The main factors determining changes in altitudinal zonation. Areas of altitudinal zonation and the nature of mountains, mountain forest: plants, animals, climate or weather patterns in the mountains

1. Altitudinal zonation, its causes.

Altitudinal zone - natural change natural conditions in the mountains as the absolute altitude increases.

Causes:
- temperature decreases with altitude;
- reduction of humidity;
- decrease in atmospheric pressure;
- change in the amount of solar radiation;
- change in air density and dust content.

All these reasons lead to the formation of different climatic conditions, different soils, plants, and altitude zones.

There are several altitudinal zones

1. Foothill zone (can be represented by any zone depending on location) - average temperature up to + 15°C.

2. Mountain forest belt - average temperature + 15 - + 8°C.

3. Subalpine zone – average temperature + 5°C.

4. Alpine belt - average temperature + 3°C.

5. Belt of eternal snow (nival belt).

The number of altitudinal zones, as a rule, increases with the height of the mountains and as one approaches the equator, i.e. The further south and higher the mountains, the more belts can be observed, for example, the mountains of Central Asia begin with deserts.

Many features of altitudinal zonation are determined by the exposure of the slopes, their location in relation to the prevailing air masses and distance from the oceans. The northern slopes receive the minimum radiation, and the southern slopes receive the maximum (in the northern hemisphere). Therefore, the vegetation on the southern and northern slopes changes. On the southern slopes there is a higher limit of eternal ice forest border.

Altitudinal zonality has a number of similar features to latitudinal zonality, but in the mountains the change of natural territorial complexes occurs more abruptly (at intervals of several km compared to hundreds and thousands of km on the plains).

The location of altitudinal zones is observed where there are mountains.

Climatic conditions:

Strong winds

Severe frost, when lifting every 100 m temperature drops by 0.5-1°C, daily temperature changes,

Strong solar radiation,

Low humidity,

Very rarefied air.

2. Mountain plants

Climatic differences affect plants. The mountains have a wide variety of soils and climates, so the mountains have a wide variety of vegetation.

Accessories:

Highland flora is mainly slow-growing perennials, blooming only after the accumulation of sufficient food reserves. Some are succulents (sedums), storing water in fleshy stems and leaves.

Edelweiss has a protective felt-like coating. The hairs hold a layer of air near the plant, the temperature environment he is not afraid.

Some plants (glacial buttercups) accumulate large amounts of cell sap, which allows the cells to not freeze. Other plants have developed root system, which allows them to gain a foothold and obtain food.

Due to the lack of pollinating insects, mountain plants self-pollinate. Flowers of alpine meadows are pollinated by the wind. Seeds are shed at the moment of germination.

Temperate mountains.

Mountains such as the Alps, Caucasus, Karaty, Crimea begin with broad-leaved forests, then there are birch groves and then coniferous forests.

Spruce in Europe up to 1700m,

Fir in Siberia up to 2000m,

Larch in Siberia up to 2500m,

Rowan up to 2400m,

Beech up to 1700m,

Oak (petiolate, rocky, large-fruited, Georgian),

Cedar (Lebanese, Atlas, Himalayan) up to 2400m.

Cedar pine (Siberian and European) from 1200 to 2600m, mountain alder,

Juniper,

Rhododendron (Pyrenees, Alps, Himalayas, Caucasus) up to 3000m,

Bearded lichen.

Subalpine belt represented by low-growing shrubs and individual trees (crooked forest), including rhododendron, blueberry, dwarf pine, and Caucasian birch. From herbs grow alder bonfire, variegated fescue, changeable brome, grandiflora capitol, meat-red knotweed, dark red mystle, lilies, clover.

Alpine meadows. The bush thickets are increasingly thinning out, giving way to alpine meadows covered with a thick carpet of colorful flowering plants.Alpine low-growing meadows are similar to the tundra. The plants are very small, but have large, brightly colored flowers.Grow:

Daffodils,

Galanthus - white snowdrops (in spring),

Forget-me-nots,

The bathing suit is drooping,

Alpine poppies,

Stemless gentian and yellow gentian,

Alpine bells,

Golden lumbago,

Glacier buttercups,

alpine clover,

Saxifrage,

Meadow cornflower,

Meadow cornflower,

Primrose auricularis,

Edelweiss,

Lavender,

Youthful,

Arnica (medicinal)

St. John's wort (up to 1600m),

Coltsfoot (up to 3000m),

Foxglove (poisonous medicine, up to 1000 m),

Belladonna (up to 1500m).

The shrub is the crowded wolfweed (a relative of the wolf's bast). Dwarf willows are growing.

Even higher, only lichens and algae are found. Lichens grow on the bare surface of rocks and on moraine stones, rock deposits left behind by glaciers as they retreated. Crustose (crust) lichens form a dusty cover on rocks, while foliose lichens form round, flattened growth. Lichens help break rock into small particles. Algae cover the stones with a reddish crust, and “red snow” owes its color to the huge number of these tiny single-celled plants growing on the snow at the top of the glaciers.

So, the mountains of Russia, starting with forests: Carpathians, Northern Urals, North Eastern Siberia, Far East.

Mountains starting with the steppe: Baikal region and Transbaikalia, Southern Urals, Altai, Northern Tien Shan.

Tropical mountains

The climate and mountain vegetation of the tropics differ from the climate in the temperate zone. Although seasonal temperature fluctuations here are insignificant, the difference between their extreme values ​​during the day and night is very large. Over the humid tropical mountainThe forest is covered with crooked forest (elfin woodland), consisting of dwarf and low-growing trees covered with moss and lichen. Average temperature + 10°C, foggy. Trees grow to 7 m tall, vines, mosses, lichens, ferns.

In Africa, in Uganda, at an altitude of 3500- 5000 m giant lobelias and tree daisies grow, reaching heights 9 m . At night, their large leaves in the form of huge rosettes curl around the central bud, protecting it from the cold. The stems of the plants are protected from frost by a layer of withered leaves or thick cork bark. On the back of the leaves of the tree daisy there is a silvery reflective layer of hairs that reduces heat loss due to radiation. Between these giant plants are dense grassy tussocks. They are covered with a layer of moss growing on bare soil, which becomes loose and cracks under the influence of night frosts.

3. Animal world

Individual representatives of the fauna can be found at maximum altitudes. At the very bottom of the food chain are tiny wingless insects -springtails , which feed on a variety of organic material, including pollen, seeds and other insects, carried to mountain tops by warm updrafts. In turn, springtails serve as food forspider mites able to survive in cold winter conditions.Beetles, centipedes, flies and spiders also eat large quantities of springtails.

Attida spiders were spotted on Mount Everest at a record height - 6700 m . These small invertebrates congregate under rocks where the humidity remains constant with small daily temperature fluctuations. At the end of summer large quantitiesladybugs accumulate in shelters much above the snow line (snow line), where they overwinter. This behavior usually occurs following a burst of ladybird populations after a hot summer.

Butterflies live Apollo (Russia) and Isabella (Pyrenees, Alps).

To protect against increased solar radiation, many insects, small amphibians and reptiles have darker pigmentation than their relatives inhabiting the lowlands. Pigmentation absorbs short-wave ultraviolet radiation. In addition, dark pigments absorb more heat and warm the body. So, they have a dark coloralpine salamander (European amphibian) andTasmanian metallic skink - a small lizard. Both of these animals are viviparous and therefore bypass the vulnerable egg-laying stage.

Birds in the mountains are found everywhere - from the foot to the top.

