WI: Wetter, Warmer Earth
- Thread starter Phaeton
- Start date
Part Twenty eight: Asia's Geography
Thanks Tom and Straha for the Support. Here is my first crack at this timeline and I need you guys to give me honest answers.
******
Concerning The Geography, Flora and Fauna of Asia
Asia overall is warmer and wetter, with a vast hardwood forest stretching
along Asia’s Mediterranean Coast all the way to India, interrupted by some
savanna in Iran and The exception is the Empty Quarter of
the Arabian Peninsula, which remains a harsh and inhospitable desert.
Increased rainfall results in a much larger Caspian Sea, one that is linked
to the Mediterranean by way of the Black Sea. In OTL the Caspian and the
Black Sea were connected up till about 12 million years ago, and briefly
again about 2 million years ago. In OTL, 2 million years the connection
reformed thanks to huge influxes of glacial meltwater; in this timeline, the
link is maintained thanks to much higher rainfall amounts in the region. For
similar reasons the Aral Sea is slightly larger as well, though the interior
of Asia remains comparatively arid. Lake Baikal is unchanged. The north coasts of Asia are completely taiga, without any tundra at all.
In the WWE timeline the hotter climate causes the yellow river to be an lot larger
because of more rainfall in the region causes it to connect with the also to larger in this time line. By the Pliocene epoch the surrounding are is submerged underwater, Although this drastically changes Asian Eastern Coast line and downsizes the continent. Around the eastern coast are lush thick Savanna’s that separate The dense rainforest of the south and The thick Taiga forest in the north. Since Australian and Antarctic continents never splits up so it causes the continents to move northward causing an much more Arid climate northern Asia (Russia and North Eastern Kazakhstan) is off thick Taiga forest which many creatures learn to adapt to the colder climates. The Asian taiga is described as being flora as these types Needleleaf, coniferous (gymnosperm) trees are the dominant plants of the taiga biome. A very few species in four main genera are found: the evergreen spruce (Picea), fir (Abies), and pine (Pinus), and the deciduous larch or tamarack (Larix). In North America, one or two species of fir and one or two species of spruce are dominant. Across norhtern Asia the Scots pine is a common component of the taiga.
1. Broadleaf deciduous trees and shrubs are members of early successional stages of both primary and secondary succession. Most common are alder (Alnus), birch (Betula), and aspen (Populus).
Growth forms, The conical or spire-shaped needleleaf trees common to the taiga are adapted to the cold and the physiological drought of winter and to the short-growing season:
Conical shape - promotes shedding of snow and prevents loss of branches.
Needleleaf - narrowness reduces surface area through which water may be lost (transpired), especially during winter when the frozen ground prevents plants from replenishing their water supply. The needles of boreal conifers also have thick waxy coatings--a waterproof cuticle--in which stomata are sunken and protected from drying winds.
Evergreen habit - retention of foliage allows plants to photosynthesize as soon as temperatures permit in spring, rather than having to waste time in the short growing season merely growing leaves. [Note: Deciduous larch are dominant in areas underlain by nearly continuous permafrost and having a climate even too dry and cold for the waxy needles of spruce and fir.]
Dark color - the dark green of spruce and fir needles helps the foliage absorb maximum heat from the sun and begin photosynthesis as early as possible.
soil, Podzolization occurs as a result of the acid soil solution produced under needleleaf trees. The main soil order associated with the taiga is spodosol
Below the dense Taiga forest of the north and to their right the massive savanna of the coast and above the dense rainforest of the south. Is the endless wetlands of Central Asia. In this Warmer, wetter earth they help regulate the constant floods of the region. The wetlands also contribute to the stability of the global levels of available nitrogen, atmospheric sulfur, carbon dioxide, and methane. This area is home the an impossible number of organism that thrive in the region.
