Description of the presentation Natural zones and physical-geographical zoning of Foreign Asia on slides

Geographical zones and zones In foreign Asia, natural zones are represented: - Equatorial - Subequatorial - Tropical - Subtropical - Temperate zones. The latitudinal orientation of the zones is retained only in the continental sector of the temperate zone (in Central Asia). In the oceanic sectors and in the subequatorial belt, latitudinal zonality disturbances are noted, associated with the features of atmospheric circulation and the structure of the relief, creating a distinctly pronounced "barrier relief": it is especially pronounced in Asia Minor, on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, in northeast China, on the Hindustan peninsulas and Indochina. LOOK AT THE MAP!!!:

The equatorial belt occupies almost the entire Malay Archipelago, the south of the Philippine Islands, the Malay Peninsula and the southwest of Sri Lanka. Constantly high temperatures, plentiful and uniform humidification (more than 3000 mm), constantly high humidity (80-85%). The radiation balance is lower than in the tropics - 60 -65 kcal / cm 2 per year, which is associated with large clouds. The zone of equatorial forests (giley) dominates. Floristically, these are the richest forests on the globe (over 45 thousand species). The species composition of tree species reaches 5 thousand (in Europe there are only 200 species). The forests are multi-tiered, lianas and epiphytes are abundantly represented. There are about 300 species of palms: palmyra, sugar palm, areca, sago, cariota, rattan palm-liana. There are numerous tree ferns, bamboos, and pandanuses. On the coast there are mangroves from avicenia, rhizophora, nipa palms. Zonal soils are leached and podzolized laterites. Mountains are characterized by vertical belts. A typical hylaea at altitudes of 1000-1200 m is replaced by a mountain hylaea, less high, but more humid and dense. Above - deciduous formations. On the summits, low-growing shrubs alternate with patches of meadow vegetation. The animal world is rich and varied. Preserved: an orangutan, as well as gibbon monkeys, macaques. Of the predators - the tiger, leopard, sun bear, wild elephant. There were tapirs, tupai, woolly wings, from reptiles - flying dragons, lizards, a giant Komodor lizard (3-4 m). Of the snakes - pythons (reticulated up to 8 -10 m), vipers, tree snakes. Gavial crocodile in the rivers. Hylaean forests have been preserved on the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Hevea, spices, tea, mango, breadfruit are grown on the cleared lands.

The subequatorial belt covers the Hindustan Peninsula, Indo-China, and the north of the Philippine Islands. The radiation balance is from 65 to 80 kcal/cm2 per year. Differences in moisture have led to the formation of several natural zones here: subequatorial forests, seasonally humid monsoon forests, scrub woodlands and savannahs. The zone of subequatorial forests - along the western coasts of Hindustan, Indochina, the northern extremities of the Philippine archipelago and the lower reaches of the Ganges-Brahmaputra, where more than 2000 mm of precipitation falls. Forests are distinguished by a variety of species composition, they are multi-tiered, difficult to pass. Dipterocarpus, streculia, albizia, ficuses, palm trees, bamboos are typical for them. Most have soft woods. Trees provide valuable by-products: tannins, resin, rosin, rubber. Zonal soils are red-yellow ferralitic with low fertility. Plantations of tea, coffee tree, rubber, spices, bananas, mangoes, citrus fruits. The zone of seasonally wet monsoon forests is confined to the eastern outskirts of Hindustan and Indochina, where precipitation is not more than 1000 mm. Deciduous-evergreen forests are multi-tiered, shady in them there are many lianas and epiphytes. Valuable breeds grow: teak, sal, sandalwood, dalbergia. The monsoon forests have been severely damaged by deforestation. With a decrease in precipitation to 800-600 mm, monsoon forests give way to a zone of scrub woodlands and savannahs, the largest areas of which are confined to the Deccan Plateau and the inner parts of the Indochina Peninsula. Woody vegetation gives way to formations of tall grasses: bearded vulture, alang-alang, and wild sugarcane. Savannah turns green in summer and yellow in winter. Solitary palm trees, banyans and acacias diversify the landscape. The soils are dominated by red-colored varieties: red, red-brown, red-brown soils. They are poor in humus and subject to erosion, but are widely used in agriculture. Stable yields only with irrigation. Rice, cotton, and millet crops are cultivated. The animal world was rich, now it is heavily exterminated: rhinos, bulls (gayal), antelopes, deer, hyenas, red wolves, jackals, leopards. There are many monkeys and semi-monkeys (loris) in the forests. Peacocks, wild chickens, parrots, thrushes, pheasants, starlings.

The tropical zone occupies the southern part of Arabia, the south of the Iranian Highlands, the Thar Desert. The radiation balance is 70 -75 kcal/cm2 per year. During the year, trade wind circulation, high temperatures, large diurnal fluctuations. Precipitation less than 100 mm with an evaporability of 3,000 mm. Under such conditions, zones of deserts and semi-deserts are formed. Large spaces are occupied by loose sands and barren rocky deserts (hammads). Vegetation consists of ephemera, hard shrubs and grasses (wormwood, astragalus, aloe, spurge, ephedra). There is an edible lichen "manna from heaven" (edible linacora). The date palm grows in the oases. The soil cover is poorly developed; it is absent in large areas. In mountainous regions, dragon trees, gum acacias, frankincense trees (myrrh, boswellia) grow on windward slopes. juniper. The fauna is diverse: wolf, jackal, fennec fox, striped hyena, among ungulates - sand gazelle, mountain goat. Rodents - carcass kanchiki, gerbils. Birds - eagles, vultures, kites

The subtropical belt stretches from Asia Minor to the Japanese islands. The radiation balance is 55-70 kcal/cm2 per year. It is characterized by sector landscapes. In the largest continental sector, zones of deserts, semi-deserts and steppes are distinguished. In the west, in the Mediterranean climate, a zone of evergreen hard-leaved forests and shrubs is developed, in the Pacific sector - a zone of monsoon mixed forests. Natural zonality is complicated by vertical zonality. Continental sector Deserts, semi-deserts Steppes Mediterranean sector Evergreen forests and shrubs Pacific sector Monsoonal evergreen mixed forests

1. The zone of evergreen hardwood forests and shrubs on the territory of Asia extends in a narrow strip along the Mediterranean coast of Asia Minor and Arabia. The climate here is more continental than in Europe, the annual temperature ranges are greater, and there is less precipitation. The vegetation has pronounced xerophytic features. Almost no forests survived, they were replaced by shrub formations. Maquis predominates, which is depleted in terms of species in comparison with the European one. The dominant feature in it is the kermes shrub oak. In the Levant, it is mixed with carob, Palestinian pistachio, and in Asia Minor - red juniper, myrtle, heather, wild olive. On arid coastal slopes, maquis gives way to freegana and shibleak, as well as deciduous shrubs - derzhydereva, wild rose, euonymus, jasmine. Brown soils are replaced by chestnut soils. Altitudinal zonality: Shrub formations rise to the mountains up to 600-800 m, coniferous-deciduous forests (black pine, Cilician fir, cypress, oak, maple) grow higher. From 2000 m, xerophytic vegetation predominates, often having a cushion shape (spurge, Cretan barberry, sticky rose). 2. In the continental sector of the subtropical belt, which occupies the Near Asian highlands, the zone of deserts and semi-deserts prevails. The hollow structure of the uplands is the reason that natural zones have the shape of concentric circles. Deserts are located in the central part of the uplands. They are framed by semi-deserts, then by mountain steppes and shrubby sparse forests. The largest areas of deserts and semi-deserts are in the Iranian Highlands. More than 30% of its territory is covered by solonchaks devoid of vegetation; a significant place is occupied by rocky and sandy deserts. Zonal soils are desert serozems and burozems. The animal world is quite diverse. From ungulates - white-browed goat, mouflon, wild ass onager (kulan), from predators - caracal, striped hyena. Rodents - ground squirrels, jerboas, marmots.

