching regime, podzolic soils are formed, poor in humus, with a peculiar whitish horizon. The fauna of the taiga is rich and diverse - the number of species is dominated by rodents, there are many fur-bearing animals: sables, beavers, stoats, foxes, squirrels, martens, hares, which are of commercial importance; The most common large animals are moose, brown bears, and lynxes and wolverines.

Most birds feed on seeds, buds, and young shoots of plants (grouse grouse, hazel grouse, crossbills, nutcrackers, etc.); there are insectivores (finches, woodpeckers) and birds of prey (owls).

In Europe and East Asia, the taiga zone changes to the south zone of mixed coniferous-deciduous forests.

Thanks to leaf litter and grass cover, organic matter accumulates in the surface layer of soil in these forests and a humus (turf) horizon is formed. That is why such soils are called soddy-podzolic. In the mixed forests of Western Siberia, the place of broad-leaved species is taken by small-leaved species - aspen and birch.

In Europe, south of the taiga is located deciduous forest zone, which wedges out near the Ural Mountains.

In Western Europe, under conditions of sufficient heat and precipitation, beech forests on brown forest soils predominate; in Eastern Europe they are replaced by oak and linden on gray forest soils, since these species tolerate summer heat and dryness better.

The main tree species in this zone include hornbeam, elm, elm in the west, maple and ash in the east. The grass cover of these forests consists of plants with wide leaves - broad grasses (wort grass, capitula, hoofweed, lily of the valley, lungwort, ferns).

Foliage and grass, rotting, form a dark and rather powerful humus horizon. Indigenous broad-leaved forests in most areas have been replaced by birch and aspen.

In the Asian part of the mainland, broad-leaved forests are preserved only in the east, in the mountainous regions. They are very diverse in composition with a large number of conifers and relict species, vines, ferns and a dense shrub layer.

Mixed and deciduous forests are home to many animals characteristic of both the taiga (hares, foxes, squirrels, etc.) and more southern latitudes: roe deer, wild boars, red deer; A small population of tigers remains in the Amur basin.

In the continental part of the continent south of the forest zone they are common forest-steppe and steppe.

In the forest-steppe, herbaceous vegetation is combined with areas of broad-leaved (up to the Urals) or small-leaved (in Siberia) forests.

Steppes are treeless spaces where grasses with a dense and dense root system thrive. Under them, the most fertile chernozem soils in the world are formed, the thick humus horizon of which is formed due to the conservation of organic matter during the dry summer period. This is the most human-transformed natural zone in the interior of the continent.

Due to the exceptional fertility of chernozems, steppes and forest-steppes are almost completely plowed. Their flora and fauna (herds of ungulates) have been preserved only in the territories of several reserves.

Numerous rodents have adapted well to the new living conditions on agricultural lands: ground squirrels, marmots and field mice. Inland regions with continental and sharply continental climates are dominated by dry steppes with sparse vegetation and chestnut soils. In the central regions of Eurasia, semi-deserts and deserts are located in the internal basins.

They are characterized by cold winters with frosts, so there are no succulents here, but wormwood, solyanka, and saxaul grow. In general, the vegetation does not form a continuous cover, as do the brown and gray-brown soils that develop under them, which are saline.

The ungulates of the Asian semi-deserts and deserts (wild donkeys, wild Przewalski's horses, camels) have been almost completely exterminated, and rodents, which mostly hibernate in winter, and reptiles dominate among the animals.

The south of the oceanic sectors of the continent is located in subtropical and tropical forest zones.

In the west, in the Mediterranean, the indigenous vegetation is represented by hard-leaved evergreen forests and shrubs, the plants of which have adapted to hot and dry conditions. Beneath these forests, fertile brown soils formed. Typical woody plants are evergreen oaks, wild olive, noble laurel, southern pine - pine, cypress. Few wild animals remain. Rodents can be found, including wild rabbit, goats, mountain sheep and a peculiar predator - the genet.

As elsewhere in arid conditions, there are a lot of reptiles: snakes, lizards, chameleons. Among the birds there are birds of prey - vultures, eagles and rare species such as the blue magpie and the Spanish sparrow.

In the east of Eurasia, the subtropical climate has a different character: precipitation falls mainly in the hot summer.