In OTL, The islands of The Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan separate from the main continent of Asia. In the WWE timeline The islands never separate, and since Asia’s move toward the northern pole caused the southern islands to remain tightly locked in place. The Area of Western Pakistan. India, southeast Asia, and southern
China are dense tropical rain forest., which is forms an evergreen belt of lush vegetation that covers the south of the continent. The Asian Rainforest grow in four major layers: (1) the canopy, or top layer; (2) the sub-canopy, a layer of trees just below the canopy; (3) the understory, a shady lower area; and (4) the floor. The tallest trees, known as emergents, grow more than 165 feet (50 meters) tall. The crowns (tops) of these trees dominate the canopy. Emergents receive the greatest amount of sunlight, but they must endure high temperatures and strong winds. The crowns of other trees in the canopy usually form a nearly continuous covering of leaves 65 to 165 feet (20 to 50 meters) above the ground. Some tall trees have large growths called buttresses that extend from the base of the trunk and help support the tree.
2. More than 70 percent of rain forest animal and plant species reside in the canopy and sub-canopy. Many tree branches have a dense covering of epiphytes, plants that grow on other plants and obtain nourishment from the air and rain. Vines called lianas often climb on or around the trunks and branches of trees.
The shady understory shelters small palms, young trees, and herbaceous (nonwoody) plants that can grow in dim light. Many popular house plants, such as philodendrons, dieffenbachia, and ferns, are developed from species that live in this area. Some scientists believe only 1 percent of the sunlight available to emergent trees reaches the understory.
A thin layer of fallen leaves, seeds, fruits, and branches covers the forest floor. This layer quickly decomposes and is constantly replaced.
The layers of the rain forest continually change. Large old trees die and fall to the ground, leaving a gap in the canopy. Direct sunlight penetrates through to the understory and stimulates the growth of seedlings, saplings, and small trees below. The small trees slowly stretch upward into the canopy. As they branch and expand their crowns, they fill the gaps in the canopy. A mature rain forest consists of a mixture of closed canopies, gaps, and patches of growing trees where the canopy is being rebuilt. The regeneration of the rain forest trees depends on gaps developing regularly in the canopy.
The next installment shall focus on the strangest wildlife in Asia’s vast and plentyful landmass.
Austin Ross
Thanks Tom and Straha for the Support. Here is my first crack at this timeline and I need you guys to give me honest answers.
******
Concerning The Geography, Flora and Fauna of Asia
Asia overall is warmer and wetter, with a vast hardwood forest stretching
along Asia’s Mediterranean Coast all the way to India, interrupted by some
savanna in Iran and The exception is the Empty Quarter of
the Arabian Peninsula, which remains a harsh and inhospitable desert.
Increased rainfall results in a much larger Caspian Sea, one that is linked
to the Mediterranean by way of the Black Sea. In OTL the Caspian and the
Black Sea were connected up till about 12 million years ago, and briefly
again about 2 million years ago. In OTL, 2 million years the connection
reformed thanks to huge influxes of glacial meltwater; in this timeline, the
link is maintained thanks to much higher rainfall amounts in the region. For
similar reasons the Aral Sea is slightly larger as well, though the interior
of Asia remains comparatively arid. Lake Baikal is unchanged. The north coasts of Asia are completely taiga, without any tundra at all.
In the WWE timeline the hotter climate causes the yellow river to be an lot larger
because of more rainfall in the region causes it to connect with the also to larger in this time line. By the Pliocene epoch the surrounding are is submerged underwater, Although this drastically changes Asian Eastern Coast line and downsizes the continent. Around the eastern coast are lush thick Savanna’s that separate The dense rainforest of the south and The thick Taiga forest in the north. Since Australian and Antarctic continents never splits up so it causes the continents to move northward causing an much more Arid climate northern Asia (Russia and North Eastern Kazakhstan) is off thick Taiga forest which many creatures learn to adapt to the colder climates. The Asian taiga is described as being flora as these types Needleleaf, coniferous (gymnosperm) trees are the dominant plants of the taiga biome. A very few species in four main genera are found: the evergreen spruce (Picea), fir (Abies), and pine (Pinus), and the deciduous larch or tamarack (Larix). In North America, one or two species of fir and one or two species of spruce are dominant. Across norhtern Asia the Scots pine is a common component of the taiga.
