Biomes of the World

What is a Biome?Biome- is a group of

land ecosystems with similar climates and organisms. – What is an ecosystem?

• An ecosystem is a community of organisms that live in a particular area, along with their nonliving surroundings

Climate

• Climate vs. Weather… what’s the diff?– Climate: The typical weather pattern in an

area over a long period of time– Weather: the condition of Earth’s

atmosphere at a particular time and place

• Factors contributing to climate– Average rain fall– Average temperature– Average amount of sunlight during seasons

   Tundra     Deciduous Forest    Savanna

    Taiga      Chaparral     Rainforest

    Grasslands    Desert    Alpine

     Desert-scrub

Biomes & Climate

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Temperate Rainforests

The word “temperate” means mild temperatures. Rainforests receive lots of rain. Average annual temperatures are between 39° F and 54° F (4-12° C). Annual rainfall is about 5 to 16 feet.

Majority of the world’s temperate rainforests can be found along the Pacific Coast of North American stretching from Oregon to Alaska, some can also be found on the Southeast coast of Chile, and a few others can be found on the coasts of the United Kingdom, Norway, Japan, New Zealand, and southern Australia

Tropical Rainforest

Tropical RainforestsThis biome is

usually located near the equator. The temperature is warm and precipitation is high. Between 4 and 22 ft of rain fall each year. Average temperature is between 68°F and 93°F ALL YEAR!

57% of all tropical rainforests are found in Latin America. One third of the world's tropical rainforests are in Brazil. Other tropical rainforests are located in Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands (25% of the world's tropical rainforests) and West Africa (18%).

Desert

DesertThe desert is an

area that receives less than 25 cm of rainfall a year. The climate is usually hot and dry.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

                                                                                         

Although most deserts, such as the Sahara of North Africa and the deserts of the southwestern U.S., Mexico, and Australia are hot, another kind of desert, cold deserts, occur in the basin and range area of Utah and Nevada and in parts of

western Asia.

Grasslands

GrasslandThe temperature is moderate and little precipitation. An area

populated by grasses and other “non wood” plants because there is not much rain. The precipitation is so inconsistent that drought and fire prevent large forests from growing.

                                                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                                                                               

Savannahs are warmer grasslands (tropical) and they cover almost half of Africa.

Temperate grasslands, commonly called prairies or steppes have more varyingtemperatures and can be found in South Africa, North America, Hungary, Argentina, and Uruguay.

Deciduous Forest

Deciduous Forest

Trees in this biome shed their leaves and grow new ones each year. Rainfall (30 – 60in.)and temperatures (50°F) are moderate

Deciduous biomes are located primarily in the eastern half of the United States, Canada, Europe, parts of Russia,

China, and Japan.

TundraThis area is extremely cold and dry!

TundraSince the tundra is so cold, most of the soil

is frozen all year called permafrost. Plants are especially hardy to grow here.

The tundra is located around the North Pole in the Arctic Circle

Tiaga (Boreal Forest)

Taiga (Boreal Forest)Similar to the tundra,

but not as bitterly cold all year. The taiga’s climate is cool (very cold in winter, moderately warm in the summer). The dominant trees are coniferous trees.

Most of Canada and Russia are covered in Taiga/Boreal Forrest.