Once upon a time in East Asia, forests occupied vast areas; now they are preserved only near temples and in inaccessible gorges. The forests are diverse in species, very dense, with a large number of vines. Among the trees there are both evergreen species: magnolias, camellias, camphor laurel, tung tree, and deciduous ones: oak, beech, hornbeam.

Southern coniferous species play a major role in these forests: pines and cypresses. Under these forests, fairly fertile red and yellow soils have formed, which are almost completely plowed. Various subtropical crops are grown on them. Deforestation radically affected the composition of the animal world. Wild animals are preserved only in the mountains.

These are the Himalayan black bear, the bamboo bear - panda, leopards, monkeys - macaques and gibbons. Among the feathered population there are many large and colorful species: parrots, pheasants, ducks.

The subequatorial belt is characterized by savannas and variable-humid forests. Many plants here shed their leaves during the dry and hot winter. Such forests are well developed in the monsoon region of Hindustan, Burma, and the Malay Peninsula. They are relatively simple in structure, the upper tree layer is often formed by one species, but these forests amaze with the variety of vines and ferns.

In the extreme south of South and Southeast Asia they are common equatorial rainforests.

They are distinguished by a large number of species of palm trees (up to 300 species), bamboo, many of them play a large role in the life of the population: they provide food, building material, and raw materials for some types of industry.

In Eurasia, large areas are occupied areas with altitudinal zones. The structure of altitudinal zones is extremely diverse and depends on the geographical location of the mountains, slope exposure, and height. Conditions are unique on the high plains of the Pamirs, Central Asia, and the Western Asian highlands.

A textbook example of altitudinal zones are the world's greatest mountains, the Himalayas - almost all altitudinal zones are represented here.

Natural area	Climate type	Climate Features	Vegetation	The soil	Animal world
TJan.	TJuly	Total precipitation
	Subarctic				Islands of small birches, willows, rowan trees	Mountain-arctic, mountain-tundra	Rodents, wolves, foxes, polar owls
Forest-tundra	Moderately marine				birch and alder	Illuvial-humus podzols.	Elk, partridge, arctic fox
Coniferous forest	Temperate temperate continental				Norway spruce, Scots pine	Podzolic	Leming, bear, wolf, lynx, capercaillie
Mixed forest	Moderate Temperate continental				Pine, oak, beech, birch	Sod-podzolic	Wild boar, beaver, mink, marten
broadleaf forest	Temperate marine				Oak, beech, heather	Brown forest	Roe deer, bison, muskrat
Coniferous forests	Moderate monsoon				Fir, esl, Far Eastern yew, small-leaved birch, alder, aspen, willow	Brown forest broadleaf forest	Antelope, leopard, Amur tiger, mandarin duck, white stork
Evergreen subtropical forests	Subtropical				Masson pine, sad cypress, Japanese cryptomeria, lianas	Red soils and yellow soils	Asian mouflon, marking goat, wolves, tigers, marmots, ground squirrels
Tropical rainforests	Subequatorial				Palm trees, lychee, ficus	Red-yellow ferrallite	Monkeys, rodents, sloths, peacocks
	Moderate				Cereals: feather grass, fescue, tonkonogo, bluegrass, sheep	Chernozems	gophers, marmots, steppe eagle, bustard, wolf
	Temperate, subtropical, tropical				tamarix, saltpeter, solyanka, juzgun	Desert sandy and rocky	Rodents, lizards, snakes

Lecture added 03/07/2014 at 14:48:58

Natural areas of Russia.

* Geographical position.

* Vegetable world.

* Animal world.

* Rare and endangered animals.

GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION:

* The taiga zone is the largest natural zone in Russia.

It stretches in a wide continuous strip from the western borders almost to the Pacific coast. The zone reaches its greatest width in Central Siberia (more than 2000 km). Here the flat taiga meets the mountain taiga of the Sayan and Cis-Baikal regions. The Russian taiga could cover almost all of Europe - an entire part of the world.

CLIMATE:

The taiga is characterized by moderately warm summers and cold winters with snow cover, especially harsh in Siberia.

In Central Yakutia, even the average January temperature drops below - 40. The average July temperature varies from + 13 in the north to +19 in the south. The sum of temperatures during the warm period also increases in the same direction.

Taiga is characterized by sufficient and excessive moisture. There are many swamps, including upland swamps, and lakes. Surface runoff in the taiga is higher than in other natural zones.

The river network is very dense. Snow melt water plays an important role in feeding rivers. Due to this, spring floods are observed.

