Biosphere: Can-Do checklist
Physical Environments By the end of this topic you should be able to:
• draw annotated diagrams to describe the properties of podsols, brown forest soils, and gley soils, referring to horizons, colour and texture
• recognise and describe the properties of soils from a soil profile
• describe and explain the effects of climate, relief and drainage on the formation of podsols, brown forest soils, and gley soils
• Explain the term ‘ecosystem’
• explain fully what is meant by the term ‘climax vegetation’
• describe and explain the changes in the types of plants (succession) to be found across a sand dune transect, referring to the names of specific plants
• explain why vegetation finds it difficult to grow on sand dunes
• describe how coastal plants are adapted to survive in sand dune habitats
GMTs
• describe and analyse podsol, brown earth and gley profile
• describe and analyse data from soil surveys shown e.g. on a soil catena
• describe, interpret and explain data from vegetation surveys and distributions with reference to plant successions on sand dunes shown e.g. on cross-sections and transects
• comment on the accuracy of statements which describe soil and vegetation patterns shown on maps etc.
Useful Websites
The Macaulay Land Use Reseach Institute- see 'Higher Geography Resources' (half way down the page)- includes information (3 PowerPoint files) on soils and dune succession (ignore moorland succession).
Scottish Association of Geography Teachers (SAGT), Higher Pupil Conference (2010) Biosphere- Everything you need to know for the Biosphere question
SAGT, Higher Pupil Conference 2007- Dune Succession