Characteristics of the natural zones of Australia. The originality of the organic world of the mainland. Australia
Characteristic Australia - the originality of the organic world, consisting in many endemic species. At the same time, it should be noted that the wild vegetation of Australia did not give a single plant that would play a significant role in agriculture. Among plants, the share of endemics reaches 75%. These are casuarinas with leafless filamentous branches, and a herbaceous tree, and tree-like ferns, there are also many types of acacias, palm trees, various herbs and shrubs.
Australia is absolutely unthinkable without evergreen giants - eucalyptus trees, of which there are more than 300 species - from giant (up to 150 m tall) to undersized and shrubs
s. Eucalyptus och it grows fast. In 20 years, one hectare of eucalyptus forest can produce up to 800 m 3 of valuable wood. For comparison, none of the known tree species can produce such an amount of wood even in 120 years. Despite the paradox - eucalyptus grows on the most arid continent, the most important property of this tree is its amazing ability to drain the soil, which is why eucalyptus is called the "pump tree". It is not surprising that under the eucalyptus, not only can you not meet another tree, you will not even see a blade of grass there.Among animals, the share of endemics is even greater - about 90%. This is the symbol of Australia.
kangaroo, d other marsupials: an unusually cute marsupial bear -koala, wombat, mole, marsupial wolfand others. Such ancient animals as primitive oviparous mammals: platypus and echidna. There are a lot of different birds: emu, birds of paradise, cassowaries, lyrebirds, black swans, weed chickens, parrots, etc. The Australian world of reptiles is also rich: there are especially many poisonous snakes and lizards.On the mainland natural areas are distributed in concentric circles. In the center - deserts and semi-deserts, they are surrounded by tropical forest-steppes - savannahs and light forests. The northern and northeastern parts of the mainland are characterized by
wet and variable-moist forests. Different kinds palms, laurels, ficuses and tree-ferns intertwined with lianas grow here on red ferrallitic soils. On the eastern slopes Dividing Range common eucalyptus forests. Above 1000 m, you can find separate arrays of ancient coniferous species- araucaria.savannas common species are eucalyptus, acacia and casuarina on red-brown and red-brown soils. Kangaroos and emus live here. In the extreme southwestshrub steppes are changing hardwood forests and bushes, in the southeast - subtropical humid mixed forests with evergreen beeches on red-yellow ferralite soils.In semi-deserts and deserts
you can find completely impenetrable thickets, consisting of hard-leaved thorny, densely intertwined shrubs (shrub forms of eucalyptus and acacia) - scrub s. In the western and central parts of the mainland large areas occupy sandy deserts- Big, Victoria, Simpson. They are characterized by long ridges, occupied in places by tall hard cereals ("reed grass"). Of the animals here, there are giant kangaroos, wombats, emus and the dingo dog, which is a feral domestic animal. In the deserts ground cover poorly developed, in some places special desert soils, painted in red.altitudinal zonality can be found only in the Australian Alps, where on the tops of the forest are replaced by alpine-type meadows.
Due to the arid climate in Australia, there are far fewer plowed areas than pastures. However, grazing loads in many areas of the mainland are so great and intense that they have led to a noticeable change in its flora and fauna. A lot of it was brought to Australia from other continents. different types trees, shrubs and herbs. Many introduced animals (foxes, rats, rabbits) pushed aside or severely exterminated local animal species. Almost every year, Australian forests are severely affected by numerous fires.
The natural areas of Australia (Grade 7) are one of the most interesting topics school geography. Indeed, this continent, despite its small size, is characterized by a very rich natural diversity. This article is given a brief description of all natural areas mainland.
What is a natural area? Formation of natural zones
A natural (or physiographic) zone is a part of a geographic envelope, which is characterized by its own set of natural components and conditions. Any natural zone includes a number of structural components, namely:
- climate features;
- landforms;
- inland waters;
- soil;
- flora and fauna.
All these components are in close interaction with each other, and in each of the natural zones the nature of these connections will be different.
The main factor that influences the formation and distribution of natural zones on the planet is the ratio of received moisture and heat. This ratio will be different depending on the latitude of the area. Other factors also influence natural zonality (for example, the nature and complexity of the relief, proximity to the ocean, etc.), however key factor nevertheless acts precisely climatic.
Each of the continents of our planet has its own set of natural zones. Australia is no exception here. The natural zones of this continent, namely their distribution, differ significantly from the sublatitudinal one. The reason for this is the small size of the mainland, as well as the presence of a powerful and elongated from north to south mountain system in the east of the continent of Australia.