THE SOIL.

* Taiga is coniferous forests of uniform composition. Under them, to the west of the Yenisei, podzolic and sod-podzolic soils are formed, and to the east, permafrost-taiga soils.

VEGETABLE WORLD.

* Taiga forests are usually formed by one layer of trees, under which there is a moss carpet with lingonberry and blueberry bushes and rare herbs.

Sometimes the second tree layer forms the young generation of the forest. Young fir trees and fir trees in the forest feel like their mother, and the pines feel like their stepmother. In order not to die, they must fight all their lives for a place in the sun, and not only with their sisters, but also with their parents. After all, pine is a light-loving species. In lighter forests, in some places, shrubs - elderberry, brittle buckthorn, honeysuckle, rose hips, wild rosemary, juniper - can form their own layer.

ANIMAL
WORLD.

The animals inhabiting it are well adapted to life in the taiga.

Common in the taiga are brown bear, elk, squirrel, chipmunk, mountain hare, typical taiga birds: wood grouse, hazel grouse, various woodpeckers, nutcracker, crossbill. Predators are also typical for the taiga: wolf, lynx, wolverine, sable, marten, ermine, fox.

Rare and endangered
animals.

The Central Forest Biosphere State Reserve was formed in 1931 to preserve the southern border of the taiga, located in the Tver region, 50 kilometers north of the city of Nelidovo.

Conclusion.

* The dominance of evergreen coniferous trees in the taiga zone is the plant’s response to the duration of the frosty winter. The needles reduce evaporation, the diversity of animals is associated with varied and fairly plentiful food, and plenty of shelters.

Materials used.

We used the booklet: “Central Forest Reserve,” a geography textbook. Electronic encyclopedia of Cyril and Methodius.

Download abstract

Steppes are common on all continents except Antarctica; in Eurasia, the largest areas of steppes are located in the Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Mongolia. In the mountains it forms an altitudinal belt (mountain steppe); on the plains - a natural zone located between the forest-steppe zone in the north and the semi-desert zone in the south.

Atmospheric precipitation is from 250 to 450 mm per year.

The climate of steppe regions typically ranges from temperate continental to continental and is characterized by very hot summers and cold winters.

A significant part of the steppe territories is plowed.

A characteristic feature of the steppe is the treelessness of vast plains covered with rich grassy vegetation. Herbs that form a closed or almost closed carpet: feather grass, fescue, tonkonogo, bluegrass, sheep grass, etc.

Both in terms of species composition and some ecological features, the animal world of the steppe has much in common with the animal world of the desert.

Of the ungulates, typical species are distinguished by acute vision and the ability to run quickly and for a long time (for example, antelopes); of rodents - those that build complex burrows (gophers, marmots, mole rats) and jumping species (jerboas, kangaroo rats). Most birds fly away for the winter. Common: steppe eagle, bustard, steppe harrier, steppe kestrel, larks. Reptiles and insects are numerous.

Forest-tundra and tundra.

Forest-tundra- a subarctic type of landscape, in which, in the interfluves, oppressed light forests alternate with shrubby or typical tundra.

Average air temperatures in July are 10-12°C, and in January, depending on the increasing continentality of the climate, from −10° to −40°C.

With the exception of rare taliks, the soils are everywhere permafrost.

Soils are peaty-gley, peat-bog

Shrub tundras and open forests change due to longitudinal zonation. In the eastern part of the North American forest-tundra, black and white spruce grow along with dwarf birches and polar willows, and in the west, balsam fir

The fauna of the forest-tundra is also dominated by lemmings of various species in different longitudinal zones, reindeer, arctic foxes, white and tundra partridges, polar owls and a wide variety of migratory, waterfowl and small birds that settle in bushes.

Forest-tundra is a valuable reindeer pasture and hunting grounds.

Tundra- a type of natural zones lying beyond the northern limits of forest vegetation, spaces with permafrost soil that is not flooded by sea or river waters.

The tundra is located north of the taiga zone. The nature of the surface of the tundra is swampy, peaty, rocky. The southern border of the tundra is taken to be the beginning of the Arctic.

The tundra has a very harsh climate (the climate is subarctic), only those plants and animals that can withstand the cold live here. The winter is long (5-6 months) and cold (up to −50 ° C).

