Humid Continental Climate DWA
Jessica Hernandez-- Winnipeg, Canada
Climograph
Description
The humid continental climate is a climatic region with very hot summers and extremely cold winters, and the D from DWA shows that. The W describes that the region has dry winters, and the A means that the region has an average temperature above 22 °C. Some examples of places with this climate are Northeast China, and a lot of areas in Asia. The humid continental climate is generally just found in the northern hemisphere above 40° N latitude. These climates are not as common in the southern hemisphere because of the larger oceans at the latitude.
Food Chain
Map
Factors controlling climate
Continentality is a large factor because this climate is primarily located within the interior area of midlatitude continents. Because there is not as much ocean in this area, the climate/weather experiences large swings in seasonal temperatures.
Nearby location
In the northern/central part of the US, there's the BSK continental region, aka the cold semi-arid region. In this are, the summers are hot and the winters are cold, but the summer is super dry, and the winter is wet. The spring and autumn are even wetter than the winter here. This climate is also because of the continentality and the fact that it is relatively far from any oceans.
Floral and faunal adaptations
Many trees in this region have adapted to withstand extreme temperatures to survive. Plants have adapted to live in many climates, and some trees can even survive in temperatures as low as 50 °C. Koi fish have adapted to be able to live in water with vey low oxygen levels and poor water quality. Red squirrels hunt in the morning and at night, then stay in their nests all day to avoid high temperatures and the threat of prey around them.
human impacts
The two major impacts humans have made are air pollution and deforestation. Air pollution is caused by cars, factories, and a few other technological advances. The US has some of the highest pollution rates in the world. Deforestation cuts down trees, and kills animals by exterminating their habitats. Wood and paper are used by almost everybody everyday.
Interesting facts
In the winter, red squirrels can sometimes stay in their nests for days at a time.
The Lily of the Valley is commonly used at wedding as most people do not know that it is poisonous.