RBSE Class 7 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 6 Natural Vegetation and Wild Life

These comprehensive RBSE Class 7 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 6 Natural Vegetation and Wild Life will give a brief overview of all the concepts.

RBSE Class 7 Social Science Notes Geography Chapter 6 Natural Vegetation and Wild Life

→ Due to the height of the place, climate, temperature, humidity, slope and thickness of soil layer, the growth, density and type of vegetation changes.

→ Natural vegetation : Natural vegetation is generally classified into three broad categories as follows :

• Forest,
• Grass land,
• Shrubs.

→ Types of Forests :
I. Tropical Evergreen Forests : These thick forests occur in the regions near the equator and close to the tropics. These regions are hot and receive heavy rainfall throughout the year. As there is no particular dry season, the trees do not shed their leaves altogether. Hardwood trees like rosewood, ebony, mahogany are common here.

II. Tropical Deciduous Forests : Tropical deciduous are the monsoon forests found in the large part of India, northern Australia and in central America. Trees shed their leaves in the dry season to conserve water. The hardwood trees found in these forests are sal, teak, neem and shisham.

III. Temperate Evergreen Forests : The temperate evergreen forests are located, in the mid-latitudinal coastal region hke south-east USA, South China and in South-East Brazil. They comprise both hard and soft wood trees like oak, pine, eucalyptus, etc.

IV. Temperate Deciduous Forests : These are found in the north-eastern part of USA, China, New Zealand, Chile and also found in the coastal regions of Western Europe. They shed their leaves in the dry season. The common trees are oak, ash, beech, etc.

V. Mediterranean Vegetation : It is mostly found in the areas around the 3 Mediterranean sea in Europe, Africa and’Asia. This kind of vegetation is also found outside the actual Mediterranean region in California in the USA, south west Africa, south-western South America and South-west Australia. These regions are marked for hot dry summers and mild rainy winters. Citrus fruits such as oranges, figs, olives and grapes hre commonly cultivated here.

VI. Coniferous Forests : In the higher latitudes of Northern hemisphere the spectacular Coniferous forests are found; These are also called as Taiga. These forests are also seen in the higher altitudes. These are found in the Himalayas in abundance. Chir, pine, cedar are the important varieties of trees in these forests. 

→ Types of Grassland :

• Tropical grasslands : These occur on either side of the equator and extend till the tropics. The grass can grow very tall, about 3 to 4 metres in height. Savannah grasslands of Africa are of this type.
• Temperate grasslands : These are found in the mid latitudinal zones and in the interior part of the continents. Usually, grass here is short and nutritious.
• Thorny bushes : These are found in the dry desert like regions.

→ Tundra type of vegetation : The growth of natural vegetation is very limited in Polar Regions. Only mosses, lichens and very small shrubs are found here.