Equatorial

UNIT 4 Regions

EQUATORIAL REGIONS

Structure

4.1 Introduction 4.6 Human-Environment

Expected Learning Outcomes Relationship
4.2 Geographical Location and Impact of Environment on Humans
Distribution Impact of Humans on the Equatorial
Regions
4.3 Climate
4.7 Summary
4.4 Soil
4.8 Terminal Questions
4.5 Flora and Fauna
Flora
4.9 Answers
Fauna 4.10 References and Further
Reading

4.1 INTRODUCTION
In Block 1, you have learnt about the bio-geographical regions of the world.
You now know that there are various bio-geographic regions on the earth, and
each has its distinct characteristics or features. You might be knowing that the
environment of a region has a direct influence upon the human beings
residing in that region. Human try to adapt their environment in numerous
ways. You have already read about human adaptation to the environment in
Block 1, Unit 4 of the course on ‘Human Geography’. The focus of the present
block shall be to understand the ways of the interaction of human beings and
their environment. In this process, we shall first be dealing with the
relationship between humans and their environment in the equatorial region.
Hence, the focus of the present unit is the study of the equatorial region.

In Section 4.2 you will study about the location and distribution of the
equatorial region. The understanding gained in this section shall help you to
analyse the soil and climatic conditions of this region, which will be dealt with
in greater detail in Section 4.3 and 4.4. Further, in Section 4.5, you will get
insight into flora and fauna of the region. Based on all these understanding
Section 4.6 shall deal with the human-environment interaction in the
equatorial region. The interaction between human and environment is such 57
Human- that the environment influences humans and, at the same time, human
Environment influences the environment.
Relationship

Expected Learning Outcomes

After completing the study of this unit, you should be able to:
v State the geographical location and distribution of the equatorial regions
in the world;
v Explain the climatic conditions and soil associated with the equatorial
regions;
v Describe the flora and fauna of the region; and
v Analyse human-environment relationship in the regions.

4.2 GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION AND

DISTRIBUTION
Before discussing about human-environment relationship of any region, the
first and foremost requirement is to know about their location on the earth
surface. This would help us to understand physical conditions and socio-
economic activities in a better manner. Therefore let us know about the
location and distribution of equatorial regions with the help of world map given
below.

Fig. 4.1: Location and Distribution of the Equatorial Regions in the World.

As the name suggests, this region is located in and around the equator in
both the hemisphere. As depicted in the Fig. 4.1, the equatorial region is
located between 0° and 10° latitude on either side of the equator. It stretches
in the Amazon lowlands in South America, Congo basin in Africa and the East
Indies, from Sumatra to New Guinea in Asia. In otherwords, this region
spread across the continents of South America, Africa and Asia.The location
and distribution of the equatorial region is clearly shown in Fig 4.1.

This region covers about 6% area of the earth surface. Though this region
covers a small stretch of earth surface, it has ecological and economic
significance for the entire earth. We will discuss about its significance in the
58 following sections.
SAQ 1 Equatorial
Regions
Explain the location and distribution of the equatorial regions?

4.3 CLIMATE
The location of a place gives insights about the climate of that region.
Considering this, can you now analyze the climatic conditions prevalent in the
equatorial region? As the name suggests, this region is located near the
equator. You might have read in the school that the sun’s rays falls
perpendicular/straight throughout the year on the equatorial region. Therefore,
it is characterized by high sunshine throughout the year. The high sunshine
leads to high temperature throughout the year. This is the reason for which,
the region does not have the presence of winters. In fact, the seasonal and
diurnal variation in temperature is not considerable. Temperatures are uniform
throughout the year. The mean monthly and mean annual temperature of the
region is close to 27° C.

The mornings in the region are bright and sunny. The high amount of
evaporation in the region results in heavy convectional rainfall in the
afternoons. You have already read about the convectional rainfall in Block 3
titled Climatology in course on Physical Geography. Thus, the region is
characterized by high precipitation. The rainfall reaches as high as 2500mm
annually.

Till now you might have understood the climate of equatorial region. If we
summarise the climate of equatorial region then it can be expressed as hot
and wet climatic condition.

SAQ 2
Why is there no winter season in the climate in the equatorial regions.