The natural zones of the mainland, as well as their territorial distribution, are displayed on the following map:
Natural areas of Australia: table
In order to visualize the physical and geographical zoning of Australia, we bring to your attention the following table.
| natural areas | Climate type | Typical representatives of the flora | Typical representatives of the fauna |
| Zone permanently moist forests |
|
|
|
| Zone of evergreen hardwood forests | Subtropical (Mediterranean) |
|
|
| Savannah and woodland zone | Subequatorial and tropical |
|
|
| Desert and semi-desert zone | Tropical (continental) |
|
|
Australia: natural areas and their brief description
The largest area in Australia is the zone of deserts and semi-deserts, located in tropical zone. This zone is characterized by low precipitation and extremely high evaporation. Therefore vegetation Australian deserts very poor. Quite often one can observe here extensive salt crusts covering large areas.
To the east, the zone of deserts and semi-deserts is replaced by more wet zone savannas and tropical woodlands. In this natural area vegetable world already much richer, but the lack of moisture is noticeable here.
The eastern outskirts of Australia, as you know, occupies mountain system- The Great Dividing Range is the most important landscape barrier on the mainland. It was on its slopes that two natural forest-type zones were formed. Between the 15th and 28th degrees of the south latitude there is a zone of evergreen forests, and to the north of the 15th degree there is already a zone of permanently wet forests. Altitudinal zonality on this continent is clearly visible only in the Australian Alps.
Finally
So, we found out that within the smallest continent of the planet, four natural belts are distinguished.
The natural zones of Australia are a zone of permanently wet forests, a zone of evergreen hardwood forests, a zone of savannahs and light forests, as well as a zone of deserts and semi-deserts. Each of them has its own geographical features(soil, flora, representatives of fauna).
Despite the fact that Australia is the smallest continent on the planet, it surprises with the diversity of its nature. Changes in the balance of moisture and heat depend on the latitude of the area. This is manifested in the conditional division of the mainland into territories with characteristic soil types, animals and plants - the natural zones of Australia.
The division of the mainland into natural complexes
Australia is divided into four zones, which replace each other depending on the ratio of humidity and heat. Pronounced latitudinal zonality due to the prevailing flat relief, which only in the east turns into mountain slopes.
The central position on the Australian continent is occupied by a zone of deserts and semi-deserts, located in the tropical zone. It is she who occupies half of all Australian land.
Table Natural areas of Australia
|
natural areas |
Climate type |
Typical representatives of the flora |
Typical representatives of the fauna |
|
Permanently wet forests |
tropical monsoon |
eucalyptus ferns |
tiger cat |
|
Evergreen hardwood forests |
Subtropical (Mediterranean) |
stunted eucalyptus trees |
dingo dog various types of lizards and snakes |
|
Savannahs and woodlands |
Subequatorial and tropical |
casuarina |
ostrich Emu |
|
Deserts and semi-deserts |
Tropical (continental) |
cereals and herbs blackbeard |
snakes and lizards ostrich Emu |
A characteristic feature of Australia is the amazing originality of nature, which consists in a large number of endemic species, both among plants and among animals. Only on this continent you can meet unusual representatives of flora and fauna that have not found distribution anywhere else in the world.
Features of natural complexes
In Australia, the most impressive is the zone of deserts and semi-deserts - it occupies the largest territory and is located in the tropical zone.
For this natural complex very scarce precipitation is characteristic, which evaporates very quickly in hot climates. It is not surprising that Australia is often called the continent of deserts, because there are 5 large desert territories here:
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- Victoria - the largest desert of the Australian continent, occupies 424 thousand square meters. km.
- sandy desert - the second largest wasteland. Here is the famous Australian national park Aires Rock attracts tourists from all over the world.
- Tanami - unlike most deserts, it is characterized by a sufficient number of rainy days. However, due to extreme heat precipitation evaporates very quickly. In the desert, gold mining is underway.
- Gibson Desert - its soils are strongly weathered and very rich in iron.
- Desert Simpson - the driest australian desert which is famous for its bright red sands
Rice. 1. Red Sands of the Simpson Desert
The vegetation of this zone is very poor, however, here you can also find drought-resistant cereals and grasses, salt-tolerant varieties of trees.
Animals of the desert zone were able to adapt to life in harsh conditions. Some of them, hiding from the heat, burrow into the soil: marsupial varieties of rats, moles, jerboas. Reptiles hide in rocks and crevices of stones. Such large mammals, like the dog Dingo and kangaroo, run great distances in search of moisture and food.