The steppe zone is confined to the foothill areas, in which sagebrush and feather grass formations alternate. In spring, ephemera and some grasses develop, burning out by summer. On the slopes of the mountains, the steppes give way to shrub sparse forests. The Near Asian highlands are home to the phryganoid formation of upland xerophytes—thorny, cushion-shaped semi-shrubs less than 1 m high. The most typical species are acantolimon, astragalus, and juniper. The Tibetan Plateau, due to its enormous relative heights (more than 4000 m), is characterized by the vegetation of alpine steppes, semi-deserts and deserts. 3. The zone of monsoon evergreen mixed forests is typical of the Pacific sector of the subtropical belt. It covers the southern regions of East China and the Japanese Islands. Natural vegetation has given way to plantations of tea, citrus, cotton, and rice. Forests receded into gorges, steep cliffs, mountains. The forest stand is dominated by laurels, myrtle, camellia, podocarpus, cunningamia. The best preserved forest areas in Japan. Dominated by evergreen species of oak, camphor laurel, Japanese pine, cypress, cryptomeria, arborvitae. Bamboo, gardenias, magnolias, azaleas in the rich undergrowth. Krasnozems and zheltozems predominate (from 5 to 10% of humus). But fertility is low, because the soils are poor in calcium, magnesium, and nitrogen. The animal world is preserved only in the mountains. Among rare animals are lemurs (fat loris), a small predator Asian civet, and among ungulates - tapir. The avifauna is rich: pheasants, one species of parrots, geese, ducks, cranes, herons, pelicans.

The temperate zone is limited in area, partly occupies Central Asia, East and Northeast China, and the island of Hokkaido. The radiation balance is 30-55 kcal/cm2 per year. The climatic conditions in the continental and oceanic sectors are different. Contrasts in moistening are especially great: more than 1000 mm of precipitation falls on the coast, while inland their amount is reduced to 100 mm. Accordingly, landscape features are diverse. Taiga zones, mixed and broad-leaved forests are characteristic of the oceanic sector; inland is occupied by zones of deserts, semi-deserts, steppes and forest-steppes. Inland sector Deserts, semi-deserts Steppes, forest-steppes Oceanic sector Taiga Mixed and deciduous forests

OCEANIC SECTOR 1. The taiga zone is found in Northeast China, where Dahurian larch and Scotch pine dominate. The massifs of coniferous forests are more extensive on the island of Hokkaido. Hokkaido spruce and Sakhalin fir prevail here, Ayan spruce, Japanese pine, Far Eastern yew, bamboos and grasses in the undergrowth. The soils are podzolic, peat-bog in the lowlands. 2. Zone of mixed forests, mainly in Northeast China. There was no glaciation here in the Quaternary, so representatives of the Arcto-Tertiary flora found refuge here. Mixed forests abound with endemics and relics. This is the so-called Manchurian flora, very rich in terms of species. The forests include Korean cedar, white fir, Olginskaya larch, Ayan spruce, Mongolian oak, Manchurian walnut, green and bearded maple. In the undergrowth, Amur lilac, Ussuri buckthorn, Manchurian currant, black chokeberry, aralia, rhododendrons. From vines: Amur grapes, whether monnik, hops. The soils are dominated by dark colored to varying degrees podzolized forest burozems and gray soils. The zone of deciduous forests adjoins mixed forests from the south. The forests are mostly cut down, the remaining massifs consist of maple, linden, elm, ash, and walnut. The best preserved forests in Japan are dominated by beech and oak, maple (up to 20 species), Manchurian ash, a local type of walnut, as well as chestnuts, lindens, cherries, birches, and magnolias are widely represented. The zonal soil type is forest burozems.

Inland sector 1. The prairie zone stands out on the plains of Northeast China. Unlike North American prairies, Asian prairies receive less rainfall (500 -600 mm). However, the presence of permafrost spots that thaw in summer additionally moisten the soil. Formations of tall grass prairie develop, often interspersed with oak woodlands. Currently, the natural vegetation is completely destroyed. Fertile meadow chernozem soils (up to 9% humus) are plowed up and sown with millet (kaoliang), legumes, corn, rice, vegetables, and watermelons. 2. In the continental sector of the temperate zone, features of aridity are pronounced: the interior parts of Central Asia are especially arid, where desert and semi-desert zones dominate. Large areas are devoid of life and represent an ideal desert. Where there is vegetation, it is sparse and is represented by psammophytes (sand-loving) and halophytes (salt-loving). These are various types of saltwort, wormwood, shrubs of tamarix, juzgun, ephedra, saxaul. Serozems are developed in deserts, and burozems (less than 1% of humus) are developed in semi-deserts. Ungulates and rodents. Among the ungulates there are two-humped camels, wild asses, antelopes (gazelle, goitered gazelle, Przhevalsky), in the mountains - goats and rams. Of the rodents - ground squirrels, jerboas, voles. 3. The steppe zone occupies the basins of the western Dzungaria, the northern parts of Mongolia (up to 41 -42 ° N) and the foothills of the Greater Khingan. Precipitation up to 250 mm. Short-grass dry steppes predominate, in which there is no continuous vegetation cover - low-growing feather grasses, vostrets, slender-legged, caragans, sagebrush. The soils are chestnut; subdivided into dark and light chestnut. With artificial irrigation, dark chestnut trees give high yields of wheat, beans, corn, and kaoliang. Light chestnut forests are not used for agriculture, they are developed for pasture cattle breeding.