4.4 SOIL
While you might be thinking that the profuse vegetation in the region is an
indication of soil highly rich in nutrients, but it is not so. Can you guess why
this is not so. This is because of the high temperature and rainfall. It
accelerate the process of weathering in the equatorial region. That is why
most of the soils of the tropical regions are clays which have little soluble
mineral content in them. The soils are moderate to highly acidic, which restrict
the ability of the roots to take up the nutrients of the soil. The high rainfall in
the region also washes the top layer of the soil more easily compared to any
other region; thus making it devoid of the nutrients. The soils of these regions
recycle and reuse almost everything that falls on it i.e. decayed species of
animals, leaves and flowers etc. This supports the luxuriant growth of
vegetation in the soil, despite the soil being so poor in the nutrients.

Till now, you might have realized location plays a vital role in determining
climate and soil condition. Simillarly, climate and soil plays a vital role in the
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Human- growth of vegetation. In the following section, we will discuss about flora and
Environment fauna in the equatorial region.
Relationship

SAQ 3
Why is soil devoid of nutrients in equatorial regions?

4.5 FLORA AND FAUNA

You have already learnt about the climatic conditions in the equatorial region
in the previous section. The high temperature and high rainfall in the region
supports a rich and profuse vegetation. As mentioned in the initial section of
this unit that it plays a very significant role in terms of global ecology and
economy. Let us discus both flora and fauna of this region briefly.

4.5.1 Flora
The characteristic feature of the vegetation of this region can be summarized as:

a) Diverse vegetation: The equatorial region supports diverse vegetation

owing to its climatic condition. The climatic conditions support the growth
of numerous types of vegetation. The region is said to be a genetic
reservoir of numerous species. The region contains as many as 3000
species of trees within a few square kilometres. The diversity of
vegetation ranges from evergreen trees to climbing plants like lianas as
well as epiphytic and parasitic plants. Major trees found in the equatorial
region are ebony, mahogany, chincona, rosewood etc.

b) Arrangement in layers: The struggle for sunlight among the vegetation

of the region results in a distinctive layered arrangement.

Fig. 4.2: Layered Arrangement of Vegetation in the Equatorial Regions.

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The top most layer consists of the scattered ‘emergent’ crowns that have Equatorial
been able to protrude from the closed canopy below. Such trees often reach Regions
up to the height of 40 m. Below this layer is the continuous layer. This layer
consists of trees which are around 15 to 30 m in height. The lowermost layer
consists of the vegetation which can tolerate shade. This layer, which is close
to the ground consists of ferns and herbaceous plants. Most of the sunlight is
stopped by the upper layers of the trees, and hence, the lowest layer is not
too dense (Refer Fig. 4.2).

4.5.2 Fauna
The equatorial region not only supports abundant and diverse vegetation but
is also home to diverse fauna. The African elephant, jaguar, are some of the
animals of this region. The Congo basin is home to the mountain gorilla,
lowland gorillas, chimpanzees as well as thousand species of birds. The
poison dart frog, margay, collard anteater are some of the other animals.

SAQ 4
a) Why are plants arranged in distinct layers in the equatorial regions?

b) Name any four animal species of the equatorial regions.

4.6 HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT RELATIONSHIP

Till now you might have got an idea about the physical characteristics of the
region. As you have read in the Human Geography that humans adapted to
their environment by adjusting their day to day activities or by modifying their
environment according to their suitability. The relationship between humans
and their environment has been important, yet a complex one. The
environment of a region bears influences on humans, and at the same time,
the environment also gets influenced by humans. There is a two-way
interaction between the two. Both of the two cannot remain in isolation. Here
we shall try to understand this relationship from both the dimensions with
particular reference to the equatorial region.

Fig. 4.3: Two-way Processes in Human-environment Relationship.

4.6.1 Impact of Environment on Humans

The environment of a region has a direct influence upon the human beings
residing in that region. Humans try to adapt themselves to their environment
in numerous ways. Some of these are as follows:
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Human- i) The Native Inhabitants: The equatorial region is inhabited by the
Environment indigenous people which comprise of the Pygmies of Africa, Indian tribes
Relationship
in the Amazon basin. They have adapted to the environment in numerous
ways. The Pgymies are small in stature. It is believed that their small
stature enables them to move in the forests more easily compared to the
taller people.

ii) Agriculture: Different forms of agriculture are practiced in the equatorial

regions. Traditionally the most common form of agriculture has been the
migratory agriculture, which is the slash and burns form of agriculture.

