BIOGEOGRAPHY:

Biogeography:
The study of the distribution of plants and vegetation over the earth’s surface.

Factors Affecting Vegetation Distribution/Variation/Growth:

(1)Climate: Precipitation, Temperature, Light intensity, Winds.
(2) Relief/Topography: Altitude, Slope Angle, Aspect, Drainage.
(3) Edaphic/Soil : There is variation in vegetation due to differences in soil and underlying
parent rock. Plant growth is affected by soil texture, structure, acidity, organic content,
fertility, depth, water, oxygen content, nutrients, erosion.
(4) Biotic Factors: Competition between plants for light, space and water; Effect of
predators and parasites; Human activities, eg road construction, agric, urban growth,
mining, veld fires, tourism, keeping of domestic animals.

Biodiversity: The variety of plant and animal life in the world/in a particular habitat. A full
range of animal and plant species that live in a community. Different species of organisms
found in a place. Variability among living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial,
marine and other aquatic ecosystems.
How Humans affect Biodiversity: Cultivation; Cattle ranching; Settlement; Logging for paper
and furniture; Dam construction; Road construction; Veld fires; Tourism etc.
Natural Factors: Natural fires; Climate change; Pests and diseases; Destruction by animals;
Natural disasters, eg volcanic eruptions.
Measures to Reduce Negative Impacts of Human Activities on Biodiversity: Ban on the
importation and exploitation of timber, animals and birds; Introduction of special quotas;
Empowerment of local communities; Enact laws and regulations that protect resources;
Creation of nature/game reserves; Licencing on movement of endangered species;
Afforestation/Reforestation; Use of alternative sources of fuel/buildings etc.
Biomass: Total mass of all living things, mainly plant and animal tissues. Total weight of
living matter in a given area including plants and animals.
Litter: Total amount of matter such as plant and animal remains including human and
organic leaf. Total amount of organic matter, including humus and leaf litter in the soil.

Biome:
A large global ecosystem. A large scale vegetation zone whose major controlling factor is
climate. A biome gets its name from the dominant type of vegetation found within it. A
biome contains climax communities of plants and animals and can be closely linked to zonal
soils. A biome can extend across a large part of a continent, and its characteristics may be
found in several continents.
Examples of World Biomes:
(1) Tropical Rainforest Biome
(2) Tropical Grassland/Savanna Biome
(3) Desert Biome
(4) Temperate Biome.
*NB - (a) Outline the inputs of each biome. (b) Describe the climatic characteristics of each
biome. (c) Explain the vegetation structure/characteristics of each biome.
(d) Explain ways by which plants/animals adapt to climatic conditions in each biome.
(e) Human/Natural modification of each biome.
(f) Sustainable use/management of each biome.

Plant Community: An organised group of plants generally of distinctive character and

related to a particular set of environment requirements.
Pioneer Community: The first plants to colonise/occupy an area and develop in it.
Climax Community/Climatic Climax Vegetation: A fully mature natural vegetation. Full
stage of plant community at which vegetation is at equilibrium with the general climatic
conditions. Nature, structure of vegetation depends largely on climatic conditions. The other
factors such as soil have become less relevant. There is no disruption in vegetation. The
vegetation is in a steady state.
Plagio – Climax Vegetation: Vegetation which is prevented from reaching its climax state by
human activities such as agric, lumbering, fires, overgrazing and natural disasters like
volcanic eruption. Human activities permanently arrested/altered the natural plant
succession/growth and the vegetation would be maintained through management.
Xerophytes: Drought resistant plants. Drought tolerant plants which grow in dry conditions.
Plants which grow in areas receiving low rainfall and high temperatures, eg cactus.
Pyrophytes: Plants that resist fire. Have thick gnarled/rough bark to resist fire. Plants that
sprout quickly after fire.
Epiphytes: Plants that grow harmlessly upon another plant. The plants do not have their
roots in the soil, they hang on other trees. The plants derive its moisture/nutrients from air,
rain, and debris accumulating around it. They derive no nourishment from the host.
Halophytes: Plants that favour saline soils.
Hydrophytes: Plants that do well in water-logged conditions.

Plant Succession:
The orderly replacement of one plant community by another over time leading to climax
vegetation. The orderly sequence of stages through which a plant community develops from
a pioneer stage to a stable climax stage. The sequential change in a plant community from a
pioneer community to climax vegetation. The development of vegetation through all the
seral stages up to climax vegetation. To establish climax communities, vegetation goes
through stages or seres. These stages leads to a fully mature, natural vegetation. (Dia ,
Waugh pg 288).
A Sere is a stage in a sequence of events by which the vegetation of an area develops over a
period of time. Stages in plant succession involves the pioneer stage where simple plants
like lichens/mosses develop. These are followed/replaced by an invasion of grass/
weeds/small plants which die and decay to increase nutrients to the soil. Large plants like
bush/shrub then develop. These grow bigger and develop into a woodland which later
grows into a dense forest to establish the climax vegetation.

There are Two Types of plant succession: (1) Primary Succession (2) Secondary Succession.