Physical-geographical zoning Physical-geographical regions of Foreign Asia Regions: 1. SW Asia 2. Western Asian highlands 3. South Asia 4. SE Asia 5. Central Asia 6. East Asia

Regions or physical-geographical countries: South-West Asia Western Asian Highlands South Asia SE Asia Central Asia East Asia Asia Minor Highlands, Armenian Highlands, Iranian Highlands. Asian Mediterranean (Levant), Mesopotamia, Arabian Peninsula, Northeast China and the Korean Peninsula, Central China, South China, Japanese Islands. The Himalayas, the Indo-Gangetic lowland, the Hindustan Peninsula, the island of Ceylon, Indochina, the Malay Archipelago, the Philippine Islands of Northern Mongolia, the plains and plateaus of Southern Mongolia and Northern China, the mountains and basins of Northwestern China, the Hindu Kush and Karakoram, the Kunlun-Altyntaga-Nanshan systems, Tibetan Plateau

D/W: Prepare a presentation on the plan Central Asia: Central Kazakhstan, the Turan lowland and the Balkhash region, the mountains of the southeast and east of Central Asia

The physiographic countries basically correspond to the main morphostructural regions. They have territorial integrity, isolation, have an independent history of the development of the relief, hydro-network, organic world, and are characterized by a specific landscape structure. 1. Central Asia - high plains, highest mountains and highlands on heterogeneous structures dominated by dry steppe, semi-desert and desert landscapes; 2. East Asia - with a strongly dissected relief, alternation of medium-high and low mountains, vast alluvial lowlands, with dissected sea coasts and chains of islands along them, monsoon climate (from temperate to tropical), forest landscapes; 3. SW Asia - arid plains and plateaus with tropical rocky and sandy deserts, dry trade wind climate, sparse vegetation;

4. The Asiatic highlands are closed dry highlands, vast empty basins and solonchaks, drainless depressions, with a continental subtropical climate, dry steppes, light forests and shrubs. 5. South Asia 6. SE Asia The regions closest in terms of landscape, with a warm seasonally humid climate of the equatorial monsoons and the dominance of various tropical forest landscapes. Fenced by the Himalayas from the north, it is characterized by higher temperatures, greater contrasts in moisture and therefore a richer range of landscapes - from evergreen rainforests to tropical deserts. Predominantly mountainous relief, higher and more uniform moisture, especially on the islands, absolute dominance of forest landscapes - from giles to dry deciduous monsoon forests and light forests.

Central Asia - a sharp continental climate and the uniformity of landscapes, associated with an extreme degree of aridity; The region is remote from the oceans, isolated by powerful mountain systems, elevated (from 1000-1200 m in Central Asia itself to 4000-5000 m in Tibet). After the collapse of the USSR, the territory of the Central Asian republics and Kazakhstan is considered as part of the Central Asian subcontinent. Thus, Central Asia includes the following physical and geographical countries: Central Kazakhstan, the plains of the Turan Plate and the Balkhash region, the mountains and basins of Northwestern China and Central Asia, the plains and plateaus of Southern Mongolia and Northern China, Northern Mongolia, the Pamirs - Hindu Kush - Karakorum , Kunlun - Altyntag - Nanshan, Tibetan Plateau. In the north, the subcontinent borders on Western Siberia and the mountains of Southern Siberia, in the east on Eastern, in the south - on South Asia, in the west - on the Southern Urals and Mugodzhary, the Caspian Sea, then in the southwest - on the Iranian Highlands. A region is a system of basins bounded by more or less high mountains and hills.

The main natural features of Central Asia: - "Lattic-honeycomb" structure of the surface. Almost the entire region is a system of basins bounded by more or less high mountains and uplands. The central parts of the basins are hard boulders of different geological age, mountain uplifts are formed by neotectonic movements within mobile belts of different ages. On this basis, all the physical and geographical countries of the subcontinent are similar, except for Central Kazakhstan. - Large amplitudes of heights. They are associated with the activity of neotectonic movements (the Turfan depression lies at an altitude of 154 m below sea level, the Chogori mountain in the Karakorum has an absolute height of 8611 m). There is evidence that over the past 10 thousand years, the Kunlun, Nanshan and other mountains have risen by 1300-1500 m. - Aridity of the climate, due to the inland position and the hollow relief. Many features of different components of nature are connected with this. — Erosive dismemberment of mountain slopes occurred only in pluvial epochs; glaciation did not develop because there was not enough water; ancient leveling surfaces have been preserved; modern denudation is slow, mainly due to the processes of weathering, scree and the work of temporary streams; clastic material is not carried away far from the slopes where it was formed (“mountains are drowning in their own debris”); groundwater is usually deep, often mineralized; the rivers are shallow, sometimes they do not flow anywhere; lakes are mostly salty, often with unstable outlines, and in some cases “wander” from one shallow basin to another; deserts, semi-deserts and dry steppes dominate on brown, gray-brown and in places chestnut soils; solonchaks and solonetzes are widespread; plants and animals have adaptations to live in arid conditions. - Disorganized runoff (according to V. M. Sinitsyn): areas of internal runoff and endorheic ones predominate. This is due to both the aridity of the climate and the hollow structure of the territory. - The highest degree of continental climate: annual temperature amplitudes can reach 90 ° C, low winter temperatures are especially characteristic. The features of continentality are most clearly manifested in numerous large and small basins, so characteristic of the relief of the region. — Central Asia has long been a little-studied region. Mountain barriers, harsh climatic conditions, remoteness from European countries prevented the penetration of scientific expeditions into the Central Asian territory. The political isolation of many parts of the region also played a role. Only in the 19th century the first expeditions took place, overcoming natural obstacles and the resistance of the Mongolian, Tibetan and Chinese authorities, scientists from many countries explored and mapped this territory. The pluvial period is a stage of intensive climate humidification due to an increase in the amount of liquid precipitation.

The relief of Central Asia is distinguished by high altitudes, and 2 main tiers of relief are clearly distinguished. The lower tier is formed by the Gobi, Alashan, Ordos, Dzhungar and Tarim plains, the prevailing heights of which are 500-1500 m. The upper tier is the Tibetan Plateau, within which the average heights increase to 4-4.5 thousand m. other linearly elongated mountain systems of the Eastern Tien Shan, Kunlun, Nanshan, Mongolian Altai, Karakoram, Gandishishan, etc., which have a predominantly latitudinal and sublatitudinal strike. The highest peaks of the Tien Shan, Karakorum, Kunlun reach 6-7 thousand meters; The highest point of Central Asia is Chogori, in the Karakoram (8611 m). Chogori, Karakorum

Climate Modern climatic conditions are characterized by large temperature amplitudes. Summers are hot (at average monthly temperatures of 22-24°C, the air can warm up to 45°C, and the soil - up to 70°C). Winters with frosts, little snow. The daily temperature fluctuations are great, especially in transitional seasons, when they can reach 2-3 tens of degrees. In winter, the Asian anticyclone is located over Central Asia, and in summer - an area of ​​low atmospheric pressure with a predominance of air masses of oceanic origin depleted in moisture. The climate is sharply continental, dry, with significant seasonal and daily temperature fluctuations. Average temperatures in January on the plains are from -10 to -25 °C, in July from 20 to 25 °C (on the Tibetan Plateau about 10 °C). The annual amount of precipitation on the plains usually does not exceed 200 mm, and such areas as the Takla Makan, Gashun Gobi, Tsaidam, and Changtang plateaus receive less than 50 mm, which is ten times less evaporation. The greatest amount of precipitation falls in summer. In the mountain ranges, precipitation is 300-500 mm, and in the south-east. , where the influence of the summer monsoon is felt, up to 1000 mm per year. Central Asia is characterized by strong winds and an abundance of sunny days (240-270 per year). A reflection of the dryness of the climate is the significant height of the snow line, reaching 5-5.5 thousand meters in Kunlun and Nanshan, and 6-7 thousand meters in the Tibetan Plateau, in Changtang (its highest position on the globe). Therefore, despite the enormous height of the mountains, there is little snow in them, and intermountain valleys and plains are usually snowless in winter. The scale of modern glaciation is insignificant (the area of ​​glaciation in Central Asia is estimated at 50-60 thousand km 2). The main centers of glaciation are located in the highest mountain junctions of the Karakoram, Kunlun, as well as the Eastern Tien Shan and the Mongolian Altai. Cirque, hanging and small valley glaciers predominate.

