Biomes

Biomes
As already mentioned, the climate of an area helps to determine the kinds of plants & animals than can live in a region A biome is a major type of terrestrial ecosystem, each with its own temperature ranges, rainfall amount, & types of organisms

5 Major Biomes (some will be sub-divided)

1) 2) 3) 4) 5) Deserts Forests Grasslands Tundra Aquatic

1) Deserts
Deserts cover about one fifth of the Earths surface and occur where rainfall is less than 50 cm/year Most deserts are hot, but some are cold & have snow & freezing temperatures There are usually extreme differences between daytime & nighttime temperatures

Examples
Mojave

Sahara

 Saguaro cactus Occotilla Cresote bush

Flora

Fauna
Desert spiny lizard Cactus mouse Roadrunner Sidewinder

Climograph

2) Forests
Today, forests occupy approximately one-third of Earths land area, account for over two-thirds of the leaf area of land plants, and contain about 70% of carbon present in living things Present-day forest biomes, biological communities that are dominated by trees and other woody vegetation, can be classified according to numerous characteristics, with seasonality being the most widely used

Types of Forests
a) Tropical rainforests Temperature averages 20-25 C and varies little throughout the year: the average temperatures of the three warmest and three coldest months do not differ by more than 5 degrees Precipitation is evenly distributed throughout the year, with annual rainfall exceeding 2000 mm

 Banana Coconut Cassava (tapioca)

Flora

Fauna
Poison arrow frog Blue & gold macaw Golden lion tamarin

Climograph

Types of Forests
b) Temperate Forests (deciduous or evergreen, conifers) Temperature varies from -30 C to 30 C. Precipitation (75-150 cm) is distributed evenly throughout the year.

Flora
Cedar Pine Redwood Maple

Fauna
Black bear Fox Owl Deer

Climograph

Types of Forests
c) Boreal forests (Taiga) Temperatures are very low Precipitation is primarily in the form of snow, 40-100 cm annually

Flora
Spruce Douglas fir

Fauna
Wolf Moose Hawk

Climograph