Biomes

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Biomes
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Biome

• a large group of ecosystems that share the same
  type of climax community

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2 Types of Biomes

• Terrestrial (land) Biomes
• Aquatic (water) Biomes
• marine (salt water)
• freshwater biomes

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6 Major Terrestrial (Land) Biomes

• terrestrial biomes are defined by their latitude,
  altitude, and precipitation

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Terrestrial Biomes

• tundra
• taiga
• dessert
• grasslands
• temperate forest
• tropical rain forest

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Tundra

• treeless area around the poles
• temperatures rise above freezing only for very
  short periods of time, about 12 cm precipitation
  annually

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Tundra

• soil is lacking in nutrients topsoil is thin
  -little decay occurs
• soil supports only shallow-rooted grasses and
  small plants
• short growing season-limiting factor for life
• contains permafrost - layer of permanently frozen
  ground

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Taiga

• called northern conifer forest
• climate is harsh - long, severe winters, short,
  mild summers, 35-40 cm precipitation annually
• permafrost is usually absent
• found in Canada, Northern Europe, Asia

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Taiga

• Flora/Fauna
• lichens, mosses, grasses, dwarf shrubs, cushion
  plants, mosquitoes, other biting insects,
  lemming, weasels, arctic foxes, snowshoe hares,
  snowy owls, hawks, musk-oxen, caribou, reindeer

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Taiga

• topsoil is acidic and poor in minerals
• Example Organisms mixed pine, fir, hemlock,
  spruce trees, more large species of animals-
  caribou, moose, lynx

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Desert

• Driest of the biomes, less than 25 cm of
  precipitation annually
• Located south of the taiga
• Atacama Desert in Chile worlds driest place

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Desert

• an arid region with sparse to almost nonexistent
  plant life

• desert plants sometimes have spines, thorns, or
  poisons that act to discourage herbivores
• example organisms - shrub, mesquite trees, cacti,
  kangaroo rat, pronghorn antelopes, foxes,
  coyotes, hawks, owls, roadrunners, snakes,
  lizards, scorpions

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Grassland

• receives between 25 and 75 cm of precipitation
  annually

• soils have considerable humus content
• usually experience a dry season where
  insufficient water exists to support forests
• example organisms - more than 100 different
  species per acre, large herds of grazing animals,
  bison, buffalo, wolves, coyotes, prairie dogs,
  foxes, ferrets, birds, insects, reptiles,
  tortoises, lizards, snakes

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• large communities covered with grasses and
  similar small plants
• known as prairies (U.S., Canada, Australia),
  steppes (Russia), savanna (Africa), pampas
  (Argentina)
• called the breadbaskets of the world-ideal for
  growing grains (oats, rye, wheat)

• occupies more area than any other terrestrial
  biome

Grassland
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Temperate Forest

• soil consists of top layer rich in humus and a
  deeper layer of clay
• example organisms - squirrels, mice, rabbits,
  birds, black bears, deer, salamanders, opossums

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Temperate Forest

• precipitation ranges from 70-150 cm annually
• deciduous forests - dominated by broad-leaved
  hardwood trees that lose their foliage annually
  (deciduous)

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Tropical Rain Forest

• most biologically diverse of the terrestrial
  biomes, located in the equatorial regions around
  the world
• uniformly warm (25oC) , wet weather dominated by
  lush plant growth, annual rainfall is at least
  200cm up to 400 cm, which much of is retained and
  recycled by the heavy canopy of leaves

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Tropical Rain Forest

• most organisms live in the trees
• more species of reptiles, amphibians, and birds
  are found here than any other terrestrial biome
• 3 million species of insects in the tropical
  rain forest, butterflies, gorillas, cougars
• Nutrients from decay must be absorbed quickly.
  Why?

Due the large amount of rain
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Precipitation Amounts
1 cm 0.4 inches
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Marine Biomes

• oceans contain the largest amount of biomass
  (living material) of any biome on Earth
• most of this biomass is plankton - microscopic
  organisms that float in the layers of the photic
  zone

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Water Zones

• photic zone - more shallow, sunlit zone
• aphotic zone - deeper water that never receives
  sunlight

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Mixed Waters

• all waters flow to a sea/ocean
• estuary coastal body of water partially
  surrounded by land where saltwater and freshwater
  mix

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Tides

• caused by the gravitational pull of the sun and
  moon twice a day
• intertidal zone area between the high and low
  tide lines

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Photic Zone

• rainfall washes nutrients from land into the
  waters
• high in nutrients and abundant in life
• plankton small organisms that live in waters of
  the photic zone base of all aquatic food chains

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Aphotic Zone

• intense pressure
• no light
• animals are adapted for darkness and scarcity of
  food

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Freshwater Biome

• ponds, rivers, and lakes
• temperature varies with depth abiotic factor
  that limits the kind of organisms that can
  survive in a deep lake
• light also is a limiting abiotic factor