Surface water Due to the dryness of the climate, Central Asia is characterized by low watering. Most of the territory belongs to the area of ​​internal runoff, forming a number of closed basins (Tarim, Dzhungar, Tsaidam, the Great Lakes Basin, etc.). The main rivers - Tarim, Khotan, Aksu, Konchedarya, Urungu, Manas, Kobdo, Dzabkhan - originate in high peripheral mountain ranges, and upon reaching the plains, a significant part of their flow seeps into loose deposits of piedmont plumes, evaporates and is spent on irrigating fields; therefore, downstream, the water content of rivers usually decreases, many of them dry up or carry water only during the summer flood, mainly due to the melting of snow and ice in the mountains of Central Asia deserts of Takla-Makan) are practically devoid of surface streams. Their surface is covered with dry channels, in which water appears only after episodic downpours. Only the outskirts of Central Asia have flow into the oceans, in the mountains of which the large rivers of Asia originate: the Huang He, the Yangtze, the Mekong, the Salween, the Brahmaputra, the Indus, the Irtysh, the Selenga, and the Amur. There are many lakes in Central Asia, the largest of them is Lake Kukunor, and the deepest is Khubsugul. The largest number of lakes is in the Tibetan Plateau and in the north of the Mongolian People's Republic. Many of them are the final floods of rivers (for example, Lop Nor), due to which their outlines and sizes often change depending on fluctuations in the flow of rivers. Salt lakes predominate; of the fresh waters, the largest are Khara-Us-Nur, Bagrashköl, Khubsugul. Many lakes on the plains are in the process of shrinking.

The Tarim River The place of the mouth of the river is also not determined: in different years it flows in different directions. Most of the rivers flowing down from the mountains into the basins are lost in the sands, dismantled for irrigation, or sometimes fill salt lakes with water. Tarim wanders around the basin, breaks up into arms, changes direction, leaving oases with settlements without water, which have to be abandoned because of this.

Soils. The predominant types of soils in the north are chestnut, in the deserts of Northwestern China - gray-brown, desert, in the Tibetan Plateau - frozen soils of cold high-mountainous deserts. In depressions of the relief there are solonchaks and takyrs. In the upper belt of mountains there are mountain-meadow and (in the north) mountain-forest soils. The soils of the plains of Central Asia are usually thin, almost devoid of humus, and often contain large amounts of carbonates and gypsum; significant areas of sandy and rocky deserts are generally devoid of soil cover. In the mountains - gravel and coarse skeletal soils.

Some areas of sandy and gravelly deserts are completely devoid of vegetation, in other places they are typical desert communities with wormwood, saltwort, ephedra, camel thorn, tamarisk, sometimes with saxaul on the sands. Only in the marginal mountains at altitudes of 1800-3000 m do forests of pine, Tien Shan spruce, elm, and aspen appear. Poplar, desert elm, and willows grow along dry riverbeds. There are meadows in mountain valleys and on the slopes of high mountains. Takla Makan - a sandbox in a bowl between mountains

East Asia The most extensive region of overseas Asia, located between the Amur Valley and the coast of South China, including the adjacent islands of the Pacific Ocean. The position in the eastern oceanic sector of Asia, with its characteristic monsoonal circulation and abundant moisture in the summer season, determined the dominance of forest landscapes (from the southern taiga to constantly humid tropical forests). In the leeward position, in the north, where the monsoon circulation weakens somewhat, forest-steppes and meadow steppes appear. In contrast to the monsoonal climate of South and Southeast Asia, cyclonic activity at the polar front plays a significant role here, so the intra-annual humidification in East Asia is more uniform. The fauna and flora of the region that has not experienced glaciation are characterized by high species diversity and endemism. A characteristic feature of nature is the indistinct zonality of landscapes associated with the predominance of mountainous relief with its inherent vertical zonality.

The Asia Minor Highlands form a continuous belt from the Mediterranean coast to Tibet and include the Asia Minor, Armenian and Iranian highlands. They are characterized by a combination of marginal folded structures of the Cenozoic age with more ancient median massifs, a large role of neotectonic movements in the formation of the modern relief. Typical Mediterranean landscapes are similar to European ones, and as you move to the east, the influence of purely Asian features increases - continental climate, lack of drainage, landscapes acquire dry steppe and desert features.

Infrared satellite image of the Great Salt Desert (Dashte-Kevir), Iran. Deshte-Kevir (Great Salt Desert), Iran.

The natural zones of the Earth are most clearly distinguished by their vegetation cover, therefore the names of natural areas are given according to the main distinguishing feature - vegetation.

Natural zones of the equatorial and subequatorial geographical zones.

The largest areas are in Africa, South America, Southeast Asia and Oceania. Moist equatorial forests (hylaea) formed under conditions of constantly high temperatures and high rainfall throughout the year. These are the richest forests on the planet in terms of species composition. They are characterized by density, multilayeredness, an abundance of vines and epiphytes (plants growing on other plants - mosses, orchids, ferns) (Fig. 20).

Rice. 20 Moist equatorial forest

In South America, under the giant trees of ceiba and bertholatia, trees with valuable wood grow - rosewood and pau brazil, as well as ficuses, hevea; in the lower tiers - palm trees and a chocolate tree. In Africa, oil and wine palms, cola, breadfruit grow, in the lower tiers - bananas and coffee trees. Valuable wood has mahogany, iron, ebony, sandalwood. Equatorial forests of Southeast Asia and about. New Guinea is poorer in species composition: palm trees, ficuses, tree ferns. Hylaea form on poor red-yellow ferralitic soils.

Hylaean animals are adapted to life on trees. Many have prehensile tails, like the sloth, the opossum, the prehensile-tailed porcupine. Only in the hylaea of ​​the Old World did apes survive - gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees. From land animals - forest antelopes, tapirs. There are predators: jaguar, leopard. Many birds: parrots, guinea fowls, peacocks, toucans, hummingbirds.

The transitional zone between equatorial forests and savannahs is represented by subequatorial variable-humid forests. The presence of a dry period causes the appearance of deciduous trees. Among the evergreen trees, ficuses and palms predominate.

Savannah and woodlands are located mainly in subequatorial geographical zones, the largest areas are concentrated in Africa, South America, Australia and South Asia. Savannas are predominantly open grassy plains with isolated trees and groves. They are characterized by alternating dry winter and wet summer seasons. Depending on moisture content, wet, typical, and desert savannahs are distinguished, under which red, brown-red, and red-brown soils develop, respectively. The grassy cover is formed by bearded vultures, feather grasses. Of the trees for the savannas of South America, palm trees are characteristic (Mauritius, wine, wax). In the African savannas, in addition to palms (oil, doum), baobabs are often found (Fig. 21).

