Introduction

In order to understand about life, we must think hard about how life interacts with the physical
aspects of the earth. The most important abiotic aspect is the weather, or in regional terms, the
climate. The nature of soil is dependent on the climate. And the nature of the plants is
dependent on the soil and climate. This leads inevitably to the nature of the animals that are
bound directly or indirectly to the plant life. Thus, climate, soil, plants and animals are
inextricably bound to each other, interacting in many ways at various degrees of dependency.
A biome is the broadest justifiable subdivision of the plant and animal world, an assemblage and
association of plants and animals that forms a regional ecological unit of sub-continental
dimensions. A biome is actually an interacting set of ecosystems that extends over a large are of
the earth, and its establishment and maintenance depends not only on climate and soils, but also
plants and animals from the tiniest bacteria to the largest of mammals.

Objectives
1

General

Learn and expand knowledge about the different biomes in the world, with their
characteristics.

Specific

Protect the

environment

of

the planet

where

we

live raising

importance of biomes.
Recognize the different biomes in all the areas of the world.

awareness of

the

Biomes
Biomes are climatically and geographically defined as similar climatic conditions on the Earth,
such

as communities of plants, animals,

and soil

as ecosystems.

organisms,

and

are

often

referred

to

Some parts of the earth have more or less the same kind of abiotic and biotic factors spread
over a large area, creating a typical ecosystem over that area. Such major ecosystems are
termed as biomes.
Biomes are defined by factors such as plant structures leaf types), plant spacing
(forest, woodland, savanna), and climate. Unlike ecozones, biomes are not defined by genetic,
taxonomic, or historical similarities. Biomes are often identified with particular patterns
of ecological succession and climax vegetation. An ecosystem has many biotopes and a biome is a
major habitat type.
A diagram of the biomes in the world:

Characteristics Of The Terrestrial

Biomes
Tundra:

Long harsh winters, very short summers.

Tundra is very slow to regenerate.
No reptiles or amphibians.
Soils are nutrient poor, little organic litter.
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Summer visitors: musk-oxen, caribou.

Little precipitation (10-25cm per year) most of it in summer.
Tundra soils are geologically young, formed in the last ice age.
Species are few but often in great numbers.
Permafrost. Surface melts in the summer. Permafrost prevents large plants from growing.
Landscape is thus flat, swampy, shallow lakes, bogs.
Dominated by mosses. lichens, grasses, sedges, annuals.
Year round are: Weasels, Arctic foxes, snowshoe hares, snowy owls, hawks.
Insects: mosquitoes, flies are in great numbers after surviving the winter as eggs or pupae.

Taiga:

Dominated by conifers.
No equivalent in the Southern Hemisphere.
Winters cold and severe.
Growing season a little longer than in tundra.
Precipitation is small (~50 cm per year).
Birds in summer.
Insects abundant.
Acidic soil, mineral-poor, deep layer of pine and spruce needles at surface.
Permafrost is very deep or absent.
Numerous ponds and lakes created by last ice age ice sheets
Drought is in the winter when plant roots cannot absorb water, which is frozen
Large animals: caribou, wolves, bears, moose.
Small animals: rodents, rabbits, furry animals such as lynx, sable mink

Temperate forest:
This is a biome in areas of relatively high precipitation and has 7 divisions:
Temperate Rain Forest
200-380 cm precipitation
Animals: squirrels, deer, many birds.
Presumably amphibians and reptiles
Temp rainforest usual close to the coast
Rainfalls as moist airs is lifted up by mountains
Rich in epiphytes - mosses, club mosses, lichens, ferns
Maritime influence means narrow temp fluctuation - mild winters, cool summers.
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Dominated by evergreens such as western Hemlock, Douglas fir, Sitka spruce

Complex ecosystem easily disturbed and easily permanently damaged.

Temperate Deciduous Forest

75-125 cm precipitation per year
Hot summers, cold winters.
Rich soil overlying clay.
Much soil depletion and erosion.
Many small mammals and birds.
Many areas deforested and used for agriculture
Abundant amphibians and reptiles.
Many areas deforested and used for agriculture.
In ne and mid-east US dominated by broad-leaved hardwood such as oak, hickory, beech.
In southern areas of this biome broad-leaved evergreens occur.
Large animals: puma, wolves, deer, bison, bears.
Much original forest has been logged, and regenerated forest is semi-natural.

