BIO120H1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Blubber, Homeostasis, Ecophysiology
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BIO120H1 Full Course Notes
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The driest deserts occur inland of cold-wawter upwellings: cold water dry air. Offshore breezes do not contain much water vapour because the equilibrium of the air over ocean is determined by water temperature. Dry air is blown on shore, exaggerating the 30 degree desert effect. Eg of rain shadows in north america. What makes it dry is it makes a rain shadow over the rocky mountains. Prevailing winds contain air with a certain amount of water vapour, as they rise over mountains, abiotic cooling, as it goes up, precipitation comes out of it. Windward side tends to get a lot of rain and snow; the air becomes dry, the push of prevailing winds pushes it over the mountain range. Wet on west side of mountain ranges, dry on the east side(results in grassland) moving further to the east, you get more moisture. Topography affects vegetation, as well as the elevation (since rain patterns are different)