Summer is also relatively cold, the average temperature in June is about 12°C, and with the arrival of summer all the vegetation comes to life. The summer and autumn tundra is rich in mushrooms and berries.

Tundra vegetation consists primarily of lichens and mosses; The angiosperms found are low grasses (especially from the Poaceae family), shrubs and dwarf shrubs.

Wild deer, foxes, bighorn sheep, wolves, lemmings and brown hares are typical inhabitants of the Russian tundra. But there are not so many birds: Lapland plantain, white-winged plover, red-breasted pipit, plover, snow bunting, snowy owl and ptarmigan.

There are no reptiles in the tundra, but a very large number of blood-sucking insects.

Rivers and lakes are rich in fish (nelma, whitefish, omul, vendace, etc.).

Antarctic ice desert zone.

The Antarctic belt is the southern natural geographical zone of the Earth, including Antarctica with the adjacent islands and the ocean waters washing it.

Usually the boundary of the Antarctic belt is drawn along the 5 degree isotherm from the warmest month (January or February).

The Antarctic belt is characterized by:
— negative or low positive values ​​of the radiation balance;
— Antarctic climate with low air temperatures;
- long polar night;
— the predominance of ice deserts on land;
— significant ocean ice cover.

Zoning and azonality.

The most important geographical pattern is zoning– a natural change in components or complexes from the equator to the poles due to a change in the angle of incidence of the sun's rays.

The main reasons for zonation are the shape of the Earth and the position of the Earth relative to the Sun, and the prerequisite is the incidence of sunlight on the Earth's surface at an angle that gradually decreases on both sides of the equator.

The founder of the doctrine of zonation was the Russian soil scientist and geographer V.V.

Dokuchaev, who believed that zonation is a universal law of nature. Geographers share the concepts of component and complex zoning. Scientists distinguish horizontal, latitudinal and meridional zoning.

Due to the zonal distribution of solar radiant energy on Earth, the following are zonal: air, water and soil temperatures; evaporation and cloudiness; atmospheric precipitation, baric relief and wind systems, VM properties, climates; the nature of the hydrographic network and hydrological processes; features of geochemical processes and soil formation; types of vegetation and life forms of plants and animals; sculptural relief forms, to a certain extent types of sedimentary rocks, and finally, geographical landscapes, united in this regard into a system of natural zones.

The zones do not form continuous stripes everywhere.

The boundaries of many zones deviate from parallels, and great contrasts in nature are observed within the same zones. Therefore, along with zonality, another geographical pattern is distinguished - azonality. Azonality– changes in components and complexes associated with the manifestation of endogenous processes.

The reason for azonality is the heterogeneity of the earth's surface, the presence of continents and oceans, mountains and plains on the continents, the uniqueness of local factors: the composition of rocks, relief, moisture conditions, etc. Endogenous relief is azonal, i.e. placement of volcanoes and tectonic mountains, structure of continents and oceans.

There are two main forms of manifestation of azonality - sectorality geographical zones and altitudinal zone.

Within geographic zones, three sectors are distinguished: continental and two oceanic. The sectorality is expressed most clearly in the temperate and subtropical geographical zones, and weakest in the equatorial and subarctic.

Altitudinal zonation is a natural change in zones from the foot to the top of a mountain.

Altitudinal zones are not copies, but analogues of latitudinal zones; their identification is based on a decrease in temperature with height, and not on a change in the angle of incidence of sunlight.

However, altitudinal zonality has much in common with horizontal zonality: the change of zones when ascending mountains occurs in the same sequence as on the plains when moving from the equator to the poles.

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All natural zones of the Northern Hemisphere are represented in Eurasia. In the western part of the continent, the dominant influence of the Atlantic Ocean led to a change in natural areas from northwest to southeast. In the eastern part of Eurasia, natural zones should be plotted meridionally, which is a consequence of the massive mass transfer of monsoons in the Pripihochanovsk region. Natural areas of the continent's interior vary in width due to changes in temperature and humidity from north to south.

The Arctic desert with very harsh natural and climatic conditions occupies the Arctic islands.

There is no continuous floor covering, and poor vegetation is a heat-resistant species that survives in constant cold conditions. Here are the common animals, polar bears, wet ones, seals, reindeer.

Due to the moderating influence of the North Atlantic flow, tundra and forest-tundra differ in their western and eastern regions.