1. Broadleaf deciduous trees and shrubs are members of early successional stages of both primary and secondary succession. Most common are alder (Alnus), birch (Betula), and aspen (Populus).
Growth forms, The conical or spire-shaped needleleaf trees common to the taiga are adapted to the cold and the physiological drought of winter and to the short-growing season:
Conical shape - promotes shedding of snow and prevents loss of branches.
Needleleaf - narrowness reduces surface area through which water may be lost (transpired), especially during winter when the frozen ground prevents plants from replenishing their water supply. The needles of boreal conifers also have thick waxy coatings--a waterproof cuticle--in which stomata are sunken and protected from drying winds.
Evergreen habit - retention of foliage allows plants to photosynthesize as soon as temperatures permit in spring, rather than having to waste time in the short growing season merely growing leaves. [Note: Deciduous larch are dominant in areas underlain by nearly continuous permafrost and having a climate even too dry and cold for the waxy needles of spruce and fir.]
Dark color - the dark green of spruce and fir needles helps the foliage absorb maximum heat from the sun and begin photosynthesis as early as possible.
soil, Podzolization occurs as a result of the acid soil solution produced under needleleaf trees. The main soil order associated with the taiga is spodosol
Below the dense Taiga forest of the north and to their right the massive savanna of the coast and above the dense rainforest of the south. Is the endless wetlands of Central Asia. In this Warmer, wetter earth they help regulate the constant floods of the region. The wetlands also contribute to the stability of the global levels of available nitrogen, atmospheric sulfur, carbon dioxide, and methane. This area is home the an impossible number of organism that thrive in the region.
In OTL, The islands of The Philippines, Indonesia, and Japan separate from the main continent of Asia. In the WWE timeline The islands never separate, and since Asia’s move toward the northern pole caused the southern islands to remain tightly locked in place. The Area of Western Pakistan. India, southeast Asia, and southern
China are dense tropical rain forest., which is forms an evergreen belt of lush vegetation that covers the south of the continent. The Asian Rainforest grow in four major layers: (1) the canopy, or top layer; (2) the sub-canopy, a layer of trees just below the canopy; (3) the understory, a shady lower area; and (4) the floor. The tallest trees, known as emergents, grow more than 165 feet (50 meters) tall. The crowns (tops) of these trees dominate the canopy. Emergents receive the greatest amount of sunlight, but they must endure high temperatures and strong winds. The crowns of other trees in the canopy usually form a nearly continuous covering of leaves 65 to 165 feet (20 to 50 meters) above the ground. Some tall trees have large growths called buttresses that extend from the base of the trunk and help support the tree.
2. More than 70 percent of rain forest animal and plant species reside in the canopy and sub-canopy. Many tree branches have a dense covering of epiphytes, plants that grow on other plants and obtain nourishment from the air and rain. Vines called lianas often climb on or around the trunks and branches of trees.
The shady understory shelters small palms, young trees, and herbaceous (nonwoody) plants that can grow in dim light. Many popular house plants, such as philodendrons, dieffenbachia, and ferns, are developed from species that live in this area. Some scientists believe only 1 percent of the sunlight available to emergent trees reaches the understory.
A thin layer of fallen leaves, seeds, fruits, and branches covers the forest floor. This layer quickly decomposes and is constantly replaced.
The layers of the rain forest continually change. Large old trees die and fall to the ground, leaving a gap in the canopy. Direct sunlight penetrates through to the understory and stimulates the growth of seedlings, saplings, and small trees below. The small trees slowly stretch upward into the canopy. As they branch and expand their crowns, they fill the gaps in the canopy. A mature rain forest consists of a mixture of closed canopies, gaps, and patches of growing trees where the canopy is being rebuilt. The regeneration of the rain forest trees depends on gaps developing regularly in the canopy.
The next installment shall focus on the strangest wildlife in Asia’s vast and plentyful landmass.
Austin Ross
A much wetter Middle East and Central Asia need no Himalayas and no Tibet plateau, which need India to stay as an island in the Indian Ocean.