With advancement to the east, the tropical desert zone is replaced by the savannah zone. The flora of this natural complex is already somewhat richer, but here, too, an insufficient amount of moisture is still felt.
There are three types of Australian savannas, which replace each other as humidity decreases:
- deserted;
- typical;
- wet.
The Australian savannah is a large flat area with grasses, thorny bushes and separately standing trees or groves of acacias, eucalyptus, casuarina.
Rice. 2. Casuarina - a typical Australian plant
Typical representatives of the Australian savannah are all kinds of marsupials and wombats. Birds are bustards, Emu ostriches, budgerigars. Lots of termites.
IN wild nature Australia does not meet herbivorous ungulates. They were "replaced" by kangaroos, numbering more than 60 species. These animals are champions in high-speed running and jumping. The kangaroo, like the emu, is national symbol Australia.
Rice. 3. Australian kangaroo
In the east of the mainland there is a mountain system - the Great Dividing Range, on the slopes of which there are two forest zones:
- evergreen forests;
- constantly wet forests.
Palm trees, ferns, ficuses, eucalyptus grow here in great abundance. The fauna of these zones is somewhat richer and is represented small predators, various types of reptiles, koala, platypus, echidna.
What have we learned?
We learned which natural zone is dominant on the mainland - these are tropical deserts and semi-deserts. It is replaced by savannahs and light forests, which smoothly pass into the zone of evergreen and constantly wet forests. A characteristic feature of the nature of Australia is the presence of a large number of endemics among plants and animals.
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The natural areas of Australia (grade 7) are one of the most interesting topics in school geography. After all, this continent, despite its small size, is characterized by a very rich natural diversity. This article gives a brief description of all the natural zones of the mainland.
What is a natural area? Formation of natural zones
A natural (or physiographic) zone is a part of a geographic envelope, which is characterized by its own set of natural components and conditions. Any natural zone includes a number of structural components, namely:
- climate features;
- landforms;
- inland waters;
- soil;
- flora and fauna.
All these components are in close interaction with each other, and in each of the natural zones the nature of these connections will be different.
The main factor that influences the formation and distribution of natural zones on the planet is the ratio of received moisture and heat. This ratio will be different depending on the latitude of the area. Other factors also influence natural zonality (for example, the nature and complexity of the relief, proximity to the ocean, etc.), but climate is still the key factor.
Each of the continents of our planet has its own set of natural zones. Australia is no exception here. The natural zones of this continent, namely their distribution, differ significantly from the sublatitudinal one. The reason for this is the small size of the mainland, as well as the presence of a powerful and elongated from north to south mountain system in the east of the continent of Australia.
The natural zones of the mainland, as well as their territorial distribution, are displayed on the following map:
Natural areas of Australia: table
In order to visualize the physical and geographical zoning of Australia, we bring to your attention the following table.
| natural areas | Climate type | Typical representatives of the flora | Typical representatives of the fauna |
| Permanently wet forest zone |
|
|
|
| Zone of evergreen hardwood forests | Subtropical (Mediterranean) |
|
|
| Savannah and woodland zone | Subequatorial and tropical |
|
|
| Desert and semi-desert zone | Tropical (continental) |
|
|
Australia: natural areas and their brief description
The largest area in Australia is the zone of deserts and semi-deserts, located in the tropical zone. This zone is characterized by low precipitation and extremely high evaporation. Therefore, the vegetation of the Australian deserts is very poor. Quite often one can observe here extensive salt crusts covering large areas.
To the east, the zone of deserts and semi-deserts is replaced by a more humid zone of savannahs and tropical woodlands. In this natural area, the plant world is already much richer, but the lack of moisture is noticeable here as well.
The eastern outskirts of Australia, as you know, are occupied by a mountain system - the Great Dividing Range - the most important landscape barrier on the mainland. It was on its slopes that two natural forest-type zones were formed. Between the 15th and 28th degrees of the south latitude there is a zone of evergreen forests, and to the north of the 15th degree there is already a zone of permanently wet forests. Altitudinal zonality on this continent is clearly visible only in the Australian Alps.
Finally
So, we found out that within the smallest continent of the planet, four natural belts are distinguished.
The natural zones of Australia are a zone of permanently wet forests, a zone of evergreen hardwood forests, a zone of savannahs and light forests, as well as a zone of deserts and semi-deserts. Each of them is distinguished by its geographical features (soil, flora, representatives of the fauna).
