Putting on my biologist hat, I'd say that in the simplist terms, yes you are right. Topography, vegetation and a number of other factors can affect the microclimate of an area and this will be reflected in what you're talking about. An example... take a large contiguous forest. Now clearcut a few thousand acres of trees. Since the roots are no longer holding water in the soil, since they're no longer providing shade, and since they're no longer breathing water vapour back into the air (to name a few things), this will definitely affect the micro climate.
You also have to look at concentric levels, though, because climate patterns occur over areas larger than you can take in any one shot (except from the Hubble).
Mike