Introduction to Caves and Karst Module

Last updated over 5 years ago

9 questions

Note from the author:

Introduction to Caves and Karst Module

Last updated over 5 years ago

9 questions

Note from the author:

An introduction to the Caves and Karst Module, focusing on the unique aspects of dry and wet karst landscapes.

Welcome to our unit on caves and karst! Before we head underground to explore caves and their unique ecosystem, we're going to take some time to learn about karst landscapes. While you may not have heard of karst before, these landscapes are made up of rocks that are dissolved over time by weak acids. This results in the formation of caves, sinkholes, springs, even disappearing streams!

How many inches of rain do each of the karst regions on average receive each year? (Hint: Multiply the amounts in millimeters by 0.039 to find out.)

Examine figures 7-9. The northern wet karst forests contains mogote landforms, and the southern dry karst forests have ridges and pavement landforms. Do you think the soil chemistry is similar between these two karst areas? Why or why not?

Do you think that trees in the southern dry karst forests use water more efficiently than the trees in the northern wet karst forests? Why or why not?

Leaves have small openings called stomata. Gases, including water vapor, exit leaves through the stomatal openings. How do you think stomata respond in drier environmental conditions?

Why do you think soil is built slowly in the southern dry karst forest of Puerto Rico in figure 9?

Based on the findings, what are the two main differences between the chemical content of leaves in Puerto Rico’s northern wet and southern dry karst forests?

How are the differences you identified in the first “Findings” reflection question above advantageous to southern dry karst forests?

Puerto Rico has a rainforest in its northeastern region. The Puerto Rican rainforest contains large trees and thick vegetation. Based on this research, what might be one difference between the northern wet karst region and the rainforest of Puerto Rico?

Plants adapt to their environmental conditions. Do you think the presence of more Carbon-13 in the southern dry karst region is an adaptation? If so, to what environmental condition are the trees adapting?

If you would rather view the whole article "Tropic Topic" from Natural Inquirer's Caves and Karst Edition, you can access the pdf of the complete article, reflection questions, and accompanying FACT-ivity at http://www.naturalinquirer.org/What-Is-Known-About--the-Limestone-Zone-a-193.html