Mountain forests:

- nutcracker (lives in thickets of pine - Italian pine),

- gray-haired woodpecker, three-toed woodpecker (males can be recognized by a yellow stripe on the crest, lives in a spruce forest)

- furry owl,

- capercaillie (oak forests, coniferous forests of Western Europe),

- black grouse (edges, Scotland, Pyrenees, Eastern Siberia up to 2300m).

Subalpine belt:

- lemon finch lives higher up, where the forest thins out and gives way to an open rocky surface with sparse trees.

- stone partridge live on rocky, sunny slopes overgrown with dwarf pines, juniper and rhododendron.

- blue and spotted rock thrushes live on rocks and in bushes.

- dippers (dive and walk along the bottom of the reservoir in search of food).

Alpine belt:

- white partridge distributed in the Arctic alpine zone and lives high in the mountains on rocky and snow-covered slopes, as well as in the polar tundra.

- British mountain pipit in Central Europe, living just below the snow fields.

- snowcocks distributed over a limited area, with each species confined to a specific mountain range - for example, the Caucasus or the Himalayas.

- snow finches - small birds that live higher than others in the mountains, at an altitude of about 4000 m . They fly in small flocks over rocky deserts and snowy fields.

- Alpine jackdaws live on high cliffs up to the snow line (up to 9000m), has a yellow beak, red paws and black feathers.

- white-bellied swifts nest on rocks. Their wings are larger than those of the black swift, and during flight they are strongly bent back in the shape of a sickle. They can soar in the air for a long time, feeding on small organisms, only occasionally making several quick wing beats.

- Alpine Accentor (also in the subalpine zone).

- red-winged wall climber - a bird the size of a sparrow, climbs the rocks, flapping its wings, which serve as support. With tenacious, widely spaced claws, it clings to uneven rocks and extracts insects, spiders and their larvae, and eggs from cracks.

Predator birds: (chicks hatch on bare isolated rocks)

- golden eagle (rare, wings 2 m , feeds on partridges, marmots, hares)

- eagle ,

- condor (scavenger, Andes and Cordillera, wings 3m ),

- vultures (scavenger, Old World Mountains),

- griffon vulture (scavenger, Southern Europe, Asia),

- bearded vulture (Africa, Himalayas, Tien Shan, Caucasus, Europe up to 7000m, rare; wingspan up to 2.5 m.

Mammals:

(they have warm fur, skillfully climb mountain slopes, and descend from the mountains to the valleys in winter)

- mountain goats (Alpine mountain goat, Siberian goat) ,

- markhor goat (mountains of Asia),

- chamois (wild goat),

- mountain sheep (Tien Shan, Pamir argali, Crimean mouflon, Altai argali),

- Yaks (lives at altitudes up to 6000 m in the mountains of Tibet and feeds mainly on mosses and lichens. Thanks to its barrel-shaped body and short legs, its body surface area is relatively small, which ensures less heat loss. Beneath the yak's long, shaggy coat is another layer of thick fur.)

- marmots (alpine meadows),

- white hare,

- ermine,

- wolf,

- Brown bear (up to 1800m)

- grizzly (Canada, Mexico, Rocky Mountains),

- Himalayan bear (white-breasted - Asian mountains 4000m long),

- spectacled bear (Andes from 1800 to 4000m),

- big panda (bamboo groves of the Tibetan Plateau from 1200 to 3400m),

- puma (cougar, Andes, Rocky Mountains up to 4000m),

- lynx (mountain forests of Europe and Asia, North America),

- irbis, snow leopard (Asian mountains up to 5000m),

- manul (valleys of Asian mountains up to 5500m),

- Amur tiger (Primorsky Krai),

- muskrat (Pyrenees - mountain rivers),

- llamas, alpacas, vicunas, guanacos (high mountain plateaus up to 5500m. To compensate for the lack of oxygen at such altitudes, vicunas have a large number of additional red blood cells. They live in small herds, numbering, in addition to a single male, 6-12 females). Llamas (pack animals) and alpacas (wool) are domesticated.

Tropical mountains

Lives in the mountains of Africabugle gorilla (Congo up to 4000m)

In Japan - Japanese macaque.

1. Peoples of the highlands:

IRBIS (snow leopard) (Panthera uncia), mammal of the cat family. Body length 120- 150 cm, tail 70-100 cm , height at withers 50- 60 cm, weight 23-40 kg . The body is elongated and squat. The head is small and rounded. The eyes are large, the pupil is round. The ears are short with a rounded top. The limbs are relatively short. The paws are wide and massive. Retractable claws. The fur is soft, tall, thick. The tail is covered with high, thick fur. General background light gray, with large ring-shaped and small solid spots of black or dark gray scattered throughout it. The belly and inner parts of the limbs are lighter than the back.

The range covers Mongolia, Tibet, the Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, the mountains of Central Asia and Southern Siberia. In summer it stays at a height near the snow line 5500 m , in the zone of subalpine and alpine meadows. In winter, following the ungulates, it descends to 1800 m . Prefers rocky areas. Active at dusk. He hunts mainly mountain goats and sheep, as well as marmots, gophers, hares, mouse-like rodents, snowcocks, and chukars. Leopards live in pairs. They make their lairs in caves and crevices between rocks. Reproduction in January-May. During the mating season they make loud meowing sounds. Pregnancy 93-110 days. There are 2-3 cubs in a litter. In the first days after the cubs appear, the female warms them by covering the den with wool torn from own body. Sexual maturity occurs at 2-3 years. Life expectancy is up to 18 years. In 1971, the International Fur Trade Federation introduced a ban on trade in snow leopard fur. It is successfully kept in zoos and reproduces in captivity. Due to the decrease in the number of ungulates and the capture of snow leopards for zoos, they are endangered (in the IUCN Red List).

ARKHARA, artiodactyl animal of the genus of sheep, a subspecies of mountain sheep, different large sizes body (height at withers 120 cm, weight 200 kg ) and powerful, spiral-wrapped horns. Sometimes all subspecies of mountain sheep (up to ten subspecies) are called argali, but more often they include only Central Asian and Transcaucasian subspecies. The classic example of argali is the Pamir mountain sheep (Ovis ammon polii), the honor of whose discovery is attributed to Marco Polo. Argali are considered the ancestors of domestic sheep

GOATS (mountain goats), a group of genera of artiodactyl animals of the subfamily of goats and rams of the bovid family; includes primarily the genus of mountain goats proper (Asian teks and Caucasian aurochs, bezoar goat). Length 100- 170 cm . Both males and females have horns. Goats are common in North Africa and Eurasia, including the Caucasus Mountains, Central Asia and Southern Siberia. The numbers of most species are declining. Wild goats are the ancestors of domestic goats. Several species of goats are listed in the International Red Book.

TWIN-HORED GOAT (markhor, Capra falconeri), an artiodactyl mammal of the genus of true mountain goats (Capra). It stands somewhat apart from other mountain goats and markhor is often classified as a special subgenus. Body length up to 1.7 m, height up to 100 cm; weight of males 80-120 kg, females - 40-60 kg . The horns are spirally twisted (the left horn from the animal to the right, the right horn to the left). The trunk of the horn is strongly flattened, laterally compressed and has well-defined anterior and posterior ribs. Males have a large beard and a dewlap on the neck and chest, which is especially lush and long in winter fur. The color is reddish-sandy or grayish-red; dewlap light, whitish.

