BIOL 2903 > Lecture 5 > Flashcards

Lecture 5 Flashcards

(46 cards)

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1
Q

T/F: the HBL forest region is the only one on the HBL physiographic region

A

F: it includes the tundra as well

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2
Q

Why does the southern HBL have continuous forest?

A
  • Glaciers left earlier
  • higher elevation + better drainage
  • more opportunity for forest to develop
  • flat due to isostatic rebound
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3
Q

Bedrock in the HBL

A

Sedimentary rock (limestone)

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4
Q

Elevation of the HBL

A
  • low (60-150m ABS)

- southern part is more elevated

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5
Q

HBL’s average daily temp. + its effects

A

between -3C and -6C

  • short growing season
  • discontinuous permafrost
  • cold + wet conditions are ideal for sphagnum moss
  • effect of the Tyrrell Sea
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6
Q

What results in the HBL having poor drainage?

A
  • discontinuous permafrost
  • flat land
  • impervious deposits
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7
Q

T/F: Sphagnum moss creates its own soil where there is none, and forms peatlands

A

True

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8
Q

T/F: the HBL is one of the largest expanses of continuous wetland in the world

A

True

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9
Q

Bog

A

Peatland where nutrients arrive through rainfall; nutrient-poor compared to fens

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10
Q

Fen

A

Peatland where nutrients arrive through moving water (brought from the land); nutrient-rich

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11
Q

T/F: It’s impossible for a bog to become a fen, or vice versa

A

F: can change if the method of how nutrients are brought in changes

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12
Q

Sedges

A

Grass-like (but with a triangular stem, not a round one); can colonize/grow out into water by attaching to shore and stems growing into the water

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13
Q

How does a peatland form?

A

Sphagnum moss grows around sedges and dominates the area, changing its characteristics

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14
Q

Effects of sphagnum moss

A
  • Changes physical/chemical attributes of the area
  • Releases acids
  • Locks up nutrients; deprives area of nutrients
  • forms a mat on top of water, depriving the area of oxygen
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15
Q

How does a mat of sphagnum moss get thicker through time?

A
  • Little decomposition occurs due to cold, so growth > decomposition
  • Gets thicker, locking up nutrients and preventing the system from giving off oxygen
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16
Q

Structure of sphagum

A

Living & dead cells joined in a chain; can soak up water from the bottom to provide it to the mat’s surface

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17
Q

What does sphagnum do to habitats?

A

Makes them cold, wet, oxygen-poor

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18
Q

Peat

A

Partly-decayed bottom of the mat of sphagnum moss - this is the “soil” they form

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19
Q

What is peat called when it’s >45cm thick and wet?

20
Q

What trees characterize HBL muskeg?

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A

Stunted black spruce & tamarack

21
Q

Plants that grow on muskeg

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A
  • Lichens (e.g. reindeer lichens)

- Heath plants (e.g. bog laurel/rosemary, cranberries, labrador tea, leatherleaf)

22
Q

What features of heath plants let them survive in muskeg?

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A
  • Leathery leaves w/hairs on the bottom (prevent dessication in the winter)
  • Leaves are retained to conserve nutrients
  • Mycorrhizal associations on the roots draw in nutrients
23
Q

3 types of traps for carnivorous plants + examples

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A
  • Pitfall traps (pitcher plant)
  • Adhesive traps (sundews)
  • Suction traps (bladderwort)
24
Q

What are the most common type of shrubs around peatlands? What advantage do they have in getting nutrients?

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A

Alders - root nodules filled with nitrogen-fixing bacteria help them get nutrients

25
Black spruce grows on these types of peatlands, which have small, scattered groups of trees:
Mounds & hummocks
26
T/F: only stunted trees grow in the muskeg
True
27
What happens to a peatland if all the water is choked off?
- Moss fills in to the bottom of the pond - Trees grow on the mat - Black spruce forest forms over time
28
T/F: Diversity increases as a peatland mat thickens and succession progresses
False
29
Which part of a peatland mat has the most diversity and why?
Sphagnum lawn, at the edge of the mat - More water available (found at the water's edge) - More sunlight - More nutrients
30
Where do most carnivorous plants grow on peatlands?
At the edge of the mat - insect larvae are found in the water, and insects may land in plants to dry off
31
Pallidification
Process through which a forest becomes a peatland due to rising water
32
Hypsithermal
Great warming trend 5k-7k years ago, caused pallidification
33
Stringed bogs, ribbed fens
"strings" & "ribs" are perpendicular to the slope of the land - sphagnum clumps join together, with water between them
34
What type of herps are most common in the HBL?
Freeze-tolerant frogs (e.g. Spring Peeper)
35
American Toads
Colourful, burrow underground, use water to breed
36
T/F: most birds in the HBL are confined to it
F: e.g. Sandhill Cranes are found throughout ON
37
T/F: greater yellowlegs are indicators for the HBL
False, they're found in the boreal forest
38
Name two birds that are indicators for the HBL muskeg in the summer
- Northern Shrike | - Lesser Yellowlegs
39
Palm Warbler
- Nests in peatlands/muskeg | - indicator for peatlands - not the HBL
40
Why are rivers important habitats in the HBL?
- Carry/deposit materials - Form riverbanks (area of raised material that's better drained & nutrient-rich) - drier substrates for plants to grow
41
Why do shoreline habitats allow for more plant/animal diversity in the HBL?
Exposed rock = more calcium available
42
T/F: most orchids are calciphilic
True
43
Calciphilic plants that grow in the HBL that are adapted to cold (3):
- Alpine bistort - Sticky asphodel - Butterwort
44
What is ON's most northern Lady's slipper?
Sparrow's Egg Lady's Slipper
45
T/F: Black-backed woodpeckers are found in the HBL
True
46
Which habitat are Canada Jays associated with?
Black/white spruce
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