Phaeton wrote about the Grendel. This sounds somewhat like the OTL (now extinct) chalicotheres and the marsupial _Palorchestes azael_ (and among dinosaurs Therizinosaurus).
A very interesting series of posts. I'm still working my way through them.
Keeping things to a single POD, grasses could still expand even if the Neogene cooling doesn't occur. The Tibetan plateau, the Rockies, the Andies, and the African rift would then still occur. Also, as Africa moved north, it would reduce the Tethys, thereby reducing the moisture available for central Asia. Assuming Antarctica stays where it is OTL and Australia remains attached as in the Mesozoic, Australia should be wetter.
I need to re-read and think more about the evolutionary changes. Of course, there it also matters how much you trust functional morphology vs. Gouldian chance.
Keeping things to a single POD, grasses could still expand even if the Neogene cooling doesn't occur. The Tibetan plateau, the Rockies, the Andies, and the African rift would then still occur. Also, as Africa moved north, it would reduce the Tethys, thereby reducing the moisture available for central Asia. Assuming Antarctica stays where it is OTL and Australia remains attached as in the Mesozoic, Australia should be wetter.
I need to re-read and think more about the evolutionary changes. Of course, there it also matters how much you trust functional morphology vs. Gouldian chance.
Damn, that's impressive. Very well thought out.
I notice you haven't mentioned much about the appearance of humans, or parahumans, as the case may be. Some trends from OTL may suggest some ideas. Skin pigmentation seems more dependent on the amount of UV radiation reaching the ground than on anything else, so it's likely that, odd as it may sound, a warmer, wetter Earth may have few differences in who is what color. Though the Earth is warmer and wetter, the sun is no brighter, nor are days longer at high latitudes.
Body forms and facial features, however, are another story. Warm climates tend to encourage thin bodies, and forested envirnoments seem to encourage smaller stature. Likewise, noses tend to be flatter and smaller in tropical regions, especially rainforest zones, and, of course, body hair tends to be sparser, often tightly curled, or peppercorn in type. The high, fat-padded cheekbones of OTL Asians seem to be an adaptation to cold, so we should probably not expect them to appear in the ATL. Likewise, the epicanthic fold is probably an adaptation to desert conditions, and so would be rarer in the ATL.
Needless to say, I am discussing physical appearance only, and not calling it "race" for the very good reason that it is strictly a matter of, well, appearance, and has no relevance whatever to culture, intelligence, personality, or anything else.
Breaking things down by region:
Europe: small stature and thin bodies, small faces with flat noses, skin of OTL European color, tightly curled hair in full range of OTL colors, and full range of OTL eye colors, with similar distributions to OTL in terms of region. Some seafaring populations have wavy instead of curly hair.
Africa: West Africans almost identical to OTL, East Africans (Horn south to about Kenya) somewhat shorter owing to less extensive savannahs but otherwise as OTL. South of a line from approximately Kenya to Gabon, Mbuti and Khoisan-type physical features, speaking
!Ku languages, as mentioned in earlier posts.
Middle East: medium stature but still very thin, small faces with flat noses, dark peppercorn hair, eyes brown to black, probably regarded as same "race" as East Africans by early "anthropologists".
India: much like Middle Easterners but darker, usual small stature, small faces, flat noses, and peppercorn hair.
SE Asia: much like India, except for extensive populations with facial features like OTL Malays, but with peppercorn hair.
E. Asia: coloring much like OTL Asians, but much smaller features, no high cheekbones or eye folds, hair curly instead of peppercorn but still far from OTL Asian hair, body-types thinner than OTL Asians with different femur to tibia ratios.
Polynesians: oddly, extremely similar to OTL, larger, stouter bodies are very good adaptation to conditions of low-tech sea-travel, which is my guess as to why Polynesians look the way they do in OTL. Likewise, wavy instead of curly hair provides better insultation in wet and often chilly conditions of seafaring. Polynesian populations of Australia-Antarctica, however, are paler in complexion, as a result of lower average UV levels.