Markhor is distributed in Central and South Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, northwestern India, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It lives on the slopes of rocky gorges overgrown with bushes or woodlands, usually at an altitude of 1500- 3000 m (below the Alpine and Siberian goats). In winter, markhor often descends to the lower mountain belt, sometimes to the desert-steppe belt to an altitude of 800–900 m above sea level. In summer he grazes at night, early in the morning and in the evening, in winter - all daylight hours days. The horned goat feeds on herbaceous vegetation, leaves and shoots of bushes.

For most of the year, adult males and females stay separately, in small groups of 3-5 animals. In autumn, during the rut and in winter, it forms mixed herds of up to 20-30 animals. The rut occurs in November-December. Kids (usually 1-2) appear in late April–May, milk feeding continues until autumn. The horned goat is rare everywhere and is listed in the International Red Book. This species is probably one of the ancestors of domestic goats.

VICUNA (Vicugna vicugna), the only species of the genus of the same name (Vicugna) of mammals of the camelid family of the llama genus. Vicuna body length 1.25- 1.9 m, height 70-110 cm, weight 40-50 kg . Unlike the guanaco and llama, the vicuña has a shorter head, and longer ears and fur. The coat color is reddish, a dewlap 20-long is formed on the neck and chest. 35 cm.

Vicuna is common in the Andean highlands. Like the guanaco, it lives in family herds of 5-15 females, led by an adult male. Young males form temporary, easily disintegrating groups of 20-30 animals. Vicunas are herbivorous. The rut occurs from April to June, pregnancy lasts 10-11 months.

Incas and later other Indians South America They rounded up large herds, cut their wool, and then released them. In the 20th century, as a result of predatory extermination (mainly due to valuable wool), the vicuña's range was greatly reduced. It was listed in the International Red Book. Thanks to measures taken since the mid-20th century, animal numbers are gradually recovering. Work is underway to domesticate and breed vicunas. Vicuna crossed with guanaco is domesticated (alpaca).

ULAR (mountain turkey Tetraogallus) is a genus of birds of the pheasant family, includes five species: Caucasian snowcock, Caspian snowcock, Himalayan snowcock, Altai snowcock, Tibetan snowcock. The length of these birds is about 60 cm, weight up to 3 kg . They are common in the mountains of Asia. Ulars are a young group of species that arose and developed under the influence of the isolation of the high-mountain regions of the Palaearctic, which occurred during the era of the development of mountain-building processes of Alpine folding at the end of the Tertiary and Quaternary periods. The evolution of the snowcocks followed the development of mountain systems, and, in essence, the snowcocks were the brainchild of geomorphological evolution earth's crust, which led to the emergence of modern mountain systems and to profound climate changes on the globe.

Yak (Bos mutus), a species of bovid mammal of the true bovine genus. Sometimes yaks are classified as a separate subgenus Pophagus. Height at withers up to 2 m , the weight of old bulls is up to a ton. There is a small hump at the withers, which makes the back appear very sloping. Horns are up to 95–100 cm long. Exceptionally warm hair helps yaks survive in extreme conditions: on most of the body the hair is thick and even, and on the legs, sides and belly it is long and shaggy. Here it forms a kind of skirt, reaching almost to the ground. Of the sense organs, yaks have the best developed sense of smell, while vision and hearing are much weaker.

Yaks survive in the wild in Tibet and the Himalayas. They inhabit treeless high-mountain, gravelly semi-deserts, rising into the mountains to a height 6 km . In August and September, the yaks go to the border of eternal snow, and spend the winter in the valleys, content with the scanty vegetation that they can get from under the snow. Yaks do not form large herds; more often they keep in groups of 3–5 animals. Old bulls lead a solitary lifestyle. They usually graze in the morning and before sunset. At night they sleep, sheltered from the cold. The rut occurs in September-October. Calving occurs in June. The calf is not separated from its mother for about a year. Adult yaks are armed with horns, are fierce and very strong. Wolves dare to attack them only in a large pack. A wounded or angry yak may attack a person.

Features, placement of vegetation and soils. But for many belts it is impossible to find complete latitudinal analogues.

For example, the mountain tundra belt is not characterized by polar night, unlike a similar biome on the plain. This determines the difference in the rhythms of hydroclimatic and soil-biological processes.

Types of altitudinal zones

The formation of types of altitudinal zonation of mountain systems is determined by the following factors:

• Geographical location of the mountain system. The number of altitudinal zones in each mountain system and their altitudinal position are mainly determined by the latitude of the place and position in relation to the seas and oceans (continentality). As you move from north to south, the altitudinal position of natural belts in the mountains and their composition gradually increase. The lowest belt in the mountain system is a continuation of the latitudinal zone that is located at the foot.
• The absolute height of the mountain system. The higher the mountains rise and the closer they are to the equator, the greater the number of altitude zones they have.
• Relief. The relief of mountain systems (orographic pattern, degree of dissection and evenness) determines the distribution of snow cover, moisture conditions, preservation or removal of weathering products, affects the development of soil and vegetation cover and thereby determines the diversity of natural complexes in the mountains.
• Climate. As you rise into the mountains, temperature, humidity, solar radiation, wind direction and strength, and weather types change. Climate determines the nature and distribution of soils, vegetation, fauna, etc., and, consequently, the diversity of natural complexes.
• Slope exposure. It plays a significant role in the distribution of heat, moisture, wind activity, and, consequently, weathering processes and the distribution of soil and vegetation cover. On the northern slopes of each mountain system, altitude zones are usually located lower than on the southern slopes.

The position, changes in boundaries and natural appearance of altitudinal zones are also influenced by human economic activity.

Two groups of altitudinal zone types are most clearly distinguished: coastal and continental. For seaside The group is characterized by the predominance of mountain-forest landscape types in low and middle mountains and the presence of a treeless belt (alpine in the broad sense of the word) in the highlands. For continental groups of altitudinal zones are characterized by treeless landscapes, usually with a consistent change from desert in the foothills and foothills to mountain-steppe and mountain-meadow in the middle and upper levels of the mountains.

With a more detailed dissection within these groups, several types of altitudinal spectra are identified, maintained in extensive meridional bands. In each of these stripes, not only climatic conditions are common, but also the history of nature, primarily the commonality or connection of the centers of formation of floras and faunas.

Examples of types of altitudinal zones

Coastal Atlantic the type is represented by the mountains of the Western Caucasus. The lowest is the mountain forest belt with sub-belts of broad-leaved and coniferous forests. Above there is an alpine (in the broad sense) belt with sub-belts of subalpine crooked forests and meadows, actual alpine short-grass meadows and nival.

The nival belt is sometimes considered as part of the alpine belt.

Mountain-tundra belt

Located between the nival (higher) and mountain forest or alpine (lower) belts. Climatic conditions are characterized by long, harsh winters and short, cold summers. Average monthly temperatures are below +8°. Strong winds are common, blowing through the snow cover in winter and drying out the soil surface in summer. Deep freezing of soils is common. The vegetation is moss-lichen and arctic-alpine shrubland.

In relatively warm regions it is replaced by alpine and subalpine belts.

Alpine belt

In a broad sense, it is a high-mountainous region above the border of forests and crooked forests.

Within the desert-steppe belts, the change in landscapes as the altitude increases occurs as follows:

• mountain-desert,
• mountain semi-desert,
• mountain-steppe.

In arid regions it borders on top with the subalpine zone, in more humid regions - with the mountain forest zone. However, if the mountains rise above the belt of maximum precipitation, to which the belt of mountain forests is confined, the desert-steppe belt will be located above it.

