BIOL-208 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Plant Litter, Microclimate, Cellular Respiration
17 Nov 2016
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Document Summary
Many organisms regulate the temperature of part or entire body. Small differences in temperature can be associated with greatly altered performances of enzymes and organisms. Extreme temperatures can cause discomfort, reduced fitness, and even death. Long term changes in temperature have ser entire floras and faunas marching across continents, some thriving, some holding on in small refuges, and others becoming extinct. Macroclimate interacts with the local landscape to produce microclimatic variation in temperature. Actual temperatures an individual encounters will be strongly influenced by the fine details of the local environment and by the behaviour of the individual. Macroclimate is determined by the global patterns of air and water circulation and other forces. Microclimate is climatic variation on a scale of a few kilometers, meters, or even centimeters, measured over short periods of time. Is influenced by altitude, aspect, vegetation, colour of the ground, and the presence of boulders or burrows.