a) Migratory Agriculture/Slash and Burn Agriculture: The people

of this region are mostly nomadic. They practice different activities
in groups like hunting and fishing. The most common method of
agriculture practiced in the equatorial rainforests is the slash and
burn agriculture method. In this type of agriculture, vast tracts of
land are cleared for cultivation and then abandoned for a new land
until the old one regains its fertility. This practice is, however,
ecologically unsound. Do you know this type of agriculture is known
by different names in different countries? In the equatorial African
countries, this form of agriculture is known as Fang, Masole in the
Zaire river valley, Comile and Milya in Mexico and Central America,
Roka in Brazil, Ladang in Java and Indonesia, Caingin in
Philippines and Ray in Vietnam.

b) Commercial farming: The commercial farming is carried on a

small scale in the equatorial region, but generally sizeable single
cash crops like rice, citrus, opium, tea, soyabeans are cultivated. In
the Amazon basin, the people grow crops like manioc or cassava.
The commercial agriculture is also practiced in the form of large
plantations of coffee, rubber and banana, palm oil etc.

iii) Settlements: Do you know that the environment influences the

settlements as well? The thick forests have an impact over the type of
houses that can be built and the type of settlement that is possible in
the equatorial regions. The people of the equatorial region are mostly
nomadic and move from place to place. However, in some regions, a
special type of houses are found. In the Amazon, people live in special
type of house called ‘Maloca’. These houses have steep, slant roofs
and apartment like in shape. People also reside in houses with thatched
roofs over them. In Malaysia, the villages are called ‘kampongs’. The
houses in Malaysia are mainly raised on timber stilts. The stilts enable
the building to be better suited for the natural terrain. The materials
used for constructing the houses comprise of the easily available
materials from the forests which comprise of the timber, bamboo and
leaves. Moreover, the wood and bamboo that are used also have
insulating properties, and they conduct or retain little heat into the
building. Thus, it may be observed that the houses and the building
material in the region are influenced by the environment of that region
(Refer Fig. 4.4).

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 Equatorial
Regions

Fig. 4.4: Types of Houses in a. Amazon Basin and b. Malaysia.

iv) Climate and Human Health: The climate of a region has a profound
impact on the health of human beings. The excess heat and humidity
have negative impacts on the health of the people. Climate change has
made the people of the region more vulnerable.

Prevalence of Diseases: While the hot and humid climate supports the
growth of vegetation, it also leads to the growth of bacteria and pests.
These, in turn, are responsible for the large scale prevalence of
diseases in the equatorial region. There is large scale prevalence of
vector borne diseases in this area such as malaria, lymphatic filariasis
and dengue. The insects and animals of the forests serve as host and
vectors to several other diseases like yellow fever, leishmaniasis and
Chagas disease. The prevalence of such types of diseases makes life
difficult for the people of the region. The handling as well as
consumption of bushmeat increases the exposure to many viruses and
may be the underlying causes of the emergence of diseases including
HIV and Ebola.

SAQ 5
How have human beings adapted themselves in the equatorial regions?

4.6.2 Impact of Humans on the Equatorial Regions

The equatorial rainforests are very important for human beings. They stabilize
the world climate and hydrologic cycle and are essential in providing
numerous ecosystem services. Its importance can hardly be undermined. The
interaction of humans with the environment has been beneficial to humans,
but, at the same time, the region has been afflicted with several problems due
to the influence of human beings in the area. The loss of equatorial rainforests
is not just harmful to the local environment. It is loss of numerous species
inhabiting the earth- a loss of millions of years of evolution and its consequent
repercussions on the earth as a whole.

i) Deforestation: Do you know that the rainforest basins of Amazon,

Congo and Southeast Asia comprise of huge forested area? These cover
over 1.3 billion hectares and roughly corresponds to one-third of the total
forest area of the world. That is huge- Isn’t it? The problem, however, lies
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Human- in the fact that even these forests are affected by the problem of
Environment deforestation. During the decade 2000-2010, the three basins reported a
Relationship
net loss of forest area of 5.4 million hectares per year. The loss in the
amazon basin was the highest and amounted to around 3.6 million
hectares per year in the decade. Now that is something to worry about
because while the deforestation is mainly human induced, its
repercussions shall also be faced by the humans to a great extent. This is
because these forests play a great role in regulating the climate of the
world and they are a storehouse of a range of products and services that
are vital in providing local livelihood and plays a signiflcant role in the
national development.

