Prevailing Winds - Effect On Nature

Effect On Nature

Insects are swept along by the prevailing winds, while birds follow their own course. As such, fine line patterns within weather radar imagery, associated with converging winds, are dominated by insect returns. In the Great Plains, soil erosion of agricultural land is a significant problem, and is mainly driven by the prevailing wind. Because of this, wind barrier strips have been developed to minimize this type of erosion. The strips can be in the form of soil ridges, crop strips, crops rows, or trees which act as wind breaks. They are oriented at a right angle to the wind in order to be most effective. In regions with minimal vegetation, such as coastal and desert areas, transverse sand dunes orient themselves perpendicular to the prevailing wind direction, while longitudinal dunes orient themselves parallel to the prevailing winds.