Rice. 21 Baobab Savannah

For Australia, casuarinas are typical. Acacias are ubiquitous.

The African savannas are characterized by an abundance of ungulates (antelopes, giraffes, elephants, zebras, buffaloes, rhinos, hippos) and predators (lion, leopard, cheetah). For the South American savannas, animals with a protective brown coloration (spicy deer, maned wolf), rodents (capybara) and edentulous (armadillo, anteater) are typical. An integral part of the Australian savannas are marsupials (kangaroos, wombats) and large flightless birds (emu, cassowary).

Natural zones of tropical and subtropical geographical zones.

Forests form in the eastern coastal regions of the tropics, and deserts and semi-deserts form in the central continental and western coastal regions washed by cold currents.

tropical desert and semi-deserts - the most extensive natural zone of tropical belts. The largest desert areas are concentrated in the tropical latitudes of Africa, on the Arabian Peninsula and in the central part of Australia. (Determine from the atlas map which deserts are located inland and which are on the western coasts.) These are very hot and dry areas with poor vegetation and wildlife. According to vegetation, the deserts are grass-shrub, shrub and succulent. Tropical semi-deserts and deserts of North Africa - cereal-shrub (acacia, tamarisk, wild millet, dwarf saxaul, camel thorn). In the oases, the main cultivated crop is the date palm. The deserts of South Africa are characterized by moisture-storing succulents (aloe, spurge, wild watermelons), as well as irises and lilies blooming during short rains. Soils of semi-deserts are gray soils, deserts are stony or sandy (Fig. 22).

The deserts of Australia are characterized by bushy cereal spinifex, semi-deserts - thickets of quinoa, salt-tolerant species of acacia. Dry grasses and cacti grow on the gray soils of the coastal deserts of South America, and creeping and cushion-like grasses, thorny shrubs grow on the gravelly soils of the high-mountain deserts.

In the well-moistened east of the tropical belt, humid and variable rainforests on red soils. In South America, palm trees, ficuses, mahogany, and ceiba grow in them.

In the humid tropics of Madagascar, the "tree of travelers", iron, ebony trees, and rubber trees grow. There are lemurs on the island. The rainforests of Australia are characterized by eucalyptus, evergreen beeches, and araucaria.

Marsupials live (tree kangaroo, koala)

Rice. 22. Tropical sandy desert and "living fossils" - platypus and echidna.

On the western outskirts of the subtropical geographical zone in the conditions of the Mediterranean climate, hardwood evergreen forests and bushes . Classically hard-leaved evergreen forests are present in the Mediterranean: cork and holm oak, Aleppo pine, pine, Atlas and Lebanese cedars, cypress with a rich undergrowth of wild olive, laurel, pistachio, myrtle, strawberry tree.

The species composition of the vegetation of this natural zone differs on different continents. In North America, firs, cedars, arborvitae, pines and ancient sequoias grow. In South America - evergreen beeches, teak, perseus. The forests of South Africa consist of silverwood, Cape olive, African walnut; Australia - from eucalyptus and "herbaceous tree".

The natural vegetation of the natural zone has been largely reduced, it has been replaced by depleted thickets of shrubs on gray-brown soils. The brown soils of the forests are highly fertile, therefore they are plowed up for the cultivation of subtropical crops (olive, citrus, grapevine, etc.).

The eastern edge of the subtropics is occupied subtropical variable-moist (including monsoon) forests from evergreen deciduous and coniferous species, with an abundance of vines and epiphytes. Red and yellow soils are formed under these forests.

The richest forests have been preserved in East Asia. They are characterized by a mixture of plants of different latitudes. Magnolia, lacquer and even palm trees and tree ferns grow next to maple and birch. The animal world is also characterized by a mixture of species: lynx, deer, macaque, raccoon dog and the endangered panda.

In the continental regions of the subtropics, there are zones subtropical steppes, semi-deserts and deserts . In Asia, they have a mosaic distribution and occupy the largest areas in the south of Central Asia and in the interior parts of the highlands of Western Asia. The dry climate with hot summers and warm winters allows only drought-resistant grasses and shrubs (caragana, feather grass, wormwood, onions) to grow on gray soils and brown desert soils. The unique appearance of the subtropical deserts of North America is given by giant cacti (opuntia and cereus), yucca and agave. The richest subtropical steppes are in South America. On chernozem soils, forb-cereal meadows of wild lupine, pampas grass, and feather grass grow.

The fauna of the semi-deserts and deserts of the tropics and subtropics is represented by species that have adapted to high temperatures and lack of moisture. Ungulates (gazelles, mountain sheep, antelopes) travel long distances in search of food and water. "Ship of the desert" - a camel can be without food and water for a long time, storing them in its humps. Rodents dig holes: marmots, jerboas, ground squirrels. Scorpions, phalanxes, geckos, skinks, boas (sand, steppe), snakes (vipers, rattlesnakes), monitor lizards live.

Natural zones of temperate zones.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the temperate geographical zone includes most of Europe, North, East and Central Asia, and the middle regions of North America. In the Southern Hemisphere, it has received limited distribution. (Study the location of the temperate geographic zone on the atlas map.)

The largest area in temperate latitudes is occupied by forest zones. Their characteristic feature is the pronounced seasonality of natural processes. In the northern part of the belt, a continuous wide strip stretched coniferous forests (taiga) on podzolic soils. The harsh temperate continental and sharply continental climate (with the exception of the western coasts) is the reason for the predominance of conifers - larch, pine, spruce, fir, cedar, and in the Eastern Hemisphere - also arborvitae, hemlock and Douglas fir. With sufficient moisture, dark coniferous spruce-fir forests are formed, with insufficient moisture on permafrost soils, light-coniferous pine-larch forests are formed. In the southern taiga, small-leaved species (aspen, alder, birch) are mixed with conifers.

Large areas are occupied by swamps.

In the southern part of the temperate zone, under conditions of maritime and transitional to continental climate types, mixed and broad-leaved the woods . In the Northern Hemisphere, conifers are gradually replaced by broad-leaved deciduous - beeches, oaks, chestnuts, hornbeams, maples, lindens, elms, ash trees - with an admixture of small-leaved trees, forming forests mixed in composition (Fig. 23). To the south, coniferous species disappear, completely giving way to broad-leaved ones. Soddy-podzolic soils develop under mixed forests, and brown forest soils develop under broad-leaved forests. Rice. 23. Mixed forest monsoon mixed and broadleaf forests . They are dominated by local species of conifers - Korean spruce and cedar, Daurian larch, as well as Manchurian and Amur species of oak, linden, chestnut, maple with the richest undergrowth of chokeberry, Amur lilac. Healing eleutherococcus and ginseng are found under the forest canopy.