Near the European coast of the continent, the climate is moderately cold, and the tundra extends to the north as anywhere on the planet. As you move eastward, natural and climatic conditions become more severe, and tundra and forest tundra occupy large areas. In the highlands of Siberia, tundra vegetation extends far to the south.

Among the plants, mosses and lichens predominate, which grow on the tundra and see the ground. Due to long-term frost, the humidity does not deepen, so there are a lot of swamps. Main animals: reindeer, arctic fox, some bird species

There is land to the south of the forested tundra. In warmer and more humid climates, huge areas of coniferous trees were created on podzolic soils from spruce, pine and larch (the only conifers, the needles settle in winter.

The latter predominate in the Asian Taiga, in a coldly harsh continental climate. In places where the taiga is very rich, there are many peat bogs and swamps.

The animal kingdom here is extremely diverse (brown bear, moose, black grouse, wolf, wood grouse).

Areas of mixed and deciduous forests are most common in western Eurasia. Here, under conditions of significant moisture, the spruce-podzolic soil grows the spruce-oak and pine oak forests of Western Siberia - coniferous and unpaved forests.

In addition to the east, mixed forests disappear and reappear only on the Pacific coast. Broad forests consist mainly of oak and beech, as well as hornbeam, maple, lime

For the forest-steppe and steppe region, there are certain differences in the distance of ozone, caused by significant climatic changes with progress from west to east of the continent.

In conditions of a warm climate and inadequate moisture, fertile black soils, as well as gray forest soil, were created south of the Russian Plain. The vegetation here contains small areas of forest (oak, birch, linden, maple). In the eastern part of the continent, if there is a temperature range and a dry climate increase, soil is often a physiological solution.

Here the flora is poorer and is mainly represented by grass and shrubs. The most typical representatives of the animal world are steppe and forest-steppe wolves, foxes, civet squirrels, voles, shrimp and steppe birds. Forested steppes and steppes are almost completely nourished, and natural vegetation is maintained only in protected areas and places that are not suitable for plowing

In large areas of the central and southwestern parts of the continent they occupy half of the desert and desert.

The desert zone extends into three geographical zones. The common denominator for all deserts is low rainfall, poor soil, and vegetation well adapted to difficult conditions.

Deserts on the Arabian Peninsula are characterized by high temperatures throughout the year, low (up to 100 mm per year) precipitation and mostly flat surfaces. Deserts of subtropical plants (Iranian plateau, Central Asia, part of the Gobi Desert) are characterized by large temperature differences, richer vegetation, and a significant number of species. Covered with sand or rocks, the desert of the temperate Karakum zone, Taklamakan, part of the Gobi is characterized by very hot summers and severe frosts in winter

Eurasia is characterized by clearly defined geographical boundaries. This continent represents all existing zones, from equatorial forests to arctic deserts. Each of them has some characteristics, including unique flora and fauna.

As for mixed and deciduous forests, there are practically none left. In Europe, secondary plantings appeared in their place, and in Asia, arable lands were created. However, this zone is characterized by maple, oak, hornbeam, elm, and beech.

Steppes are nothing more than vast expanses of grassy vegetation. Unfortunately, they have been preserved in their original form only on the territory of nature reserves - only there you can study natural landscapes. The rest of the territory was allocated for agriculture. This zone is inhabited mainly by rodents.

Deserts and semi-deserts - these natural zones of Eurasia are located mainly in the central part of the continent (for example, the Gobi Desert). Conditions in these areas are far from optimal - low precipitation, cold winters and hot summers. Interestingly, there are places with so-called quicksand. As for the vegetation, here it is represented by solyanka, wormwood, sandy sedge and saxaul. This area is inhabited by rodents, some ungulates and representatives of reptiles.

The zone of hard-leaved forests and shrubs is located in the subtropical zone, or more precisely, in its western part. In the remaining forests you can see thickets of bamboo, as well as magnolia, camphor and laurel. But wild animals at one time were almost completely exterminated. Only in the highlands of Western Asia do hyenas, foxes and antelopes still live.

Savannas - these natural zones of Eurasia are represented mainly on the coasts of Indochina and Hindustan. The fauna here is very rich - tigers, elephants, buffalos, rhinoceroses, deer, antelopes, monkeys. These areas are mostly planted, but there are also real groves of Indian acacia. There are also valuable species, for example, sal and teak wood, from which expensive, rare types of wood are obtained.