Siberians: although Siberians are typically Asian in OTL, Siberia in the ATL should be able to support larger indigenous populations leading to genetic drift, and less influence from neighboring groups. As a result, they tend to be paler than East Asians, with lighter hair and eyes, growing more so the further north and west one goes. Hair is typically curly to wavy, which distinguishes them from ATL Europeans, who have more tightly curled hair.
Since it's your TL, and not mine, feel free to use, ignore, or change to suit your convenience and convictions.
I notice you haven't mentioned much about the appearance of humans, or parahumans, as the case may be. Some trends from OTL may suggest some ideas. Skin pigmentation seems more dependent on the amount of UV radiation reaching the ground than on anything else, so it's likely that, odd as it may sound, a warmer, wetter Earth may have few differences in who is what color. Though the Earth is warmer and wetter, the sun is no brighter, nor are days longer at high latitudes.
Body forms and facial features, however, are another story. Warm climates tend to encourage thin bodies, and forested envirnoments seem to encourage smaller stature. Likewise, noses tend to be flatter and smaller in tropical regions, especially rainforest zones, and, of course, body hair tends to be sparser, often tightly curled, or peppercorn in type. The high, fat-padded cheekbones of OTL Asians seem to be an adaptation to cold, so we should probably not expect them to appear in the ATL. Likewise, the epicanthic fold is probably an adaptation to desert conditions, and so would be rarer in the ATL.
Needless to say, I am discussing physical appearance only, and not calling it "race" for the very good reason that it is strictly a matter of, well, appearance, and has no relevance whatever to culture, intelligence, personality, or anything else.
Breaking things down by region:
Europe: small stature and thin bodies, small faces with flat noses, skin of OTL European color, tightly curled hair in full range of OTL colors, and full range of OTL eye colors, with similar distributions to OTL in terms of region. Some seafaring populations have wavy instead of curly hair.
Africa: West Africans almost identical to OTL, East Africans (Horn south to about Kenya) somewhat shorter owing to less extensive savannahs but otherwise as OTL. South of a line from approximately Kenya to Gabon, Mbuti and Khoisan-type physical features, speaking
!Ku languages, as mentioned in earlier posts.
Middle East: medium stature but still very thin, small faces with flat noses, dark peppercorn hair, eyes brown to black, probably regarded as same "race" as East Africans by early "anthropologists".
India: much like Middle Easterners but darker, usual small stature, small faces, flat noses, and peppercorn hair.
SE Asia: much like India, except for extensive populations with facial features like OTL Malays, but with peppercorn hair.
E. Asia: coloring much like OTL Asians, but much smaller features, no high cheekbones or eye folds, hair curly instead of peppercorn but still far from OTL Asian hair, body-types thinner than OTL Asians with different femur to tibia ratios.
Polynesians: oddly, extremely similar to OTL, larger, stouter bodies are very good adaptation to conditions of low-tech sea-travel, which is my guess as to why Polynesians look the way they do in OTL. Likewise, wavy instead of curly hair provides better insultation in wet and often chilly conditions of seafaring. Polynesian populations of Australia-Antarctica, however, are paler in complexion, as a result of lower average UV levels.
Siberians: although Siberians are typically Asian in OTL, Siberia in the ATL should be able to support larger indigenous populations leading to genetic drift, and less influence from neighboring groups. As a result, they tend to be paler than East Asians, with lighter hair and eyes, growing more so the further north and west one goes. Hair is typically curly to wavy, which distinguishes them from ATL Europeans, who have more tightly curled hair.
Since it's your TL, and not mine, feel free to use, ignore, or change to suit your convenience and convictions.
Hello, fans of The Wetter, Warmer Earth TL. The strain of keeping up with an TL of this size began taking its toll on me, For the Past three weeks however I have started another Timeline located in The Longer-Lived Davidic Kingdom thread. But now my intrests have turned me back to this TL, Which should be up in the next couple of Days. Once again thanks for your Patience and replies.
P.S.
Annyone willing to work with me on this TL, would be an great help.
P.S.
Annyone willing to work with me on this TL, would be an great help.
Here is a link to an website with an map of the continets of The Eocene period if you need it. http://www.bbc.co.uk/beasts/changing/index_eocene.shtml