Examples of such an inverted arrangement are the eastern slope of the Bolivian Highlands, the Abyssinian Highlands, and the interior parts of the Pamirs.

Practical meaning of altitudinal zone

The influence of altitudinal zones significantly affects the economy of mountainous areas. With altitude, the growing season shortens and other agroclimatic indicators worsen, the cultivation of heat-loving crops becomes difficult or impossible, and the possibility of cultivating cold-resistant plants becomes possible. Mountain meadows are important as seasonal pastures. In the highlands, farming conditions are complicated by a decrease in pressure, lack of oxygen, a decrease in the boiling point of water, etc., which creates specific difficulties in the operation of transport, at high-mountain mines, weather stations and other economic facilities. In humans, a complex of high-altitude conditions causes unfavorable physiological reactions (mountain sickness).

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Notes

see also

• Forest, Meadows, Steppe, Semi-desert, Desert
• Latitudinal Zoning, Natural Zone, 1899.

Literature

• Brief geographical encyclopedia. In 5 volumes / Ch. ed. A. A. Grigoriev. - M.: Soviet encyclopedia, 1960.
• Encyclopedic Dictionary of Geographical Terms / Ch. ed. S. V. Kalesnik. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1968. - 435 p.

Links

Altitudinal zonation / Yu. K. Efremov // Great Soviet Encyclopedia: [in 30 volumes] / ch. ed. A. M. Prokhorov

Eurasia / Yu. K. Efremov // Great Soviet Encyclopedia: [in 30 volumes] / ch. ed. A. M. Prokhorov. - 3rd ed. - M. : Soviet encyclopedia, 1969-1978.; described, including altitudinal zonation in various regions of the continent

Website of the ecological center "Ecosystem":

Website "Geoman.ru":

An excerpt characterizing altitudinal zonation

- And he, Hippolytus, didn’t tell you? - said Prince Vasily (turning to his son and grabbing the princess by the hand, as if she wanted to run away, and he barely had time to hold her), - but he didn’t tell you how he himself, Hippolyte, wasted away for the dear princess and how she le mettait a la porte? [kicked him out of the house?]
- Oh! C "est la perle des femmes, princesse! [Ah! this is the pearl of women, princesse!] - he turned to the princess.
For her part, m lle Bourienne did not miss the opportunity, when she heard the word Paris, to also enter into a general conversation of memories. She allowed herself to ask how long ago Anatole left Paris, and how he liked this city. Anatole very willingly answered the Frenchwoman and, smiling, looking at her, talked to her about her fatherland. Having seen the pretty Bourienne, Anatole decided that here, in Bald Mountains, it would not be boring. “Very pretty! - he thought, looking at her, - this demoiselle de compagn is very pretty. [companion.] I hope she will take it with her when she marries me,” he thought, “la petite est gentille.” [little one is cute.]
The old prince was slowly dressing in his office, frowning and pondering what he should do. The arrival of these guests angered him. “What do I need Prince Vasily and his son? Prince Vasily is a braggart, empty, well, he must be a good son,” he grumbled to himself. He was angry that the arrival of these guests raised in his soul an unresolved, constantly suppressed question - a question about which the old prince always deceived himself. The question was whether he would ever decide to part with Princess Marya and give her to her husband. The prince never directly decided to ask himself this question, knowing in advance that he would answer fairly, and justice contradicted more than a feeling, but the entire possibility of his life. Life without Princess Marya was unthinkable for Prince Nikolai Andreevich, despite the fact that he seemed to value her little. “And why should she get married? - he thought, - probably to be unhappy. There's Lisa behind Andrey ( better than my husband now it seems difficult to find), but is she happy with her fate? And who will take her out of love? Dull, awkward. They'll take you for your connections, for your wealth. And don’t they live in girls? Even happier!” This is what Prince Nikolai Andreevich thought as he got dressed, and at the same time, the question that was being postponed demanded an immediate solution. Prince Vasily brought his son, obviously with the intention of making an offer and, probably, today or tomorrow he will demand a direct answer. The name and position in the world are decent. “Well, I’m not against it,” the prince said to himself, “but let him be worth it. This is what we will see.”
“We’ll see about that,” he said out loud. - We'll see about that.
And he, as always, entered the living room with cheerful steps, quickly looked around everyone, noticed the change in the little princess’s dress, and Bourienne’s ribbon, and Princess Marya’s ugly hairstyle, and the smiles of Bourienne and Anatole, and the loneliness of his princess in the general conversation. “I got out like a fool! – he thought, looking angrily at his daughter. “There’s no shame: but he doesn’t even want to know her!”
He approached Prince Vasily.
- Well, hello, hello; glad to see you.
“For my dear friend, seven miles is not a suburb,” Prince Vasily spoke, as always, quickly, self-confidently and familiarly. - Here is my second one, please love and favor.
Prince Nikolai Andreevich looked at Anatoly. - Well done, well done! - he said, - well, go ahead and kiss him, - and he offered him his cheek.
Anatole kissed the old man and looked at him curiously and completely calmly, waiting to see if the eccentric thing his father had promised would soon happen from him.
Prince Nikolai Andreevich sat down in his usual place in the corner of the sofa, pulled an armchair towards him for Prince Vasily, pointed to it and began asking about political affairs and news. He listened as if with attention to Prince Vasily’s story, but constantly glanced at Princess Marya.
– So they’re writing from Potsdam? - He repeated the last words of Prince Vasily and suddenly stood up and approached his daughter.
- You cleaned up like that for the guests, huh? - he said. - Good, very good. In front of guests, you have a new hairstyle, and in front of guests, I tell you that in the future, don’t you dare change your clothes without my asking.
“It’s me, mon père, [father,] who is to blame,” the little princess interceded, blushing.
“You have complete freedom,” said Prince Nikolai Andreevich, shuffling in front of his daughter-in-law, “but she has no reason to disfigure herself - she’s so bad.”
And he sat down again, no longer paying attention to his daughter, who was brought to tears.
“On the contrary, this hairstyle suits the princess very well,” said Prince Vasily.
- Well, father, young prince, what is his name? - said Prince Nikolai Andreevich, turning to Anatoly, - come here, let’s talk, let’s get to know each other.
“That’s when the fun begins,” thought Anatole and sat down next to the old prince with a smile.
- Well, here's the thing: you, my dear, they say, were brought up abroad. Not the way the sexton taught me and your father to read and write. Tell me, my dear, are you now serving in the Horse Guards? - asked the old man, looking closely and intently at Anatole.
“No, I joined the army,” answered Anatole, barely restraining himself from laughing.
- A! good deal. Well, do you want, my dear, to serve the Tsar and the Fatherland? It's war time. Such a young man must serve, he must serve. Well, at the front?
- No, prince. Our regiment set out. And I'm listed. What do I have to do with it, dad? - Anatole turned to his father with a laugh.
- He serves well, well. What do I have to do with it! Ha ha ha! – Prince Nikolai Andreevich laughed.
And Anatole laughed even louder. Suddenly Prince Nikolai Andreevich frowned.
“Well, go,” he said to Anatoly.
Anatole approached the ladies again with a smile.
– After all, you raised them there abroad, Prince Vasily? A? - the old prince turned to Prince Vasily.
– I did what I could; and I will tell you that the education there is much better than ours.
- Yes, everything is different now, everything is new. Well done little guy! Well done! Well, let's come to me.
He took Prince Vasily by the arm and led him into the office.
Prince Vasily, left alone with the prince, immediately announced to him his desire and hopes.
“What do you think,” said the old prince angrily, “that I’m holding her and can’t part with her?” Imagine! – he said angrily. - At least tomorrow for me! I’ll just tell you that I want to know my son-in-law better. You know my rules: everything is open! I’ll ask you tomorrow: she wants it, then let him live. Let him live, I'll see. - The prince snorted.
“Let him come out, I don’t care,” he shouted in that shrill voice with which he shouted when saying goodbye to his son.
“I’ll tell you straight,” said Prince Vasily in the tone of a cunning man, convinced of the needlessness of being cunning in front of the insight of his interlocutor. – You see right through people. Anatole is not a genius, but an honest, kind fellow, a wonderful son and dear one.
- Well, well, okay, we'll see.
As always happens for single women who have lived for a long time without male society, when Anatole appeared, all three women in the house of Prince Nikolai Andreevich equally felt that their life had not been life before that time. The power to think, feel, and observe instantly increased tenfold in all of them, and as if it had hitherto been happening in darkness, their lives were suddenly illuminated by a new, full of meaning light.
Princess Marya did not think or remember at all about her face and hairstyle. The handsome, open face of the man who might be her husband absorbed all her attention. He seemed to her kind, brave, decisive, courageous and generous. She was convinced of it. Thousands of dreams about a future family life constantly arose in her imagination. She drove them away and tried to hide them.
“But am I too cold with him? - thought Princess Marya. “I try to restrain myself, because deep down I feel too close to him; but he doesn’t know everything that I think about him, and he can imagine that he is unpleasant to me.”
And Princess Marya tried and failed to be polite to the new guest. “La pauvre fille! Elle est diablement laide,” [Poor girl, she’s devilishly ugly,] Anatole thought about her.
M lle Bourienne, also armed by the arrival of Anatole on high degree excitement, I thought in a different way. Of course, a beautiful young girl without a certain position in the world, without relatives and friends and even a homeland, did not think of devoting her life to the services of Prince Nikolai Andreevich, reading books to him and friendship with Princess Marya. M lle Bourienne has long been waiting for that Russian prince who will immediately be able to appreciate her superiority over the Russian, bad, poorly dressed, awkward princesses, fall in love with her and take her away; and this Russian prince finally arrived. M lle Bourienne had a story that she heard from her aunt, completed by herself, which she loved to repeat in her imagination. It was a story about how a seduced girl introduced herself to her poor mother, sa pauvre mere, and reproached her for giving herself to a man without marriage. M lle Bourienne was often moved to tears, telling him, the seducer, this story in her imagination. Now this he, a real Russian prince, has appeared. He will take her away, then ma pauvre mere will appear, and he will marry her. This is how her entire future story took shape in M ​​lle Bourienne’s head, while she was talking to him about Paris. It was not calculations that guided m lle Bourienne (she didn’t even think for a minute about what she should do), but all this had been ready in her for a long time and was now only grouped around the appearance of Anatole, whom she wanted and tried to please as much as possible.
The little princess, like an old regimental horse, hearing the sound of a trumpet, unconsciously and forgetting her position, prepared for the usual gallop of coquetry, without any ulterior thought or struggle, but with naive, frivolous fun.
Despite the fact that in women's society Anatole usually put himself in the position of a man who was tired of women running after him, he felt vain pleasure in seeing his influence on these three women. In addition, he began to experience for the pretty and provocative Bourienne that passionate, brutal feeling that came over him with extreme speed and prompted him to the most rude and daring actions.
After tea, the company moved to the sofa room, and the princess was asked to play the clavichord. Anatole leaned his elbows in front of her next to M lle Bourienne, and his eyes, laughing and rejoicing, looked at Princess Marya. Princess Marya felt his gaze on her with painful and joyful excitement. Her favorite sonata transported her to the most sincerely poetic world, and the gaze she felt on herself made this world even more poetic. Anatole’s gaze, although fixed on her, did not refer to her, but to the movements of m lle Bourienne’s leg, which at that time he was touching with his foot under the piano. M lle Bourienne also looked at the princess, and in her beautiful eyes there was also an expression of frightened joy and hope, new to Princess Marya.
“How she loves me! - thought Princess Marya. - How happy I am now and how happy I can be with such a friend and such a husband! Is it really a husband? she thought, not daring to look at his face, feeling the same gaze directed at herself.
In the evening, when they began to leave after dinner, Anatole kissed the princess’s hand. She herself did not know how she got the courage, but she looked directly at the beautiful face approaching her myopic eyes. After the princess, he approached M lle Bourienne’s hand (it was indecent, but he did everything so confidently and simply), and M lle Bourienne flushed and looked at the princess in fear.
“Quelle delicatesse” [What delicacy,] thought the princess. – Does Ame (that was the name of m lle Bourienne) really think that I can be jealous of her and not appreciate her pure tenderness and devotion to me? “She went up to m lle Bourienne and kissed her deeply. Anatole approached the little princess's hand.
- Non, non, non! Quand votre pere m"ecrira, que vous vous conduisez bien, je vous donnerai ma main a baiser. Pas avant. [No, no, no! When your father writes to me that you are behaving well, then I will let you kiss your hand. Not before.] – And, raising her finger and smiling, she left the room.