Australia is the driest continent on the planet. The climate of Australia, the presentation of which can be found on the Internet, is very ambiguous, although in most of the continent the relief and climate of Australia are not diverse, unlike its flora and fauna. Most of The mainland is located on the Australian platform, the relief of Australia was formed during the Archean folding, and therefore there are practically no mountains on the mainland.
Under the description of the climate of Australia, a story about the climate of many parts of Africa is suitable. During European winter the mainland is very warm, at this time on southern hemisphere summer is coming. central part continent has average temperature about 35 degrees, winter here comes from June to September and the temperature fluctuates around ten degrees Celsius, at night there are occasional frosts.
Most of Australia's mountains have been destroyed by weathering over billions of years. The Great Dividing Range is the only mountain system in the Federation, its formation ended about 400 million years ago, the mountain system belongs to the highly deformed mountains. The most high mountain Australia - Kosciuszko, its height is 2228 m. In general, throughout the continent, the height of the hills does not exceed two hundred meters. The remoteness of the mainland from the boundary of the collision of tectonic plates has led to the fact that there is not a single volcano on it. The volcanoes of the islands of Oceania, which are just at the junction of tectonic plates, are, on the contrary, very active. Australia is just a storehouse of various minerals. Its resource endowment is more than 20 times higher than the world average. Australia is the world leader in bauxite, uranium and zirconium reserves. The country has large reserves of coal, gold, manganese and diamonds. In the shelf zone of the northwestern and northeastern coasts, small oil fields. You can judge the climate in Australia by its geographical latitude: from west to east it is crossed by the southern tropic, which makes its climate so arid.
In terms of rainfall, Australia is the last of all the continents. About 70% of the territory receives less than 250 mm of precipitation during the year. This means that agriculture in most of the continent without artificial irrigation is simply impossible. In some parts of Australia, there is no rain for several years.
The natural zones of Australia divide the continent into three parts: subtropical, tropical and subequatorial. Most of it is covered in deserts. They occupy about 44% of its territory. The desert is the main characteristic of the Australian climate, there are eight of them on the mainland. The largest of them - big desert Victoria. The largest deserts are sandy-saline, the vegetation is mainly thorns, acacias and undersized eucalyptus trees. Along the coastline, Australia, on the contrary, is a dense jungle.
Australia's climate features are due to its geographic location. South part mainland lies in the subtropical climate zone. It is subject to the influence of air masses, tropical in summer and moderate in winter. Therefore, in southern Australia it is hot and dry summer and rainy winter. A zone of hard-leaved shrubs is formed here, which, going deep into the mainland, pass into savannahs, and then into deserts.
The climate of the northern part of the continent is entirely dependent on the South Trade Wind. In summer, the territory is subject to the influence of the equatorial air mass, which brings rain with it, and in winter - tropical providing clear and dry weather. This part of the mainland is occupied by savannas and woodlands, and in the northeast by tropical rainforests.
Western Australia experiences moderate and seasonal rainfall. The capital and the most adapted territory for the life of the state of Western Australia is the city of Perth. Typing in any search engine "climate Perth Australia", you can immediately pay attention to the fact that this part of the mainland is very well suited for living. Winter here is very wet and quite cool. The climate of Western Australia is reminiscent of the weather of the Mediterranean. There is very high solar activity, it shines for 3000 hours a year.
The southeastern state of Victoria, with Melbourne as its capital, is located in the temperate zone. maritime climate. The weather here can change drastically several times during one day. This city has seen quite a few extreme climate events such as fires, tornadoes, droughts and even floods. This is the most turbulent area of the continent of Australia. Melbourne, whose climate is so fickle, has received the motto: "Four seasons in one day."
Most Better conditions to live on the mainland belong to the eastern part of the mainland. Here goes the most a large number of precipitation that falls there due to the East Australian Current. It is this part of the continent that almost all the inland waters of Australia belong to. The first is the Murray River. Its source is located on the tops of the Great Dividing Range. The Murray is the only river in Australia that is navigable throughout the year.
Almost non-existent on the mainland large lakes, they are distinguished by their salinity, and in the hot summer they either dry up completely or turn into a network of small lakes. But with the advent of the rainy season, they are gaining strength again, fueled by mainland drains. Great value for Australia have The groundwater. There are a lot of them, but they have a high sulfur content. Main stock inland waters The country is located in the Great Artesian Basin. The extraction of water from underground in some areas does not require much effort, since they are located close to the surface, but in most cases it is necessary to extract water from a depth of about a kilometer. The Climate Australia Project is mainly focused on trying to save water resources country.