Biomes

• Similar ecosystems grouped together

• A large region characterized by a specific type of climate and certain types of plants and animal communities.

• Defined/described by their climate & vegetation

– (because plants that grow in an are determine the other organisms that can live there).

Biomes

• Plants in a particular biome have characteristics, specialized structures, or adaptations that allow them to survive in that biome.

– Adaptations like size, shape, & color

• Ex.) Plants in the Tundra are short because they cannot obtain enough water to grow larger (they also have a shorter summer growing season and less soil).

• Ex.) A cactus has specialized structure to retain and conserve water.

Biomes and ClimateSo what’s climate have to do with biomes?

• Climate – weather conditions such as temperature, precipitation, humidity, and winds in an area over a long period of time.

– Temperature and precipitation are the 2 most important factor determining a regions climate(and the plants which grow in certain areas).

Biomes and ClimateSo what’s climate have to do with biomes?

Climate

– Determined by the average temperature and precipitation (which also helps determine what organisms live in an area).

• Ex.) Larger organisms usually need more water, so biomes with little rainfall may only have small trees, shrubs, grasses, cactus, etc.

• Ex.) Biomes with heavier rainfall may have large trees

– So the higher the temperature and precipitation, the taller and denser the vegetation.

Biomes and ClimateSo what’s climate have to do with biomes?

Biomes and ClimateSo what’s Latitude and Altitude have to do with it?

• Latitude – distance N or S of the equator (measured in degrees)

• Altitude – height of an object above sea level

– Climate varies with latitude and altitude.

• Climate gets colder as latitude and altitude increases, so that changes the vegetation and therefore the biomes.

• Ex.) Trees of a tropical rainforest usually grow close to the equator, mosses & lichens grow in the tundra closer to the poles, agriculture is grown in the temperate region (30-60 degrees N or S of equator).

Biomes and ClimateSo what’s Latitude and Altitude have to do with it?

http://www.xpeditiononline.com/imags/mountain2.jpg

Tropical Rainforest

• Typically found near the equator

• Receives more than 200 cm of rain annually

• Temperatures typically on the warmer side – averages about 75o F for the year

• As many as 50% of all the world’s animal species may be found here

Tropical Rainforest

• Layers of a Rainforest

– Emergent Layer – tallest trees (60-70m tall), grow and emerge in the direct sunlight.

– Canopy – trees >30m tall, form dense layer that absorbs 95% of sunlight

– Understory – trees and shrubs adapted to grow in shady areas. < 3.5 m tall

Tropical Rainforest

• Threats :

– Exotic pet trading

– Habitat Destruction –

• Used to cover 20% of Earth’s surface, now rainforests only cover ~7%.

• Every minute of every day ~ 100 acres is cleared for logging, agriculture, or oil exploration

• Kills homes of many species

• Kills home of 50 million native people living in rainforest

Foods of Rainforest

• Acai – a palm tree that produces dark purple fruit (similar to grape, but smaller)

– Its claimed they contain antioxidants which promote health.

Brazil

Foods of Rainforest

• Chocolate - from the seeds of the cacao plant

http://www.inriodulce.com/images/cocoa.jpg

http://www.raw-living-food-success.com/images/cacao-chocolate-bean.jpg

South America’s Rainforests

Foods of Rainforest

• Bananas – fruit we eat.

– Wild bananas have hard seeds, but have been grown overtime to produce without seeds.

Southeast Asian Rainforests

Foods of Rainforest

• Macadamia Nuts – small white nuts, contain high nutritional value for a nut.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MacadamiaEastern Australia

Rainforest

• Plants:

– Nutrients at surface of soil, so plants have shallow roots.• Bromeliads (related to pineapple

family), bowl-shape center helps them catch rain

• Orchids, grow on trees for support

• Venus fly trap – carnivorous plant

• Mangrove trees – extensions from trunk help support and trap sediment

http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/plants/stilt.html

Rainforest

• Animals:• Spider monkey- live in canopy

• Toucan- sharp and saw-like edges on bill; used to squash fruit and berries he eats. saw-like edges used to tear off parts of larger fruits.

• Macaw- have a sharp, hooked bill strong enough for eating nuts, fruits, and seeds.