Rice. 23 Mixed forest In the monsoon region

The fauna of the forest zones is diverse. There are many ungulates - elk, roe deer, deer, wild boar, bison and bison are under protection. The owner of the taiga is a brown bear. Ermine, mink, marten, sable, squirrel, weasel have valuable fur. From predators there are a wolf, a fox, a lynx, a wolverine, the rarest Amur tiger. Beaver, otter, muskrat live near water bodies. There are many birds: capercaillie, black grouse, hazel grouse, woodpecker, thrush, oriole, crossbill, owl, heron. The nature of the taiga has largely retained its originality.

To the south, as the climate becomes more continental, forest zones gradually turn into forest-steppe . Here, areas of pine or aspen-birch forests on gray forest soils alternate with rich forb-cereal meadows on chernozems.

steppe zone occupies significant areas in the south of the East European Plain and Western Siberia, the north of Central Asia, and the south of the plains of the central regions of North America. The climate is continental with hot dry summers and cold winters with thin snow cover. Short-grass dry cereal steppes (feather grass, fescue, couch grass) predominate, in more humid areas - forb-cereal steppes. As a result of the decay of the rich grass cover in the steppes, chestnut and the most fertile chernozem soils were formed. Therefore, the steppe and forest-steppe regions are plowed up almost everywhere, the "sea of ​​grass" has been replaced by grain fields.

The world of birds of the steppes and forest-steppes is rich: in Eurasia - cranes, larks, bustards, falcons, golden eagles, steppe harriers, in North America - turkey vultures, meadow grouse.

desert and semi-deserts temperate zones occupy part of Central Asia, the internal plateaus of the Cordillera USA in North America, the plains of Patagonia in South America. Hot dry summers are replaced by cold and snowless winters. As in tropical deserts, flora and fauna are not rich in species composition. Feather grass, tamarisk, ephedra, saxaul grow on brown and gray-brown desert soils, wormwood and quinoa grow on saline soils.

Ungulates, rodents and reptiles dominate among animals. Representatives of ungulates in Asia are gazelle and goitered antelopes, kulan, mountain goats, wild donkey, rare saiga and Przewalski's horse. Of the predators, the caracal and the wild cat are typical, the snow leopard (irbis) has been preserved in the mountains, and of the rodents, pikas and gerbils.

Natural zones of the subarctic and subantarctic belts. In the subarctic geographical zone, there are two natural zones - forest tundra and tundra, occupying the northern outskirts of North America and Eurasia, going beyond the Arctic Circle in Eastern Siberia. Long frosty winters, wet and cool summers lead to severe freezing of soils and the formation of permafrost. Thawing in the summer of only the upper soil layer leads to swamping of the territory. Tundra-gley and peat-bog soils are poor in humus.

forest tundra - transitional zone from taiga to tundra. Woodlands in the river valleys of low larches, spruces and birches alternate with herbaceous-shrub vegetation in the interfluves.

In harsh conditions tundra undersized grasses and creeping shrubs dominate. Lots of swamps. The shrub tundra in the south is characterized by dwarf birch, polar willow, wild rosemary, lingonberry, and cloudberry (Fig. 24). To the north, in the moss-lichen tundra, a continuous cover forms reindeer moss (moss moss), over which the polar poppy, forget-me-not, buttercup, and saxifrage rise. In the Arctic tundra in the north, only mosses, rare sedges and cotton grass grow.

Rice. 24 Forest-tundra

To survive in harsh conditions, tundra animals have acquired thick fur and stock up on fat for the winter. Arctic foxes have a protective white-gray color. The reindeer is almost completely domesticated. In summer, migratory birds (geese, waders, osprey) nest. The snowy owl and the white partridge stay for the winter.

AT arctic and antarctic geographical zones- kingdom arctic and antarctic tyn . They occupy the extreme island margin of North America, the island of Greenland, the extreme north of Asia and Antarctica. Rice. 25. Arctic Desert

Under conditions of constantly low temperatures, thick layers of snow and ice accumulate - ice deserts are formed. On the islands, mountain and shelf glaciers are common, and in the central part of Greenland and Antarctica - powerful ice sheets. The flora here is extremely sparse and scarce. Only on ice-free areas - rocky deserts - are mosses and lichens found.

Rice. 25 Polar Bear

There are few terrestrial animals, tundra species enter. In the Arctic, a polar bear preys on seals (Fig. 25). The only large ungulate is the musk ox. There are many birds on the coasts, including migratory ones. In summer, guillemots, loons, gulls, petrels, cormorants arrange "bird markets" on the rocks. Amazing flightless birds live in Antarctica - penguins. Whales and seals live in coastal waters.

Bibliography

1. Geography grade 8. Textbook for the 8th grade of institutions of general secondary education with the Russian language of instruction / Edited by Professor P. S. Lopukh - Minsk "Narodnaya Asveta" 2014

Southeast Asia consists of the Indochina Peninsula and the Malay Archipelago. On an area of ​​about 4 million km2, the states of Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Federation of Malaya, Indonesia, the Philippines, as well as the possessions of Great Britain (Singapore, Sarawak, Brunei, North Borneo) and Portugal (on the island of Timor) with a common with a population of over 175 million people (Vietnamese, Burmese, Tai, Indonesians, Malays and other nationalities).

The bioclimatic components of the landscapes of Southeast Asia have much in common with Hindustan, which simplifies the task of characterizing them. The same trade wind-monsoon circulation, a somewhat longer wet period, which, under the conditions of the equatorial circulation over Indonesia, stretches over the whole year. Due to the significant dissection of the territory, the northeast trade wind (winter monsoon) is wetter than in India. Therefore, the contrasts in moisture between the summer and winter seasons in Southeast Asia are less sharp, although here, too, the southwest monsoon brings more precipitation.

The western part of Southeast Asia is more humid than the eastern part. In morphostructural terms, Southeast Asia is much more complicated than Hindustan. It is characterized by an extreme dissection of the relief created by the Hercynian, Yanshan and Alpine folding. The alternation of ridges and depressions closely pressed to each other creates a diversity of landscapes: the windward slopes are densely forested, the depressions are occupied by savannahs. The mountainous relief hinders the manifestation of latitudinal zonality and emphasizes altitudinal zonality, which is better expressed on the outer steeper slopes. Since only a few massifs exceed 3000 m, the high mountain belts (nival and alpine meadows) are practically absent.

The natural division of Southeast Asia into two natural countries - continental and island is enhanced by the geographical position of the archipelago (with the exception of the northern part of the Philippines), as well as the south of the Malay Peninsula in the equatorial zone, while the rest of the territory lies in the subequatorial zone. The south of Malacca in landscape terms gravitates more to the archipelago than to Indochina. Southwest Asia unites the Arabian Peninsula, the Mesopotamian Plain and a narrow belt of the Syrian-Palestinian mountains along the Mediterranean coast.

Tropical landscapes dominate in the south of the peninsula, subtropical deserts and semi-deserts in the north. Only on the windward slopes of the mountains of Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon, under the influence of humid Mediterranean air, as well as in the mountains of Yemen and Oman in the southwest and southeast of the Arabian Peninsula, sparse forests grow, heavily cut down where they are still preserved.

