DEV BIO 232 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Coastal Sage Scrub, Mediterranean Climate, Kwongan
Document Summary
Major forms of vegetation in mediterranean climate regions. A high level of plant endemism that has arisen since the pleistocene. Each region seems to have enjoyed rapid speciation of plants and some animals during this time. The physiognomy of sclerophyllous plants seems to favor certain insect types. Counts of native bird species are similar for each region as are population densities among different feed categories. This indicates that resources and resource utilization is comparable between the regions, at least for birds. The soil invertebrate community has relative high endemism. This is attributed to rapid speciation during the pleistocene, though there are greater similarities in the soil community than in the plant community. The soil invertebrate community is formed into discrete layers in all regions and extends to a great depth with a large vertical movement. Fire has a different impact on the species composition of each community. The mediterranean basin changes radically as fire frequency increases, california less so.