Temperate grasslands
Moderate precipitation 25-75 cm
Soil very high organic content
Good for grazing, thus bison.
Wolves, coyotes in drier areas. Kangaroos in Oz
Many kinds of grasses, up to 3 m high before man in N America
Prairie dogs, foxes, ferrets, birds of prey, grouse reptiles lots of insects
This land very suited to agriculture, so little natural remains excepts some parts of east
Eurasia
Chaparral
Up to 150 cm precipitation, mostly in winter
Mild winter, hot dry summer.
Soil thin and infertile
Frequent fires - vegetation is adapted to fire
Problems if fires are not allowed to burn
Many reptiles such as lizards
Lush growth in rain season, dormant in hot season
Small animals such as deer, chipmunks, kangaroos in Oz.
Many plants can grow again even if burnt to the ground - underground large root stock lignotuber
Dominated by dense growth of evergreen shrubs - drought resistant pine, oak
In Australia - various eucalypt species - called sclerophyll forest after leathery drought
resistant leaves
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Desert
Less than 25 cm precipitation
Many desert adapted insects
Reptiles: snakes lizards, tortoises
Mammals: rodents, kangaroos
Birds of prey
Found in both temperate and tropical regions
Desert animals are small, often night foragers
Plant cover is sparse and soil mostly exposed
Both perennials and annual plants (after rain)
Low water content of air leads to temperature extremes daily
Some deserts have so little rain that they are virtually devoid of plant life
Soil thus has low organic material and high mineral content
Plants adapted to extremes to conserve water and survive
And can secrete substances to prevent other plants growing nearby

Savannah
85-105 cm precipitation.
Large predators such as lions hyenas.
Migratory herds.
Fire adapted vegetation.
Great herds of wildebeest, antelope, giraffe, zebra.
Tropical grassland with widely scattered clumps of low trees.
Yearly temp range is small, so seasons regulated by precipitation soil low in essential
minerals, often rich in aluminium wide stretches of grasses interrupted by trees.
African savannah is amazing, the largest assemblage of hoofed animals in the world
Many parts of savanna used for grazing, overuse has caused desertification.

Tropical Rain Forests

Temperatures always high, daily rainfall
200-450 cm precipitation
Three distinct storeys of vegetation
No single species dominates
Very high in species diversity and variation
Very high humidity beneath the overhead canopy
Much of the rain is from locally re-cycled water from tree transpiration
Often in areas where the local soil is highly leached by high rainfall - poor in nutrients and
organic material
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High temp means rapid decomposition, the nutrients are quickly absorbed by the plant
growth
Thus most of the mineral nutrients are locked in the vegetation, not the soil
So when a tropical forest is chopped down or burnt, it cannot recover.
Very productive (captures a lot of light energy from photosynthesis)
Vegetation sparse on the understory floor except near rivers or re-growth areas

Aquatic Life Zones:

Occupy most of the earth's surface

Aquatic important factors are very different
Salinity = conc'n of dissolved salts such as NaCl
Water also interferes with the penetration of light
Photosynthetic organisms must remain near the surface
Vegetation attached to the bottom can grow only in shallow water
The most fundamental division is freshwater vs saltwater habitats
Temperature is less important and water is not an important limiting factor
Salinity affects the kinds of organisms present in aquatic ecosystems
Dissolved oxygen also affects the kinds of organisms present in aquatic ecosystems
Terrestrial biomes important factors are temp, precipitation; light is relatively abundant
Low levels of essential nutrients also limits the number and distribution of organisms

Conclutions
The different biomes are very important for the life in earth, because the species
normally just can live in some places for the climate or the conditions that the area has.
The biomes are necessary for the life of the living beings.

Annexes
Diagrams

Bibliography
Anonymous
The biomes Of The World [Online] Available in:
http://ridge.icu.ac.jp/gen-ed/biomes.html
[See it On February 2012].
Julie
Biomes Chart [Online] Available in:
http://es.scribd.com/doc/2190664/Biome-Plants-and-Animals-Chart
[See it On February 2012].

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