Primary Succession:
The development of vegetation on a new/previously unvegetated land surface or in water.
Occurs on areas that have never had previously had plant cover.
Types of Primary Plant Succession: (Waugh pg 290, Dynamics pg 85):
(1) Lithosere: A primary plant succession that develops on rock, eg a new volcanic island.
(2) Psammosere: A primary plant succession that develops on a sand surface such as sand
dunes.
(3) Halosere: A primary plant succession that takes place in salty water/marshes.
(4) Hydrosere: A primary plant succession that develops under fresh water conditions such
as ponds and lakes.
*Xerosere: A term used to refer to a plant succession that develops on dry land
surfaces/under dry conditions. This comprise a lithosere (rock) and a psammosere (sand).

Secondary Succession: This occurs when the once vegetated area is destroyed/altered by
human activities/naturally. The former vegetation is then replaced by a second type of
vegetation. Secondary succession is the re-establishment of plant communities following
major disturbances such as deforestation, overgrazing, veld fire, mudflows, landslides,
volcanic eruptions etc.

Ecological System/ Ecosystem:

Ecosystem = Ecology + System.
Ecology: Study of living things and their relations with the environment. Study of plants and
animals in relation to each other and their physical environment.
System: A set of organised activities which are interrelated/interdependent in such a way
that they make a working unit.
Ecosystem: The interaction/interdependence of all living things with each other and their
physical environment in which they live. An ecosystem is made up of Biotic and Abiotic
Components.
Biotic Component: This is made up of living organisms (plants/animals). There are three
groups of living things. (1) Producers/autotrophs/Self-feeders (2) Consumers (3)
Decomposers/Reducers/Detritivores.
Abiotic Component: The non-living part of an ecosystem. The natural/physical environment
which include water, soil, temperature, light, humidity, air (nitrogen/oxygen), wind, rocks
etc.
Habitat: An organism’s home. A place where organisms live.
Population: All the living individuals of a particular species in a habitat.
Niche: The role of an organism in an ecosystem.
Food Chain: The transfer of food energy from one organism to another. Each organism in
the chain feeds from the one before it. A general sequence of who eats/decomposes who in
an ecosystem.
Trophic/Energy Level: Feeding stages/steps in a food chain/ecological pyramid. Stages/links
in the food chain. The high the trophic level in the pyramid, the fewer the organisms.
Food Web: A network of interrelated/interdependence food chains. It shows all feeding
relations in an ecosystem.

Biochemical Cycles:
Movement of nutrients and chemical elements through the ecosystem where they are
re-used repeatedly.
A Nutrient is any chemical/compound/element an organism must take so as to
live/grow/reproduce. Inorganic Nutrients/Chemical Elements are: Carbon, Oxygen, Copper,
Phosphorous, Iodine, Iron. Organic Nutrients are: Carbohydrates, Vitamins, Proteins etc.
Nutrients are obtained from the atmosphere, earth’s crust and weathering processes.
Nutrient Cycle:
Continuous movement of nutrients/exchange of chemical elements between the biotic and
abiotic components of the ecosystem. Mechanism by which chemicals are moved between
living and non-living things and to be renewed over and over again, eg the Nitrogen Cycle,
the Carbon Cycle, the Oxygen Cycle ( Waugh, pg 298). Each cycle consist of plants taking up
chemical nutrients which, once they have been used, are passed on to the herbivores and
then carnivores that feed on them. As organisms at each trophic level die, they decompose
and the nutrients are returned to the system.
Gerschmel’s Nutrient Cycle Model: (Waugh pg 300, Dynamics pg 88)
In 1976, P.F Gerschmel proposed a model to show the relationship in the movement and
storage of nutrients in an ecosystem. The model shows three main components: (1) Litter
(2) Biomass (3) Soil. There are gains and losses from the three components. The size of the
components vary from one climatic region to another such as the Tropical Rainforest/
Desert/Savanna.
Importance of Biochemical Cycles in the Ecosystem:
Production of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere; Production of carbon dioxide for
photosynthesis; Production of oxygen for respiration; production of phosphorous for root
production; Production of food/grucose for use by plants, consumers and decomposers.
Nitrification:
Denitrification: The reverse of nitrification where nitrites are reduced to molecular nitrogen
back to the atmosphere.

SOIL:
Soil is the unconsolidated mineral and organic material on the earth’s surface which
supports plant growth and therefore the support of animal life on land. Soil forms the thin
surface layer of the earth’s crust. Soil extends to the bedrock below the ground surface.
Pedology: The study of soil, its origins and characteristics.
Pedogenic/Pedogenesis: Soil forming processes.
Soil Components/Properties:
Soil is made up of four major components: (1) Mineral/Inorganic Matter
(2) Organic Matter/Humus (3) Moisture/Water (4) Air. The interrelationship between
these components produce a series of other properties/characteristics: (5) Organisms/Biota
(6) Nutrients (7) Acidity/Ph Value (8) Temperature (9) Texture (10) Structure.

Soil Forming Factors:

Pedologists have identified five main factors involved in soil formation. These factors are
summarised by the Jenny Formula: S = f (C, P, R, V, T). Soil is a function of:
Climate; Parent Material; Relief; Vegetation; Time. (Dynamics, pg 91).

