Representatives of any biological taxon can be settled only in a certain territory of land or ocean. Such a territory is called the habitat of a species, genus, family of any organisms.
What is the species range in biology. Definition
This is a certain part of the mainland or the oceans, on which populations of a certain species live for a long time. The science that studies habitats is called arealogy. It relates to the section of biogeology, because includes both taxonomic groups of organisms and their habitat.
Despite the fact that the concept describes only species, scientists also study the habitats of other taxonomic groups, such as genera, families, or subspecies. Of the listed taxa, an important role is played by the study of subspecies ranges, since they can give a clear picture of the evolution of events in a given territory. Therefore, the species range is a criterion for evolution.
What is the difference between the concept of location and area?
Location - this is the point on the map where representatives of one or another species were found. A confirmation of the new open point is always the herbarium of plants, where the exact growth guidelines are signed. The locations of animals are more often described, after which these points are plotted on a species range map and studied.
What is a species range? In fact, this is a combination of locations of the same species / subspecies of plants and animals. It doesn't matter if these places are nearby or not. In any case, they show the general picture of the distribution of organisms.
3 types of area maps
Depending on how accurately you need to describe the area of a given species, three types of maps are used:
1. Point map. It is always applied in the form of small points of the location of the species populations.
2. Dot-contour map. The main habitats of the species are also plotted here, however, in addition to this, the extreme points on the map are drawn. As a result, we see the area inside which the places of distribution of animals and plants are drawn.
3. Contour and dash card. Such a map is the least accurate. It is characterized by a certain area, which is completely painted over with bars.
This is what the range of the species is and how it can be represented.
Types of habitats
Depending on how the range is located on land or in the ocean, it can be large or small, narrow or wide, solid or intermittent. Each of these characteristics can be combined with the rest. For example, the crow's range is wide and intermittent, and the kangaroo is small, narrow, but solid.
Continuous ranges are divided into subspecies. Among them are:
1. Tinea. This type of range is characteristic of most families and genera. It spreads along latitude, along the entire length of land and often takes decent distances.
2. Oval areas, on the contrary, are elongated along the meridian. This type is always limited to the natural belt. Many species of organisms and some genera / families have an oval range.
3. Circumpolar. Such ranges cover the polar zones.
4. Radiant, or fringed, - areas of irregular shape, with many convolutions, branches and irregularities on the map.
In turn, intermittent ranges are also divided into subtypes:
1. Disjunctive (torn) areas. This type is characterized by two or more habitats of the same species, which are located far from each other. For example, one part of the range may be in Europe, and the other in America.
2. Pointed areas. Their peculiarity is that they unite a large number of small ranges of this species throughout the land or ocean.
3. Tape areas. They represent a continuous range, which was torn by deserts, precipices, mountain ranges.
The structure of the species range. How are range boundaries set?
What is the range of the species and its boundaries? The distribution structure depends on many factors. Depending on their influence, various boundaries of the species habitat are formed on the map. For what reasons are the boundaries of the range formed? Why are they not continuous and not spread throughout the land?
1. Climatic boundaries. Abiotic factors such as light, humidity, salinity, soil composition can greatly affect the distribution of the species. Some organisms can adapt to a climate in which others simply die.
2. Untranslatable borders. Such boundaries are formed due to the fact that a population of a certain species cannot overcome any barrier. It can be mountains, steppes, tundra, deserts, large bodies of water, etc. This also includes the construction of man.
3. Biotic boundaries. The problem of competition in the world of animals and plants has always stood in the foreground. An organism cannot live and reproduce in a territory where potential enemies are present. Therefore, some species avoid others, thereby forming the border between the ranges of representatives of the two groups.
Habitat formation factors
What is an area in biology, now it’s clear, but how is it formed? What factors contribute to this?
The first and most important is the ability of plants and animals to dwell only in places suitable for their existence. For example, pigeons cannot live at the North Pole, but they have adapted perfectly to many other habitats. It all depends on the amplitude of the environmental factor, as well as the ability to spread. So, thanks to wings, insects have mastered almost all corners of the planet, while the range of earthworms is much smaller.
The second factor is current environmental conditions. More and more, anthropogenic factors influence the life of organisms . A person can help and preserve species, and can pollute nature, destroy it, draw limited resources of wood, ores, and combustible fuel.
Do not forget about natural phenomena, which can also contribute to, or, conversely, complicate the development of one kind or another. Weathering, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, storms, tornadoes - all this affects the life of organisms, and, accordingly, their distribution.
Finally, one of the factors is the age of the taxonomic group. For example, gymnosperms were once a thriving department of the plant kingdom. However, angiosperms dominate the ecosystem today. This is primarily due to the process of evolution of organisms and, to a lesser extent, to natural processes that once took place in the habitat. This is the range of the species.