Everyone left, and, except for Anatole, who fell asleep as soon as he lay down on the bed, no one slept for a long time that night.
“Is he really my husband, this strange, handsome, kind man; the main thing is to be kind,” thought Princess Marya, and fear, which almost never came to her, came over her. She was afraid to look back; it seemed to her that someone was standing here behind the screens, in a dark corner. And this someone was he - the devil, and he - this man with a white forehead, black eyebrows and a ruddy mouth.
She called the maid and asked her to lie down in her room.
M lle Bourienne walked around for a long time that evening winter garden, waiting in vain for someone and then smiling at someone, then being moved to tears by the imaginary words pauvre mere, reproaching her for her fall.
The little princess grumbled at the maid because the bed was not good. She was not allowed to lie on her side or on her chest. Everything was difficult and awkward. Her stomach was bothering her. He bothered her more than ever, just now, because Anatole’s presence transported her more vividly to another time, when this was not the case and everything was easy and fun for her. She was sitting in a blouse and cap on an armchair. Katya, sleepy and with a tangled braid, interrupted and turned over the heavy feather bed for the third time, saying something.
“I told you that everything is lumps and pits,” the little princess repeated, “I would be glad to fall asleep myself, so it’s not my fault,” and her voice trembled, like that of a child about to cry.
The old prince also did not sleep. Through his sleep, Tikhon heard him walking angrily and snorting through his nose. It seemed to the old prince that he was insulted on behalf of his daughter. The insult is the most painful, because it did not apply to him, but to someone else, to his daughter, whom he loves more than himself. He told himself that he would change his mind about this whole matter and find what was fair and should be done, but instead he only irritated himself more.
“The first person he meets appears - and father and everything are forgotten, and runs upstairs, combs his hair and wags his tail, and doesn’t look like himself! Glad to leave my father! And she knew that I would notice. Fr... fr... fr... And don’t I see that this fool only looks at Burienka (we need to drive her away)! And how there is no pride enough to understand this! At least not for myself, if there is no pride, then for me, at least. We need to show her that this idiot doesn’t even think about her, but only looks at Bourienne. She has no pride, but I will show her this”...

