Page 132 - SST Class 07

Natural Vegetation

and Wildlife 18

q Natural vegetation q Forests
q Grasslands q Desert vegetation
q Tundra vegetation

Introduction more about each of these zones with their plants

The earth has been blessed with different physical cover and the wildlife.
features in the form of mountains, rivers, seas,
oceans, forests, plateaus, plains and the like. We Info Bits
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can find different physical features in different parts
of the earth. These physical features together with The eucalyptus tree was taken from its natural
different conditions of altitude, moisture, wind, habitat in Australia and transplanted in far off
temperature, availability of water etc. have given places such as India, California and North Africa.
birth to a large variety of natural vegetation and
wildlife. FORESTS
The forest is a complex ecosystem consisting
NATURAL VEGETATION mainly of the trees that offer the earth with many

A major part of the earth is covered with natural kinds of life forms. Forests are found in areas
vegetation. It refers to the assemblage of plant where there is high rainfall over 500 millimetres.
species living in association with one another in a Forests can be further divided into six subtypes.
given environment. It is basically the plant cover
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on the surface of the earth. It tends to include Info Bits
trees, plants, shrubs, grasses, forests, flowers etc.
These occur in various combinations depending Forests are like the lungs of the earth. At least 33%
on the climate and soil. of the total land surface must be covered with
forests.
Natural vegetation provides natural habitat to the
animals and many precious and useful things to Tropical Evergreen Forests
human beings such as fruits, fuel, medicines,
Hot and humid climate is most suited to the
wood resin, gum etc. which are used by man to growth of natural vegetation, and this type of
meet his different purposes. It also provides raw climate is found near the Equator and tropics,
materials to industries and contributes to add
such as South America, Africa,
nation’s economy. Thus, human beings and Malaysia, Myanmar etc. This
animals are dependent upon the plants and plant region gets a lot of rainfall
products.
throughout the year, so the
We can identify four natural vegetation tropical evergreen forests are
zones—forests, grasslands, deserts and tundra. also called the tropical
Each of these zones has wildlife specific to it, but rainforests . This region has no
sometimes the wildlife overlaps. Let us know specific dry season, due to A tropical evergreen
forest
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