Andes Mountains

Slope

Apr 1, 1875

Andes Mountains have a slope anywhere 45 degrees to 15 degrees angle. Some parts as the Andes there are flat, but most of the mountains range consists of steep slopes

Highland

Apr 2, 1875

The whole Andes Mountains is classified in the Koppen climate classification system as a high land climate, also known as a mountain climate. Andes feature cool temperatures and gets colder as climbers reach higher up. Andes Mountains range get less than a foot of annual rainfall and the temperature there is from 2 degrees Fahrenheit to 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

Humid Middle Latitude

Apr 3, 1875

divided into 2 different biome classification because the Andes is so big in South America. The temperature of the southwest of the Andes regions are known by dry, to hot summers and dam, cold winters. The northern Chile is known as a Mediterranean climate. Extremely dry summers, and summer wildfires are a concern.

Tropical Moist

Apr 4, 1875

the areas surrounding the base of the Andes Mountains are known as tropical moist climates. This is about 15 degrees to 25 degrees latitude and known by their year-round high temperature and precipitation levels. The base in Columbia are known as tropical we climate, they have daily rains and minimum temperature changes. This is the home for the cloud forest (surface heat and humidity meets cold air to create cumulonimbus and cumulus clouds in afternoon every day.)

Soil

Apr 5, 1875

The northern part is more tropical, the soil there is fertile and soft. The southern part and higher regions the solid is hard and rocky, only the hardiest of plants and herbs can live there.

VOLCANO ERUPTION!

Apr 6, 1875

• Mt. Richwine erupts!
• This volcano has been dormant for 5000 years.
• The Pumice accumulates in the volcano opening. The pressure builds, resulting in a built-up explosion.
• The lava is so hot, that it starts many fires that eventually wipe out the mountain range.
• Everything –all living matter- is absolutely obliterated.

Type of disturbance: Primary Ecological Succession

Apr 6, 1875

• In this type of succession, organisms will populate the area for the first time since the disaster.
• There is no competition between species in the beginning.

PIONEER SPECIES

Apr 10, 1875

Birds-
Burrowing owl,
Juvenile Condor,
Andean Goose,
Toucan, Plants
Deciduous woodland,
Shrub,
xeric vegetation,
The wild potato- its relative of the cultivated potato found in the alpine biome of the Andes Mountains.
Animals
Llama,
Alpaca,
Rodents,
Chinchilla

Type of disturbance: Primary Ecological Succession, continued.

Apr 15, 1875

• Soil is starting to be rebuilt and replenished.
• Takes 2000 years for primary ecological succession to occur in full.
• Because the volcano wiped out absolutely everything, the biome was able to come back exactly how it was before because it re-emerged from a blank slate.

Animals of the Andes

Apr 18, 1875

Alpaca, Llama, Andean Condor, Chinchilla, Vicuna, Parrots, Tucans, Andean mountain cat, Spectacled bear(Andean Bear),

Plants of the Andes

Apr 20, 1875

Evergreen Trees, Polyepis Trees, Wild Potato Decomposes: Fungi

Biodiversity

Apr 22, 1875

25,000 species, 695 bird species, 460 mammal species, 600 reptile species, 980 amphibious species, 2,000 fish species

Keystone species continued

Apr 25, 1875

Andean bears are very agile and often climb trees in search of bromeliads and fruits. In doing this, and jumping from tree to tree, they may break branches which again allows light to pass down to the undergrowth, and so promotes new growth. By eating fruits of the forest, the bears disperse seeds to other parts of the forest in their faeces."

Keystone species again

Apr 26, 1875

Mountain Tapir: "Because of a relatively inefficient digestive system, many plant seeds pass straight through the tapir's stomach and germinate in the dung of the tapir. This is assisted by the tendency of the tapir to defecate near water. Two plants in particular, the endangered wax palm and the highland lupine, almost disappear whenever the tapir is forced from an area. "

keystone species

Apr 27, 1875

Andean bear " The bears in the Intag region of Ecuador are known to rip the bark off Brunelia trees. This causes the premature death and fall of the trees, creating clearings in the forest, allowing light to get through to the undergrowth, which permits smaller trees to grow and therefore promotes new life in the forest.

Resources

Apr 28, 2015

http://www.edu4hazards.org/when_volcano.html
http://hvo.wr.usgs.gov/volcanowatch/archive/2002/02_06_06.html http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02766/Etna-Volcano_2766580b.jpg
http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.462643!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_635/alg-volcano-eruption-jpg.jpg
http://damontucker.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/lava6.jpg
Andes. (n.d.). Retrieved April 26, 2015, from http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Andes

More resources

Apr 30, 2015

Factors. (n.d.). Retrieved April 26, 2015, from http://andesbiome.weebly.com/factors.html