Areas of altitudinal zonality or altitudinal zonation characterize natural stratification at different altitudes due to differences in environmental conditions. Temperature, humidity, soil composition and solar radiation are important factors in determining altitudinal zones, which therefore support different kinds plants and animals. Altitudinal zonation was first proposed by geographer Alexander von Humboldt, who observed that temperature decreases with increasing altitude. Zoning also occurs in intertidal and marine environments, as well as on shorelines and marshes. Currently, altitudinal zonation is a basic concept in mining research.

Factors

A variety of environmental factors determine the boundaries of altitudinal zones (belts) in mountains: from the direct effects of temperature and precipitation to indirect characteristics of the mountain itself, as well as biological interactions of species. The reason for zoning is complex due to many possible interactions and overlapping species.

The soil

The nutrient content of soils at different altitudes further complicates the delineation of altitudinal zones. Soils with higher nutrient content, due to higher rates of decomposition or greater weathering of rocks, better support the growth of large trees and vegetation. Height best soils depends on the specific mountain. For example, for mountains located in regions, lower elevations show less diversity of terrestrial species due to the thick layer of dead leaf litter covering the forest floor. Acidic, humic soils are common in these areas and exist at higher elevations at the mountain or subalpine level. In another example, weathering is prevented by low temperatures at higher elevations in the Rocky Mountains of the western United States, resulting in thin, coarse soils.

Climate:

Temperature

A decrease in air temperature usually coincides with an increase in altitude, which directly affects the length of the growing season in different zones. For mountains located in deserts, extremely high temperatures also limit the ability of large deciduous or coniferous trees to grow near the base of the mountains. In addition, plants may be particularly sensitive to soil temperature and are able to have specific elevation ranges that support their healthy growth.

Humidity

The humidity of certain zones, including precipitation levels, air humidity and evapotranspiration, changes with increasing altitude and is an important factor in determining altitudinal zones. The most important variable is deposition at different altitudes. When it's warm wet air rises up the windward side of the mountain, the air temperature and ability to retain moisture decreases. Thus, the highest rainfall is expected at mid-elevations, allowing deciduous forests to grow. Above a certain altitude, the rising air becomes too dry and cold, and thus inhibits the growth of trees. Although precipitation may not be a significant factor for some mountains, air humidity or aridity is sometimes more important than climatic conditions that affect altitudinal zones. General level precipitation affects soil moisture.

Flora and fauna

In addition to physical forces, biological forces can also create zoning. For example, a strong competitor may force a weaker competitor to move higher or lower. There is evidence that competing dominant plants can take over preferred sites (i.e. warmer sites or more fertile soils). Two other biological factors are also capable of influencing zonation: grazing and crosstalk, as the abundance of grazing animals and mycorrhizal associations suggest that they significantly influence the distribution of flora.

Solar radiation

Light is another important factor in the growth of trees and other photosynthetic vegetation. The Earth's atmosphere is filled with water vapor, particulate matter and gases that filter the radiation coming from the Sun to the Earth's surface. Consequently, mountain peaks and hills receive much more intense radiation than plains. Along with dry conditions, at higher elevations, shrubs and grasses tend to grow well due to their small leaves and extensive root systems. However, high altitudes also experience frequent cloud cover, which reduces high-intensity radiation.

Physical Features

The physical characteristics and relative location of the mountain itself must also be considered when predicting altitudinal zonation patterns. This factor explains that the zonation of rainforests on the lower parts of the mountains may reflect the zonation expected at high mountains, but belts occur at lower altitudes.

Other factors

In addition to the factors described above, there are a number of other features that can affect altitudinal zonation. These include: frequency of damage (such as fire or monsoons), wind speed, rock type, topography, proximity to streams or rivers, history of tectonic activity, and latitude.

What are the altitude zones?

The identification of altitudinal zones is complicated by the factors described above, and, therefore, the relative heights of each zone begin and end without reference to a specific height. However, the altitudinal gradient can be divided into five main zones, used by ecologists under different names. In some cases, these levels follow each other with decreasing heights.

Nival belt (glaciers)

This belt of eternal snow and glaciers is the highest altitude zone in the mountains. It is located above the snow line and is covered with snow for most of the year. Vegetation is extremely limited, with only a few species present that grow on silica soils. Below it borders with the Alpine belt. The biotemperature of the nival belt does not exceed 1.5 ° C.

Plants and animals

Small areas where there is no snow are subject to increased frost weathering, which causes the presence of stones and rubble. In such conditions algae, lichens and some flowering plants grow. Some insects and birds can also be found in this area.

Alpine belt

This is a zone that extends between the subalpine belt in the south and the nival zone in the north. The Alpine belt is characterized by a significant degree solar radiation, negative average annual temperatures, strong winds and stable snow cover. It includes alpine meadows and. The biotemperature of the belt is between 1.5 and 3° C.

Plants and animals

The plants have adapted to the harsh alpine environment and are very hardy, but in some respects the ecosystem is quite fragile. The disappearance of tundra plants leads to weathering of the soil and its restoration can take hundreds of years.

Alpine meadows form where precipitation caused by rock weathering creates sufficiently well-developed soils to support grasses and sedges. Alpines are quite common throughout the world, and World Fund wild took them to .

Animals that are found in the alpine zone can be either permanent inhabitants of this zone (hay farmer, field mouse, marmot) or temporary (argali, chamois antelope).

Subalpine belt

The subalpine zone is a biotic zone (zone of life) located below the alpine belt and the forest boundary. The exact level of the forest boundary varies depending on the local climate. In the tropical regions of Southeast Asia, the tree line can be above 4000 m, while in Scotland it does not exceed 450 m. The biotemperature of the subalpine zone is between 3-6 ° C.

Plants and animals

Trees in the subalpine zone are often stunted and have a twisted shape. Tree seedlings can germinate on the leeward (sheltered) side of rocks and grow protected from the wind. Snow cover protects trees in winter, but unprotected branches from the wind usually collapse. Well-adapted trees can reach ages ranging from several hundred to a thousand years.

A typical subalpine forest includes silver fir (subalpine fir), Engelmann spruce, and other conifer species. The subalpine flora is also characterized by the presence of plants from the grass family, forbs and tall grasses.

Due to difficult climatic conditions and lack of food, the fauna in this zone is not diverse enough. However, in the subalpine zone there are representatives, bears, hares, martens and squirrels, as well as some species of birds.

Mountain belt

The mountain belt is located between the foothill and subalpine zones. The altitude at which one habitat passes into another varies differently in different parts of the globe, especially with latitude. The upper limit of montane forests is often characterized by hardier vegetation species that occur in less dense stands. For example, in the Sierra Nevada, California, the montane forest contains dense tree pines and red fir, while the subalpine zone of the Sierra Nevada contains rare whitebark pines.

The lower limit of a mountain zone may be the "lower timber line" that separates the mountain forest from the drier steppe or desert area.

Mountain forests are different from lowland forests in the same area. The climate of montane forests is colder than lowland climates at the same latitude, so montane forests often contain species typical of high-latitude lowland forests.

Temperate climate

Mountain forests located in temperate climates are usually coniferous or broad-leaved and mixed forests. They are well known in northern Europe, northern United States and southern Canada. The trees, however, are often not identical to those further north: geology and climate give rise to different related species in montane forests.

Mountain forests around the world tend to be richer in species than those in Europe, as major European mountain ranges blocked species migration during the last Ice Age.

Mountain forests are found in the temperate climate of Europe (Alps, Carpathians, Caucasus, etc.), North America(Cascade Mountains, Klamath Mountain Range, Appalachians, etc.), in southwestern South America, New Zealand and the Himalayas.

