earth science

Marquesas tropical moist forests

Marquesas tropical moist forests is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Marquesas tropical moist forests rather than just read about it. In short: The Marquesas tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. Geography The Marquesas Islands include 12 major islands of volcanic origin.

Key takeaways

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Reference excerpt

The Marquesas tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia.

Geography

The Marquesas Islands include 12 major islands of volcanic origin. They extend northwest to southeast between 8º and 11º S latitude and 139º and 141º W longitude. The islands are part of French Polynesia, lying north of the Tuamotu islands, south of Hawaii, and approximately 5,500 km (3,400 mi) west of South America. The islands are volcanic in origin, created by the slow west-northwest movement of the Pacific Plate over the Marquesas hotspot. The northwestern islands are approximately 6 million years old, and the southeast islands are younger at 1.3 million years old. The islands are composed of basalt rock, and have mountainous terrain with sharp ridges, deep canyons, and steep cliffs. The largest and highest islands are:

Nuku Hiva – 339 km2 (131 sq mi), 1,224 m (4,016 ft) Hiva Oa – 316 km2 (122 sq mi), 1,213 m (3,980 ft) Ua Pou – 105.6 km2 (40.8 sq mi), 1,230 m (4,040 ft) Fatu Hiva – 85 km2 (33 sq mi), 1,125 m (3,691 ft) Ua Huka – 83.4 km2 (32.2 sq mi), 857 m (2,812 ft) Eiao – 43.8 km2 (16.9 sq mi), 576 m (1,890 ft)

Climate The islands have a tropical climate. Average annual rainfall varies with elevation and orientation, from 500 mm on leeward lowlands to 4000 mm or more on windward slopes above 1000 meters on the five highest islands. Trade winds blow from the southeast during most of the year, and the windward eastern slopes tend to be wetter than the leeward western slopes. The east-facing mountain slopes are cooler, with mean temperatures of 15º to 25 °C, while the hottest mean temperatures (25º to 29 °C) are in the dry western lowlands.

Flora The natural vegetation is principally tropical moist forest, which varies in height and species composition with rainfall and elevation. Lowland forests extend up to about 300 m with areas of up to 2000 mm of annual rainfall. Typical lowland forests are dominated by Pisonia grandis, which forms a canopy up to 15 meters high, along with the trees Thespesia populnea, Calophyllum inophyllum, and Terminalia glabrata. Tropical dry forest occurred on drier leeward slopes of the larger islands, characterized by species of Hibiscus, Pandanus, Thespesia, and Cordia. Native lowland forests have mostly been replaced with introduced trees. Archeological evidence shows that some pre-settlement lowland forest trees are now extinct, including species of Planchonella and cf. Sideroxylon (Sapotaceae), and a species of Allophylus (Sapindaceae) extirpated from Nuku Hiva. Mid-elevation forests occur between 300 and 800 meters elevation, with annual rainfall of 2,000 to 3,000 mm. Typical trees include Hibiscus tiliaceus, Pandanus tectorius, Alphitonia marquesensis, and Pterophylla marquesana, which form a canopy up to 20 meters high. Understory plants include Angiopteris evecta and Cyclophyllum barbatum. From 800 to 1000 meters elevation, Hernandia nukuhivensis, and the tree ferns Cyathea affinis and Sphaeropteris feani predominate in wet areas, and Metrosideros collina and Pterophylla marquesana on drier slopes. A cloud forest belt occurs above 1000 meters elevation, with a low-canopied forest of Cheirodendron bastardianum, Ilex anomala, and Metrosideros collina, with climbers of Freycinetia spp. Mountaintops above 1,200 m are drier and windswept, supporting a heathland of low trees and shrubs up to one meter high, including M. collina, Vaccinium cereum, Styphelia tameiameiae, and Bidens spp., interspersed with grasses and ferns. 42% of the 320 native vascular plant species are endemic.

Fauna The ancestors of the Marquesas' native fauna arrived via long-distance dispersal from other islands, and evolved into distinct forms over millions of years. The ecoregion has 19 breeding seabird species and 11 resident land birds, including ten endemic bird species. Endemic species include the Marquesas ground dove (Gallicolumba rubescens), Marquesas kingfisher (Halcyon godeffroyi), Fatuhiva monarch (Pomarea whitneyi), Iphis monarch (P. iphis), and Marquesas monarch (P. mendozae). Most endemic species have been decimated by introduced rats, which prey on eggs and chicks. The Nuku Hiva pigeon (Ducula galeata) is now limited to a few hundred individuals on Nuku Hiva. The ultramarine lory (Vini ultramarina) once ranged across the archipelago, but predation by introduced black rats reduced its range to Ua Huka island. The birds were reintroduced on Fatu Hiva in conjunction with a rat control program. The red-moustached fruit dove (Ptilinopus mercierii) is now extinct. The Marquesas are home to at least 78 species of land and freshwater snails. There are 1198 species of terrestrial arthropods in the Marquesas, 681 (53%) of which are considered endemic to the islands, 138 (11.5%) are introduced, and the remainder mostly native with some of uncertain status. The majority of the endemic insect species are contained in five orders: Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies), Hemiptera (true bugs), Hymenoptera (wasps, bees and ants), and Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths). Many of the endemic species are native to a single island. Insect genera which have significant radiations of endemic species in the Marquesas include Asymphorodes (Lepidoptera, 21 spp.), Prochaetops (Diptera, 15 spp., possibly not all endemic), Campsicnemus (Diptera, 15 spp.), Pacificola (Coleoptera, 13 spp.), Dichelopa (Lepidoptera, 13 spp.), Sierola (Hymenoptera, 12 spp.), and Campylomma (Hemiptera, 11 spp.).

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Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Marquesas tropical moist forests

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Marquesas tropical moist forests claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Marquesas tropical moist forests before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Marquesas tropical moist forests ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Marquesas tropical moist forests

In research: Marquesas tropical moist forests appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Marquesas tropical moist forests in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Marquesas tropical moist forests is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Ecoregions of French Polynesia, Endemic Bird Areas, Marquesas Islands, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Marquesas tropical moist forests outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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Frequently asked questions

What is Marquesas tropical moist forests in simple terms?

The Marquesas tropical moist forests is a tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests ecoregion in the Marquesas Islands of French Polynesia. Geography The Marquesas Islands include 12 major islands of volcanic origin.

Why does Marquesas tropical moist forests matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Marquesas tropical moist forests?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Marquesas tropical moist forests.