In Eurasia, from south to north, there are geographical zones of the equatorial, subequatorial, tropical, subtropical, temperate and subarctic zones. On the humid oceanic margins, they are represented mainly by various forest zones, and inside the mainland they are replaced by steppes, semi-deserts and deserts. On the elevated mountainous outskirts of uplands and plateaus, due to increased moisture, the deserts are replaced by semi-deserts and with the Western Asian shrub steppes. In the tropical latitudes of Asia, no less significant violations of latitudinal zonality are found. For example, in India and Indochina, zones of subequatorial (monsoon) forests and savannas, woodlands and shrubs replace each other not from south to north, but from west to east, which is associated with the predominance of the meridional strike of mountain ranges and the direction of monsoons. In connection with the penetration of equatorial air further than usual, these zones are shifted northward, as far as the Himalayas, in comparison with Africa. Areas of mountainous relief, widespread in Asia, refract latitudinal zonality and contribute to the development of altitudinal zonality. In the arid conditions of Central Asia, the vertical differentiation of the belts is small. On the contrary, on the windward slopes of the Himalayas, the Sichuan Alps, the mountain ranges of Indochina, the number of belts is much greater. Thus, the structure of altitudinal belts is affected not only by the latitudinal, but also by the sectoral position, on the one hand, and by the exposure of the slopes, on the other. The spectrum of altitudinal zones is the fuller, the lower latitudes the mountainous country is located and the higher and more humid it is. An example of a large number of altitudinal belts is shown by the southern slopes of the Himalayas, a small number of them are the northern slopes of the Himalayas and the slopes of the Kunlun. equatorial belt . The zone of equatorial forests (giley) occupies almost the entire Malay Archipelago, the southern half of the Philippine Islands, the southwest of Ceylon and the Malay Peninsula. It almost corresponds to the equatorial climatic zone with its characteristic values ​​of radiation balance and humidity. With large amounts of annual precipitation, evaporation is relatively low: from 500 to 750 mm in the mountains and from 750 to 1000 mm on the plains. High annual temperatures and excessive moisture with uniform annual precipitation cause uniform runoff and optimal conditions for the development of the organic world and a which form leached and podzolized laterites.

Soil formation is dominated by the processes of allitization and podzolization. The Asian equatorial forests are dominated by numerous families of the most species-rich (over 45,000) flora and fauna. Undergrowth and grass cover in these forests are not developed. Due to the predominance of mountains over lowlands, typically latitudinal-zonal landscapes occupy smaller areas in Asia than in the Amazon and Congo basins. Above 1000-1300 m above sea level, the main plant formation of the hylaea acquires mountainous features. In connection with a decrease in temperature and an increase in humidity with height, the mountain hylaea has a number of features. The trees are less tall, but due to the abundance of moisture, the forest becomes especially dense and dark. It has a lot of vines, mosses and lichens. Above 1300-1500 m, the forests are increasingly enriched with representatives of the subtropical and boreal floras. On the high peaks, crooked forests and stunted shrubs alternate with lawns of herbaceous vegetation. Natural landscapes are best preserved on the islands of Kalimantan (Borneo) and Sumatra. In the subequatorial belt due to seasonal precipitation and uneven distribution of precipitation over the territory, as well as contrasts in the annual course of temperatures, landscapes of subequatorial forests, as well as savannahs, light forests and shrubs, develop on the plains of Hindustan, Indochina and in the northern half of the Philippine Islands.

Question 15: Natural areas of North America.

In the north of the mainland, natural zones stretch in strips from west to east, while in the middle and southern parts they stretch from north to south. In the Cordillera, altitudinal zonation is manifested.

Arctic desert zone. Greenland and most of the islands of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago are located in the Arctic desert zone. Here, in places freed from snow and ice, mosses and lichens grow on poor stony and swampy soils during a short and cool summer. There is a musk ox.

Tundra zone. The northern coast of the mainland and the islands adjacent to it is occupied by the tundra zone. The southern border of the tundra in the west lies at the Arctic Circle, and as it moves east, it enters more southern latitudes, capturing the coast of Hudson Bay and the northern part of the Labrador Peninsula. Here, under conditions of short and cool summers and permafrost, tundra soils are formed, in which plant remains decompose slowly. In addition, the frozen layer prevents the infiltration of moisture, resulting in its excess. Therefore, peat bogs are widespread in the tundra. Mosses and lichens grow on tundra-gley soils in the northern part of the tundra, and marsh grasses, wild rosemary shrubs, blueberry and blueberry shrubs, undersized birches, willows, and alder grow in the southern part. Arctic fox, polar wolf, caribou reindeer, ptarmigan, etc. live in the North American tundra. In summer, many migratory birds arrive here. There are many seals and walruses in the coastal waters of the zone. On the northern coast of the mainland there is a polar bear. In the west, in the Cordillera, the mountain tundra extends far to the south. To the south, woody vegetation appears more and more often, the tundra gradually turns into forest-tundra, and then into coniferous forests or taiga.

Taiga zone. The taiga zone extends in a wide strip from west to east. Podzolic soils predominate here. They are formed in humid and cool summers, as a result of which insignificant plant litter slowly decomposes and gives a small amount of humus (up to 2%). In the taiga, mainly coniferous trees grow - black spruce, balsam fir, pine, American larch; there are also deciduous ones - paper birch with smooth white bark, aspen. Animals - bears, wolves, lynxes, foxes, deer, elks and valuable fur animals - sable, beaver, muskrat. The slopes of the Cordillera, facing the ocean, are covered with dense coniferous forests mainly from Sitka spruce, hemlock, Douglas fir. Forests rise up the mountain slopes up to 1000-1500 m, above they thin out and pass into the mountain tundra. Grizzlies, skunks, raccoons are found in mountain forests; there are a lot of salmon fish in the rivers, there are seal rookeries on the islands.

Zones of mixed and broad-leaved forests. To the south of the zone of coniferous forests, there are zones of mixed and broad-leaved, as well as variable moist forests. They are located only in the eastern part of the mainland, where the climate is milder and more humid, reaching in the south to the Gulf of Mexico. Under mixed forests in the north, gray forest soils are common, under broad-leaved forests, brown forest soils, and in the south, under variable wet ones, yellow and red soils. The mixed forests are dominated by yellow birch, sugar maple, beech, linden, white and red pine. Broad-leaved forests are characterized by various types of oaks, chestnut, plane tree and tulip tree.

Tropical evergreen forest zone. The evergreen rainforests in the south of the Mississippi and Atlantic lowlands consist of oaks, magnolias, beeches and dwarf palms. The trees are entwined with vines.

Forest steppe zone. To the west of the forest zone, precipitation is less and herbaceous vegetation prevails here. The forest zone passes into the zone of forest-steppes with chernozem-like soils and steppes with humus-rich chernozems and chestnut soils. Steppes with tall grasses, mainly cereals, reaching a height of 1.5 m, are called prairies in North America. Woody vegetation is found in river valleys and in humid lowlands. Closer to the Cordillera, precipitation is even less and the vegetation becomes poorer; low grasses - Gram grass (grass) and bison grass (perennial grass only 10-30 cm high) - do not cover the entire ground and grow in separate bunches.