Mediterranean climate

These forests are typically mixed coniferous and broadleaf forests with several conifer species. Pine and juniper are typical trees found in Mediterranean mountain forests. Broadleaf trees are more varied and are often evergreen, such as the evergreen oak.

This type of forest is found in the Mediterranean basin, North Africa, Mexico and the southwestern United States, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Subtropical and tropical climate

In the tropics, montane forests may consist of broadleaf forests in addition to conifers. One example of a tropical montane forest is a cloud forest, which gets its moisture from clouds and fog. Cloud forests often have an abundance of mosses covering the ground and vegetation, in which case they are also called mossy forests. Depending on latitude, the lower limit of montane rainforests on large mountains is usually between 1500 and 2500 metres, while the upper limit is between 2400 and 3300 metres.

Foothills

This is the lowest section of the mountains, which clearly varies in climate and is characterized by a wide range of names depending on the surrounding landscape. Such low-lying belts are found in tropical and desert areas.

Tropics

Characterized by deciduous forests in oceanic or temperate continental regions and grasslands in more continental regions. They extend from sea level to approximately 900 m. The vegetation is abundant and dense. This zone is the typical base layer of tropical regions.

Deserts

Characterized by open evergreen oak and other forests, most common in desert areas. There is a limitation of evaporation and soil moisture. Very common in the Southwestern United States.

desert grasslands

Desert grasslands are located below the desert belt and are characterized by varying densities of low-lying vegetation. These areas cannot support tree growth due to extreme aridity. Some desert areas are able to support the growth of trees at the base of mountains, and thus do not develop distinct grassland zones in these areas.

Distribution of animals depending on altitudinal zones

Animals also demonstrate zonation depending on altitudinal zones. more clearly defined in the belts because they are usually less mobile than vertebrates. animals often move through high altitude zones depending on the season and the availability of food. Typically, the diversity and abundance of animal species decrease with increasing mountain heights due to harsher environmental conditions. It is difficult to study in detail the distribution of animals depending on altitudinal zones, since representatives of the fauna tend to frequently change their habitats.

Altitudinal zonation and human activity:

Agriculture

Human populations have developed agricultural production strategies to take advantage of the different features of high altitude zones. Altitude, climate and soil fertility determine the crops that can be grown in each zone. Population groups living in the mountainous Andean region of South America took advantage of the distinctive high-altitude conditions to grow a wide variety of crops.

Environmental degradation

Population growth is leading to environmental degradation in high-altitude environments through deforestation and overgrazing. Increasing accessibility to mountainous regions allows more people to travel between belts and use the land for commercial purposes. In addition, improved road access has contributed to environmental degradation.

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Some geographical terms have similar but not identical names. For this reason, people often get confused in their definitions, and this can radically change the meaning of everything they say or write. Therefore, now we will find out all the similarities and differences between latitudinal zonality and altitudinal zonality in order to forever get rid of the confusion between them.

In contact with

The essence of the concept

Our planet has the shape of a ball, which, in turn, is inclined at a certain angle relative to the ecliptic. This state of affairs was the reason that sunlight unevenly distributed over the surface.

In some regions of the planet it is always warm and clear, in others there are showers, while others are characterized by cold and constant frosts. We call this climate, which changes depending on the distance or proximity to.

In geography, this phenomenon is called “latitudinal zoning,” since changes in weather conditions on the planet occur precisely depending on latitude. Now we can make a clear definition of this term.

What is latitudinal zoning? This is a natural modification of geosystems, geographic and climatic complexes in the direction from the equator to the poles. In everyday speech, we often call this phenomenon “climate zones,” and each of them has its own name and characteristics. Below we will give examples demonstrating latitudinal zoning, which will allow you to clearly remember the essence of this term.

Note! The equator, of course, is the center of the Earth, and all the parallels from it diverge towards the poles, as if in a mirror image. But due to the fact that the planet has a certain tilt relative to the ecliptic, the southern hemisphere is illuminated more than the northern. Therefore, the climate on the same parallels, but in different hemispheres, does not always coincide.

We figured out what zoning is and what its features are at the theoretical level. Now let's remember all this in practice, just by looking at the climate map of the world. So, the equator is surrounded (sorry for the tautology) equatorial climate zone. The air temperature here does not change throughout the year, as does the extremely low pressure.

The winds at the equator are weak, but heavy rains are common. Showers come every day, but due to high temperature moisture evaporates quickly.

We continue to give examples of natural zoning, describing the tropical zone:

1. There are pronounced seasonal temperature changes here, the amount of precipitation is not as large as at the equator, and the pressure is not as low.
2. In the tropics, as a rule, it rains for half the year, and the second half of the year it is dry and hot.

Also in this case, there are similarities between the southern and northern hemispheres. The tropical climate in both parts of the world is the same.

Next in line temperate climate which covers most of the northern hemisphere. As for the south, there it extends over the ocean, barely capturing the tail of South America.

The climate is characterized by the presence of four distinct seasons, which differ from each other in temperature and amount of precipitation. Everyone knows from school that the entire territory of Russia is located primarily in this natural zone, so each of us can easily describe all the weather conditions inherent in it.

The latter, the Arctic climate, differs from all others in record low temperatures, which practically do not change throughout the year, as well as in scant rainfall. It dominates the poles of the planet, capturing a small part of our country, the Arctic Ocean and the entire Antarctica.

What is affected by natural zoning?

Climate is the main determinant of the entire biomass of a particular region of the planet. Due to one or another air temperature, pressure and humidity flora and fauna are formed, soils change, insects mutate. It is important that the color of human skin depends on the activity of the Sun, due to which the climate is actually formed. Historically it happened this way:

• the black population of the Earth lives in the equatorial zone;
• mulattoes live in the tropics. These racial families are the most resistant to the bright rays of the sun;
• The northern regions of the planet are occupied by light-skinned people who are accustomed to spending most of their time in the cold.

From all of the above, the law of latitudinal zonation follows: “The transformation of all biomass directly depends on climatic conditions.”

Altitudinal zone

Mountains are an integral part of the earth's topography. Numerous ridges, like ribbons, are scattered throughout to the globe, some are tall and steep, others are sloping. It is these hills that we understand as areas of altitudinal zonation, since the climate here is significantly different from the plain.

The thing is that, rising to layers more distant from the surface, the latitude at which we remain is already does not have the desired effect on the weather. Pressure, humidity, temperature changes. Based on this, we can give a clear interpretation of the term. The altitudinal zone is a change in weather conditions, natural areas and landscape as altitude increases.

Altitudinal zone

Illustrative examples

To understand in practice how the altitudinal zone changes, it is enough to go to the mountains. As you rise higher, you will feel the pressure drop and the temperature drop. The landscape will change before your eyes. If you started from the zone of evergreen forests, then with height they will grow into shrubs, later into grass and moss thickets, and at the top of the cliff they will completely disappear, leaving bare soil.

Based on these observations, a law was formed that describes altitudinal zonation and its features. When raised to greater height the climate becomes colder and harsher, animal and plant worlds deplete, atmospheric pressure becomes extremely low.

Important! Soils located in the altitudinal zone deserve special attention. Their metamorphoses depend on the natural zone in which the mountain range is located. If we are talking about a desert, then as the altitude increases, it will transform into mountain chestnut soil, and later into black soil. Then on the way there will be a mountain forest, and behind it – a meadow.