Deforestation is a significant threat to the equatorial forests caused due

to anthropogenic activities. In the Amazon forests, the deforestation is
mainly due to the expansion of agriculture. Other important factors driving
deforestation are cattle ranching, expansion of infrastructures like dams
and roads. Deforestation as a problem cannot be viewed as a single
impact in the region. It triggers a chain of other negative impacts in the
region, which include soil erosion, altered hydrology, loss of biodiversity.
While the problem is initiated by human beings in the path of
development, the combined effect of all these negative impacts takes a
toll on human beings.

ii) Logging: Logging also leads to significant forest degradation. It opens up

the opportunity for conversion of the land to different land use. This is
prevalent in tropical rainforests. In South east Asia, the Dipterocarpaceae
family of trees are predominant and are very important for the timber
industry. This is because the trees produce long, straight and knot free
(no branches) logs which are ideal for plywood and sawn timber. As of
2012, the Southeast Asia region has become the world’s leading log
producing region owing to its dense commercial stocking of forests. Out
of the three regions, Southeast Asia produced around 56% of the three
regions’ logs, 36% of the sawn timber and around 85% of the plywood in
the year 2008-2012.

iii) Cattle Ranching: One of the dominant causes of deforestation in the

tropical areas is the expansion of cattle pasture and cattle ranching,
which is specifically from the gate beef and dairy. The Amazon Brazil is
home to approximately 200 million head of cattle and is the largest
exporter in the world. Ranching is an important and attractive economic
activity due to the low input cost and the easy transportation in the rural
areas, and hence, it is one of the leading causes of deforestation in the
area.

iv) Mining: Mining is also one of the other human induced activity, which
negatively influences the environment in tropical regions. Mining has an
impact on the environment in two ways; the first being the direct
deforestation. While the extent of deforestation caused by mining is
lesser than agriculture, it is a regionally important factor for the
deforestation in the area. The second impact of mining is the direct
impact in the riverine structures due to mining and the associated
pollution from the sedimentation in rivers and the release of toxic
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 materials. In Amazon forest, gold mining leads to deforestation, and the Equatorial
mercury used in processing leads to contamination of fish, water as well Regions
as the air. The mercury in the air is highly injurious to human health, and
this has led to countries like Ecuador adopting the zero mercury plan. It is
important that countries too, ratify the Minamata Convention.

v) Dams and Hydropower Expansion: Construction of dams and

hydropower expansion has become a threat to the equatorial region. In
the Amazon forests, construction of dams has threatened the flow of the
Amazon rivers and their tributaries. It has threatened aquatic and
terrestrial ecosystems. It is already known that dam construction leads to
forest loss, encourages settlements and leads to deforestation. Thus, as
a result of this the indigenous people are displaced; both as a result of
the construction of dams as well as flooding.

vi) Transport Infrastructure: The increase in transport infrastructures like

roads, railway and water transport are transforming the equatorial
regions. For such activities, forests are cleared, and the local inhabitants
are displaced. Moreover, the increase in transport infrastructure also
results in access to remote areas. This also brings a change in the
cultural composition in the areas.

vii) Major Towns in the Tropical Rainforest: Reading about the dense
forests in the tropical area, you may find it hard to believe that the area
also has some important towns among which are also beautiful tourist
spots. Some of the cities are truly places for adventure and bewildering
excitement, while others are important centres of finance, economy and
education.

Some of the major cities in the Amazon areas are Iquitos City and Puerto
Maldonado in Peru, Manaus City, Sanatrem and Belem in Brazil. These
are important tourist centres. The capital of Ecuador; Quito, is one of the
important cities in the country. In Colombia, Bagota and Leticia are
important centres in terms of the economy and port, respectively, in the
country. In the South East Asian region, Singapore is one of the leading
cities in several amenities like high quality education, technology,
innovation, healthcare and tourism. In Indonesia, Jakarta and Bandung
are important centres. The Congo basin has comparatively lesser number
of cities because of the impenetrable forests and the political instability in
the region. However, some of the important ones are Brazzaville in the
Congo, Kinshasha and Lubum bashi in the Democratic Republic of
Congo.

SAQ 6
What are the negative impacts of human beings in the equatorial regions?

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Human-
Environment
4.7 SUMMARY
Relationship
In this unit you have studied:

· Each region has its own physical and associated cultural landscape.
· The equatorial region is located between 0° and 10° latitude on either
side of the equator. It stretches in the Amazon lowlands in South
America, Congo basin in Africa and the East Indies, from Sumatra to New
Guinea.
· Being located near the equator, it is characterized by high sunshine
throughout the year. The soil is poor in nutrients. Still, the region supports
luxuriant and diverse vegetation. The region is also home to diverse
fauna.

· The human-environment relationship is a two-way process. The

environment has an impact on humans, and humans also affect the
environment.

· The people inhabiting these areas adjust to the environment in numerous

ways by constructing houses suiting to the climate, practicing agriculture
in accordance with the environment.