Distributed in the territory of Northern Mongolia: in Khangai, in the northern part of the Mongolian Altai, in the Amur region, Japan. There is no solid zone here. Spruce and fir are common. In the eastern part of the zone, cryptomeria and thuja are added to these species. Dahurian larch in the Amur region. In Hokkaido - Hokkaido spruce, Ayan spruce, Sakhalin fir, Japanese pine, Far Eastern yew. Evergreen grasses and shrubs, including bamboo, are often found in the undergrowth here.

Mixed forests.

Distributed in the Amur region, Manchuria. The Manchurian flora includes a lot of relict species of arco-tertiary flora. Here, in the intermountain basins, to which the glacier did not reach, specific shelters for plants were formed. The Manchurian flora is more thermophilic than modern. Now more cold-resistant species are mixed in with it, the undergrowth is mostly relict. In the first tier of these forests, representatives of modern Japanese and Chinese flora: Korean cedar, blond fir, whole-leaved, Algin larch, Ayan spruce, Mongolian oak, Manchurian walnut, Amur linden, Manchurian, green-skinned maple, bearded, ash-tree. In the undergrowth, Amur lilac, Ussuri buckthorn, Manchurian currant, chokeberry, rhododendron, Amur aralia, grapes, hops, lemongrass.

Broad-leaved forests.

They are found in northeastern China (almost destroyed), Japan (here they are better preserved). Oaks and beeches, a lot of maple (about 20 species), Manchurian ash, walnut, chestnuts, lindens, cherries, birches, and magnolias are common in these forests. Before the onset of active anthropogenic impact, the local Chinese flora numbered 260 genera of trees, since this is a very ancient land area.

Steppes and forest-steppes.

To date, this plant formation has almost not been preserved. In Mongolia and China, the steppes are plowed up. Of the plants, feather grasses, serpentines, vostrets, thin-legged, karagan semi-shrub (a relative of acacia), and wormwood are characteristic. Currently, wheat, corn, kaoliang, beans, sesame are cultivated here. In China, under conditions of irrigated agriculture, rice, vegetables, watermelons, and melons are grown.

Semi-deserts and deserts.

Mongolia, China. The species composition is poor. There are saxaul, tamarisk, ostrogal, ephedra, caragana, dzhusgun.

Subtropics. Evergreen monsoon forests.

They are found in eastern China south of the Yangtze, on the southern islands of Japan. There are: oaks, evergreen camellia (the ancestor of tea), camphor tree, myrtle, cryptomeria (coniferous), podocarpus shrub. In the undergrowth are evergreens: bamboo, azalea, pride, magnolia.

Hyrcanian forests.

The Hyrcanian region is located between the northern slopes of Elburz and the Caspian Sea. Lush subtropical forests are common here, consisting mainly of broad-leaved deciduous species. In the undergrowth there is an admixture of evergreens. In appearance, these forests resemble those of Colchis. At present, a significant part of the territory is covered with gardens of pomegranates, walnuts, pistachios.

Evergreen hard-leaved forests and shrubs.

Distributed on the coast of Asia Minor, in the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, Israel). It is found only on the windward slopes of mountains. There is a maquis, which is poorer than the European one. Kermes and shrub oak, Palestinian pistachio, and carob dominate. In addition, there are juniper, myrtle, heather, wild olive. In more arid regions, frigana and shilyak. Dominated by dwarf tree, wild rose, buckthorn, euonymus, jasmine.

Altitudinal zonation.

Mediterranean vegetation up to 600-800 m. Coniferous-broad-leaved forests in the lower part with chestnut, maple, cypress, deciduous oak, in the upper part with Killik fir and black pine up to 2000 m. Above - a belt of xerophytic vegetation, often cushion-shaped: sticky rose, euphorbia , Cretan barberry.

Subtropical steppes.

They are found in central Turkey (Anatolian plateau). Wormwood and feather grass predominate among plants; bulbous and tuberous ephimers bloom in spring. From herbs - alpine bluegrass.

Phryganoid formations of upland xerophytes.

Their homeland is the Near Asian highlands. Basically, they contain thorny subshrubs of a cushion shape and a height of not more than 1 m: acantolimon, ostrogal, juniper.

Semi-deserts and deserts.

They occupy the inner basins of the Iranian Highlands Deshte Lut, Deshte Kevir. Their main feature is the dominance of saltworts (halophytes). Almost every basin in the soil contains its own set of salts and, as a result, specific plant species grow.

Tibetan flora.

By genesis, it is closer to the Himalayan and Chinese floras. Basically, I grow cushion-shaped semi-shrubs here, for example, kargan, from herbs - hard Tibetan sedge.

Equatorial-tropical belt. Moist equatorial forests.

The moisture coefficient here is more than 2. The dry season is no more than 2 months. Distributed in Indonesia, Malaysia, Western Ghats, southern Vietnam, at the mouth of the Mekong, Thailand. Moist equatorial (tropical) forests are the oldest plant formation on land.

Their main features:

1. Multi-tiered (at least 5 tiers). Trees of the first tier reach a height of 50-60 m. In the Malay Archipelago, for example, there are about 2000 species of such trees, incl. on Java 500.
2. Huge variety of species. A polydominant forest structure is typical. Up to 40 trees of the 1st tier are found on 1 ha of tropical forest.
3. The trees have straight trunks, usually more than 2 m in diameter, the crowns are small. They increase when the plant reaches its tier. Tall trees have disc-shaped roots-supports (buttresses). The leaf blades of the trees are mostly large, the color is dark green. This vegetation is evergreen.
4. A large number of vines and epiphytes. Creepers are both herbs and trees. For example, a rattan palm reaches a length of 300 m.

II tier is palm, there are about 300 species here: sago, sugar, areca, palmyra, caryota, etc.

III tier: tree ferns, their height is usually up to 5 m or more, wild bananas, pandanuses, bamboos.

In the lower tiers, the insectivorous plant Rafflesia is found.

Deciduous tropical forests (monsoon or mixed).

Along with evergreens, there are deciduous plants (mainly in the upper tier). Plants: enga, teak tree, sal tree (family diptocarp), satin tree, red and white sandalwood, etc. This is the territory of part of Hindustan and Indochina with a seven-humid type of climate.

Shrub woodlands and savannahs.

Deccan Plateau, small areas in the south of Indochina. This is a tropical savannah. The herbaceous cover is dominated by tall grasses, mainly from cereals, with a height of 1.5 m or more. Cereals: bearded man, alang-alang, wild sugar cane. Trees: banyan or Indian fig tree or forest tree, palm trees (palmyra), umbrella acacia.

Deserts.

This is the territory of Arabia and Tara. A business card is a date palm found in oases (among the Arabs, this is the tree of life). Outside the oases grow ephedra, ostrogal, camel thorn. On saline soils saltwort, edible lichen manna from heaven. In the river valleys there are thickets of tamarisk, Euphrates poplar.

(according to E.M. Zubashchenko)