Mountain ranges of Russia

Special attention should be paid to the ridges that are located in home country. The climate in our mountains directly depends on their geographical location, so it’s easy to guess that it is very harsh. Let's start, perhaps, with the altitudinal zone of Russia in the region of the Ural ridge.

At the foot of the mountains there are birch and coniferous forests that require little heat, and as the altitude increases they turn into moss thickets. The Caucasus Range is considered high, but very warm.

The higher we rise, the greater the amount of precipitation becomes. At the same time, the temperature drops slightly, but the landscape changes completely.

Another zone with high zonality in Russia is the Far Eastern regions. There, at the foot of the mountains, cedar thickets spread, and the tops of the rocks are covered with eternal snow.

Natural zones, latitudinal zonality and altitudinal zonation

Natural zones of the Earth. Geography 7th grade

Conclusion

Now we can find out what are the similarities and differences between these two terms. Latitudinal zonality and altitudinal zonality have something in common - this is a change in climate, which entails a change in the entire biomass.

In both cases, weather conditions change from warmer to colder, pressure transforms, fauna and flora become scarcer. What is the difference between latitudinal zonation and altitudinal zonation? The first term has a planetary scale. Due to it, they are formed climatic zones Earth. But the altitudinal zone is climate change only within a certain terrain– mountains Due to the fact that the altitude increases, weather conditions change, which also entail a transformation of all biomass. And this phenomenon is already local.

Few people remember from school curriculum What is altitudinal zonation? This concept describes changes in weather characteristics, relief formation processes, rocky soil composition, as well as flora and fauna when moving upward. But due to a number of reasons, such as inaccuracy of information about each individual component, the altitudinal zonation of the landscape is characterized by the most accurately measured parameters: climatic and geomorphological.

Vegetation and other components that form the altitudinal zone

Although vegetation (with all its dynamic constancy and division into areas) does not in all cases show the state of the modern total barrier to large number factors, one should not diminish its importance in forming an idea of ​​what altitudinal zonation is.

For this reason, the conditional unification of vegetation habitat zones at different relief heights is considered acceptable and natural. According to the characteristics of the components - vegetation, soil composition, climate, wildlife, ecosystems in general, the landscape can be divided into altitudinal zones. They are quite different for different mountain systems. In particular, the altitudinal zone will differ from the altitudinal zone of Tibet. In order to correctly and reliably divide the landscape into zones, it is necessary to identify a common variable feature.

Causes of altitudinal zones

Compared to the plains, the diversity of species is much higher - 2-5 times. But what is the reason for the “multi-storey” nature of natural areas in high mountain areas?

The main factors are the height of the mountains and their geographical position. change in much the same way as when moving across a plain from south to north. However, when moving up mountainous terrain, this change is more noticeable and it occurs at relatively low altitudes.

Altitudinal zones are present in greatest numbers in tropical latitudes. In the Arctic Circle, mountains of the same height have the smallest number of such zones.

Climate in the mountains

Altitudinal zones in the mountains are inextricably linked with climate. All altitude zones cover the mountains on each side, but the tiers on opposite slopes are not at all the same. At the foot of the mountains, the climate is more similar to the weather regime of the adjacent plains. Higher up there are tiers with more moderate and then quite severe weather. At the top there is a zone permafrost and snow. And, it seems, the closer to the Sun, the warmer it is, in theory, but in reality this is not the case.

Although exceptions also occur. This proves that the altitudinal zone is not an isolated phenomenon, and it depends on many factors. There are places in Siberia where the climate at the foothills is harsher than on the mountain slopes. This is caused by the lack of air circulation in the basins between the mountains.

What characterizes the altitudinal zonation of Eurasia?

The closer the mountains are to the south, the more quantity and diversity of altitudinal zones. The Ural is one of the most representative mountain systems.

In the southern part the altitudinal zone Ural mountains has more tiers than in the north, despite the fact that the southern mountains are lower. In the northern part there is only a mountain-tundra belt.

Black Sea coast of the Caucasus and Amur-Sakhalin region

The contrast of the belts in the Caucasus is even more pronounced. In just an hour by car you can go from the subtropical coast of Sochi to the subalpine climate of the Western Caucasus.

In the Amur-Sakhalin region, all provinces share the same feature - the structure of landscape stripes. They are divided into:

• mountain tundra;
• sub-alpine - overgrown with cedar, sparse forests and also, to varying degrees of concentration, stone birch.

Southern Sikhote-Alin has all the characteristics typical of the Amur altitudinal zone.

Among the tiers, the following are distinguished: low-mountain belt (forests of cedars with wide leaves, as well as the soils and climate formed by them), mid-mountain belt (forests of dark coniferous trees and the corresponding underlying surface), subalpine belt (a mixture of dark coniferous forests, dense growths of pine slate, groves stone birch), the char strip itself, which is tundra in its purest form.

If the climate becomes more continental, then deciduous forests are added to this scheme. In the western mountains of Southern Sikhote-Alin there is a belt of mountain tundra, a belt of subalpine shrubs (or creeping mountain forests), a belt of stone birch woodlands, a belt of fir-spruce forests (spruce forests), a belt of broad-leaved cedar forests (cedar forests), a belt of broad-leaved forests and a forest-steppe belt .

Relationship between forest boundary and mountain height

To date, a considerable amount of data has accumulated on how high the upper limit of the forest belt is located in Southern Sikhote-Alin. The amplitude of heights created by the upper boundary of the forest on certain peaks and slopes of the same ridge takes on quite a large values and reaches more than 300 meters vertically.

The general trend is clearly visible: with an increase in the height of the peak, the upper boundary of the forest also shifts upward (the effect of the height of the massif). However, although the mountain ranges are located away from the sea at a distance of from 15 to 105 kilometers, the proportion between the height of the upper limit of the forest and the summit is almost the same for each slope. This result is not very logical and expected, and therefore needs explanation.

The illogicality is manifested in the fact that this proportion refutes the statement about the great influence of the sea on the position of the upper border of the forest. To be more precise, within the boundaries of the Southern Sikhote-Alin the influence of the sea is felt on the upper belts with approximately equal strength. That is, the altitudinal zonation of Eurasia does not depend so much on the presence of seas.

Otherwise, such proportions for mountain peaks in coastal latitudes (Khualaza-Litovka, Pidan-Livadiyskaya, Tavaiza-Brusnichnaya) should not be so large. Here the position of the upper boundary of the forest is influenced by the height of the mountain range itself. In accordance with this characteristic, only Mount Cloud, the highest peak of the Southern Sikhote-Alin, stands out.

This phenomenon can be explained in two ways: either the massif in this place is so high that the temperature threshold that determines the upper limit of the forest has reached its maximum height in the region, or the vegetation, brought out of balance with the climate, has not yet adapted to it. The components of the altitudinal zone inherent in Mount Brusnichnaya are also characteristic of the peaks of the coastal part and the Southern and Middle Sikhote-Alin, which is noticeable in the forests of high-mountain oak trees.

Altitudinal zonation is an inherently unique phenomenon

In order to answer the question of what altitudinal zonation is, we must understand that this is a very unique phenomenon that does not lend itself to universal laws. There are many individual factors leading to the development of a particular climate, type of vegetation and animals. Knowledge in this area emerges through numerous methodical studies. Changes in latitude affect the speed of day and night, as well as seasonal weather patterns. All the above information, however, does not clearly explain what altitudinal zonation is. In a nutshell, this is a change in climatic zones with increasing mountain heights.