Biome

Global Distribution

Mean temperature and precipitation

Geology and soil characteristics

Tropical Rain Forest

South America, South East Asia, Central Africa, Near the equator

Rainfall- 50260 inches/year Below 94 degrees F

Nutrient poor soil, shallow. Forest

Deciduous Forest

In north America, Europe, Japan, Australia

50 degrees F, 30-60 inches/year

Nutrient rich, forest like

Taiga/Boreal Forest

Northern hemisphere

Cold climate, 50 cm/year

- moist ground - coniferous trees

Characteristic plants and animals (focus on evolutionary adaptations) - prop root help hold us trees in shallow soil - toucans have an apatite for nuts and break through them with beak Black bear hibernates to conserve energy and allows animals to eat food Lose their leaves, water doesnt transpire - coniferous trees = shaped like cones, adapted to cold winters - animals are adapted by camouflage and able to navigate

Human uses- How do we use its resources - medicines - meat - hide

Human Impacts Special characteristics e.g. Fire, frozen

Logging, colonization, mining.

- trees are so densely packed so rain can take up to 10 mins to reach ground

- firewood, living areas, agriculture

- we are destroying the forests and we use the land for the agriculture

- one of the most colonized biomes.

- humans use it for oil, gas, lumber

- greenhouse gases- global warming melt - high demand for fossil fuels found in here

- subartctic areas - worlds largest land biome - swampy moist forest

Savannah

Africa, North Australia

20-30 C, 10 to 30 inches/year

- nutrient okay (grass build up) - grass (lion king)

in snow - grasses adapt to weather discrepancies - mongoose- fur blends in with surrounding, digging - deer, chipmunks, birds, escape heat by burrowing, safe during fires - the trees leaves resist water loss - travel in big herds and are quick - plants are resistant to fire (thick bark) - plants absorb and store water - small animals, big ears release heat - only small shrubs- protect against winds

Chaparral

Southern California, Chile, Africa

64 degrees F 10-40 inches/year

- nutrient averagelots of minerals - mountainous

manipulated grassy areas for cattle and farmland - cutting down forests - prevent against mudslides

- over cutting of trees

- fires started, spread, dry

- build homes in this biome, disrupts biome fluidness

- fires are frequent - protect against erosions

- Midwestern Temperate Grassland/Prairie (breadbasket)

- 25-75 cm - Seasonal variations

- nutrient rich soil (now used for corn fields)

- corn fields, agriculture

- hunting animals - fire prone - over farming, mort of them are desert/agriculture fields - building and taking water form biome/driving over soils - oil spills kill them - global warming - found on every continent

Desert

Tundra

- Australia, Africa, mid USA, south America, India subcontinent - Antarctica, Arctic Circles

- warm/cold - less than 25cm of rain/year

- nutrient poor soil - terrain varies - sandy/icy

- oils and mineral source, scorpions

- 16-45 F degrees - 6-10

- permafrost on the soil makes for a short

- humans use for oil

- super deadly - so cold

inches/rain

growing season - lack of light = no sun for growing

- animals small ears retain heat, low surface area to volume - all adaptations keep them warm - coral animals capture food at night - sea grasses/algaeliving in coral, coral gets cleaned/food, algae gets a home - otters are keystone species and they control sea urchins - kelp grips on the rocks with holdfast - seaweed has air sacs to float to top to use photosynthesis - animal: turtles are able to withstain with - food, medicine and recreational activities

(fossil fuels) melting ice

Coral Reefs

- warm - RAIN N/A shallow water, - greater than Australia 21 C

- N/A - varies depending on salt in water

- overfishing, disease, ocean dumping, oil spills, pollution, narrow tolerance global warming

- similar relationships like rain forest

Kelp Forests

- California, coastal areas

- NA 50-65F

- salinity 30-55 ppt

- harvest kelp

- over harvest kelp, dont follow regulation - global warming with the gases and they need COLD water - pollution, overfishing, global warming - volcanoes can create new landmasses

Open Ocean

- everywhere in the oceans

- varies depending on ocean

- salinity average is 3.5%

- fishing, transport mining

collapsible lungs Rocky Intertidal - rocky coasts between high/low tide - vary with location - salinity is higher than ocean, salt is left on

Estuary Freshwater (lakes, ponds) Estuary