· Deforestation, logging, mining activities, dams and hydropower projects

are some of the ways in which human affect the environment. While
humans alter the environment on the path of development, but in the
process, they negatively affect the environment.

4.8 TERMINAL QUESTIONS

1. Explain the climatic characteristics of the equatorial regions.
2. Describe the characteristics of vegetation of the equatorial regions.
3. “The relationship between humans and their environment is two-way”.
Explain the statement in light of the interaction between humans and their
environment in the equatorial regions.
4. The equatorial regions are inaccessible, despite this there is a growth of
urbanization in the region. Discuss the growth and emergence of the
towns and cities in this area.

4.9 ANSWERS

Self-Assessment Questions
1. The equatorial regions are located between 0° and 10° latitude on either
side of the equator. It stretches in the Amazon lowlands in South
America, Congo basin in Africa and the East Indies, from Sumatra to New
Guinea.
2. The sun’s rays falls perpendicular throughout the year on the equatorial
region. Therefore, it is characterized by high sunshine throughout the
year. The high sunshine leads to high temperature throughout the year.
66
 This is the reason for which, the region does not have the presence of Equatorial
winters. Regions

3. This is because of the high temperature and rainfall. It accelerate the

process of weathering in the equatorial regions. The high rainfall in the
region also washes the top layer of the soil more easily compared to any
other region; thus making it devoid of the nutrients.
4. a) The struggle for sunlight among the vegetation of the region results
in a distinctive layered arrangement.
b) The African elephant, Jaguar, the mountain gorilla, lowland gorillas,
chimpanzees.
4. The human beings of the equatorial region have adapted themselves to
the climatic conditions of the area in numerous ways.
i) In the equatorial regions, people have modified their settlements
according to the environment. In the Amazon, people live in special
type of house called Maloca. These houses have steep, slant roofs
and apartment like in shape. People also reside in houses with
thatched roofs over them. In Malaysia, the villages are called
‘kampongs’. The houses in Malaysia are mainly raised on timber
stilts. The stilts enable the building to be better suited for the natural
terrain. The wood and bamboo that are used are construction
material has insulating properties, and they conduct or retain little
heat into the building.

ii) The people practice numerous types of agriculture, which suits the
environment.

5. The humans affect the environment of equatorial regions negatively in

numerous ways; deforestation and its associated chain of events being
the primary one. Deforestation is mainly due to the expansion of
agriculture. Other important factors driving deforestation are cattle
ranching, expansion of infrastructures like dams and roads. Deforestation
as a problem cannot be viewed as a single impact in the region. It
triggers a chain of other negative impacts in the region, which include soil
erosion, altered hydrology, loss of biodiversity. In Amazon forest, gold
mining leads to deforestation, and the mercury used in processing leads
to contamination of fish, water as well as the air.

Terminal Questions
1. Refer to Section 4.3

2. The characteristic features of the vegetation of the equatorial regions are:

diverse vegetation and arrangement in layers.

i) Diverse vegetation: The equatorial region supports diverse vegetation.

The region is said to be a genetic reservoir of numerous species. The
region contains as many as 3000 species of trees within a few square
kilometres. The diversity of vegetation ranges from evergreen trees to
climbing plants like lianas as well as epiphytic and parasitic plants.

67
Human- ii) Arrangement in layers: Vegetation of the region is arranged in layers.
Environment The top most layer consists of the scattered ‘emergent’ crowns that have
Relationship
been able to protrude from the closed canopy below. Such trees often
reach up to the height of 40 m. Below this layer is the continuous layer.
This layer consists of trees which are around 15 to 30 m in height. The
lowermost layer consists of the vegetation which can tolerate shade. This
layer, which is close to the ground consists of ferns and herbaceous
plants. For details please refer to Section 4.5

3. Refer to Section 4.6

4. Refer to Section 4.6.2 (vii)

4.10 REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

1. Charity, S., Dudley, N., Oliveira, D. and S. Stolton (Ed.). (2016). Living
Amazon Report 2016: A regional approach to conservation in the
Amazon. Brasília and Quito: WWF Living Amazon Initiative.
2. Leong, G.C.(1983). Certificate Physical and Human Geography. New
Delhi: Oxford University Press.
3. Singh, S. (1991). Environmental Geography. Allahabad: Prayag Pustak
Bhawan.
4. Strahler, A. N. and Strahler, A. M. (2006). Modern Physical Geography.
New Delhi: Cambridge Publications.

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