Processes of Soil Formation/Pedological Processes:

Soil forming processes include: (1)Weathering (2) Humification and Cheluviation
(3) Salinisation (4) Laterisation (5) Ponzolisation (6) Calcification (7) Leaching (8)
Gleisation/Gleying (9) Elluviation (10) Illuviation (11) Ferralitisation.
Weathering: The breakdown of the parent rock to form soil through chemical and physical
processes (See Geomorphology).
Humification: The process by organic matter is decomposed to form humus. This is
performed by soil organisms. As organic matter decomposes it releases nutrients and
organic acids.
Cheluviation: The attaching of organic acids onto clay and other minerals, mainly in the A
horizon, to release iron and aluminium. The iron and aluminium compounds (since they are
soluble) are transported downwards through the soil profile.
Translocation: The movement of soil material/components in any direction
(downwards/upwards) and in any form (solution/suspension). Translocation involves the
following processes: Salinisation; Laterisation; Ponzolisation; Calcification; Leaching;
Gleisation/Gleying; Elluviation; Illuviation; Ferralitisation.

Soil Profile:
The vertical section through the soil showing its different horizons from the surface to
bedrock. Succession of soil horizons between the surface and underlying parent material
where different processes take place.( Dia, Waugh pg 262, Dynamics pg 92).
How Humans Modify soil Profiles: Ploughing mix the horizons; Deep ploughing break up
iron pan formation thus increasing downward movement of water; Repeated ploughing at
the same depth creates a hard pan near the surface; Deep ploughing can bury humus thus
making the distinction between horizons A and B hard to make; Irrigation can led to
salinization and formation of a hard salt crust near the surface;
Deforestation/Overgrazing/Strip mining increases erosion thus distorts humus formation;
construction of infrastructure.
Natural Factors: Floods causing massive erosion; Wind erosion; Mass Wasting/Landslides.
Soil as an Open System:
Soil is an open system where materials and energy are gained and lost at its boundaries. The
system comprises inputs, stores, outputs, transfers, translocations, losses and
feedbacks/recycling.(Dia, Waugh pg 262, Dynamics pg 90).

Soil Classification:
According to Texture: (1) Sand (2) Silt (3) Clay.
According to Soil Forming Factors/Processes: (1) Zonal Soils (2) Azonal Soils (3)
Intrazonal Soils.
Zonal Soils:
These are mature soils. They result from the maximum effects of climate and vegetation.
They have distinct layers and are in equilibrium with the climatic conditions. They are found
in areas where climatic/physical factors have been stable for a long time. Examples are
podzols, chernozems, latosols.
Azonal Soils:
Young soils with no clear profiles. They show little horizontal development. Occur where soil
forming processes have had insufficient time to operate fully. Most of azonal soils are a
result of deposition. There are 3 Types of Azonal soils:
(i) Lithosols, which develop at high altitude, eg Scree.
(ii) Regosols, which form from unconsolidated materials, eg sand dunes, volcanic ash/soil.
(iii) Alluvial, which form by deposition, eg alluvial soils in flood plains, marsh soils.
Intrazonal Soils:
Soils that are strongly influenced by a single local factor such as parent rock material, relief,
water, salt. They can develop in more than one climatic zone. There are 3 Types of
Intrazonal soils:
(i) Calcimorphic/Calcareous Soils, develop on a limestone parent rock, eg rendzina, terra
rosa.
(ii) Hydromorphic Soils, develop where there is a high content of water, eg peat, gley soils.
(iii) Halomorphic Soils, have high levels of soluble salts which makes them saline. They
develop through the process of salinization, eg desert soils such as solonchaks, solonetz.

Soil Catena:
A sequence of soil types down the slope. Relationship between soils and slope. The way in
which soils change down a slope within the same climatic zone and parent rock. The depth
of the soil increases downslope. The upper slopes have skeletal shallow/immature (azonal)
soils. Lowlands have deep mature/zonal soils.
Revision Questions: (1) Explain how and why soil profiles vary along a hill slope (N2003).
(2) With the aid of diagrams, describe and explain variations in soil characteristics along a
hill slope (J2013).
(3) With reference to examples, explain the factors which influence local variations in soil
types (N2016)
SOIL EROSION:

Causes of Soil Erosion:

(i) Physical Causes
(ii) Human Causes
(1) Outline the causes of soil erosion in tropical regions (Nov 2012 pr 2).
(2) To what extent do human activities cause the deterioration of soil (N2018).

Soil Conservation:
(1) Assess the effectiveness of the measures that have been taken to improve the fertility of
soils in the tropical grasslands( N2019).
(2) To what extent can human activities improve the soil quality (J2010).
(3) Using examples, outline ways of sound soil management (N2010).
(4) With reference to a specific area you have studied, evaluate attempts being made to
curb soil erosion (N2003).
(5) With reference to specific examples, evaluate the methods that have been used to
reduce the effects of soil erosion in tropical areas (J2013).
(6) Assess measures to maintain soil fertility (N2018).