• Sloth- very slow, live most of life upside down

• Poison arrow frog - One frog carries enough poison to kill about 100 people. Native hunters use it on the tips of their arrows.

http://www.srl.caltech.edu/personnel/krubal/rainforest/Edit560s6/www/animals.html

http://www.destination360.com/asia/malaysia/images/s/borneo-rainforest.jpg

http://uniquetraveldestinations.net/wp-content/uploads/Canopy-Walk-Mamu-Rainforest-OZ-www.webecoist.com-mamu2.jpg

Tropical Savanna

• Grasslands with a few scattered trees

• Experience a wet and dry season

• Hot temperatures• Annual rainfall is

between 50 and 127 cm• More species of grazing

mammals than any other biome

Savannas

• Location:

– Africa, western India, Northern Australia & a few parts of South America

– Found in tropical to subtropical areas near equator between tropical rainforests & desert biomes.

• As the precipitation in an area decreases, so does the diversity of species in the area. (animals tend to be active in wet season, or need to migrate to areas with food)

http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/images/savanna_location_map.gif

Savannas• Plants:

– Trees and shrubs may have thorns or sharp leaves to keep herbivores away.

– Can survive droughts

• Have large horizontal root systems to help obtain water during dry periods.

– Large roots also help plants to quickly regrow after a fire

• Vertical leaves of grasses give them less exposure to the sun and helps them conserve water

– Fires also help to restore nutrients back to soil

• Some trees loose leaves during dry season to conserve water

Savannas

• Animals:

– Grazing herbivores and their predators

• Many animals migrate & follow rains

• Many give birth only during rainy season (when the food is abundant)

• Animals graze on different size vegetation to reduce competition.

– Small gazelles eat grasses

– Black rhinos eat shrubs

– Giraffes eat tree leaves

http://room42.wikispaces.com/file/view/4savanna.jpg/34448245/4savanna.jpg

http://ecolibrary.org/images/full_image/Herbivory_w_competition_on_savanna_Tanzania_2_DP146.jpg

http://media.moddb.com/images/games/1/11/10298/savanna-biome-1600x1200.jpg

http://reservaeleden.org/who_we_are/Savanna.jpg

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/44/Savanna_fire_Bild1215.jpg

Desert

• Typically found between 25o

and 40o latitude

• Receives less than 25 cm of rain each year

• Temperatures can be hot or cold - typically range between 20oC and 25oC but some extreme deserts can reach temperatures higher than 38oC and lower than –15oC

Desert

• Ex.) Hot Desert = Arizona’s Sonoran Desert

• Ex.) Cold Desert = Gobi Desert in China, Great Basin in western US.

• Often located near large mountain ranges(that block the precipitation from falling on these areas)

Desert

• Plants:– Roots are shallow because the rainfall is so little

that it won’t penetrate deeply into the soil.

– Some plants die and drop their seeds, so that they can quickly germinate at the next rain.

– All have adaptations for conserving and obtaining water• Succulents – plants with thick, fleshy stems and leaves

that store water.– Ex.) cactus

» Sharp spines on cactus keep thirsty animals away

Desert

• Animals:

– Adapted to live in dry areas

• Reptiles (gila monster, rattlesnakes) have thick, scaly skin to help them survive in dry areas

• amphibians (spade foot toad) estivate – burrowing in the ground and sleep during the dry season

• Most animals are nocturnal (active during the night) to avoid the heat during the day

http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/desert_animal_page.htm

Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl

http://ceipntrasradelapiedad.files.wordpress.com/2010/03/spadefoot_toad1_large.jpg

http://www.qtours.com/images/qcalifornia/regional/deserts/new/desert_flower.JPG

http://www.trekway.com/united-arab-emirates/images/EAU04_240-desert-survival-guide.jpg

http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/desert-profile/

Gobi Desert, Mongolia/China(Cold Desert – because of high altitude and Himalayan Mountains

Because it is so close to the ocean, the Sonoran Desert (Arizona) receives more rain than any other desert, about 10 to 14 inches (25 to 35 centimeters) a year. This precipitation allows cacti like this saguaro to grow extremely large.

http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/sonoran-desert/

Sonoran Desert (Arizona)

Chaparral

• Found between 32o and 40o latitude on the west coast of continents

• Fairly dry - Receives between 35 and 70 cm of rain, usually in the winter

• Extremely resistant to drought and weather events

Chaparral

• Plants:– Low-lying evergreen shrubs and small trees that

tend to grow in dense patches

– Have small leathery leaves that retain water

– Leaves contain oils that promote burning• Good because it destroys trees that might compete for

light and space

Ex.) Chamise, manzanita, scrub oak, olive trees, herbs (sage & bay)

http://www.behav.org/00gallery/ecol/biom_pics/biom_chaparral_map.gif

Chaparral

• Animals:

– Easily camouflage themselves

• Ex.) quail, lizards, chipmunks, mule deer – They are all the same color as the surrounding brush

http://img1.loadtr.com/b-471259-Chipmunk.jpghttp://www.stanford.edu/~petelat1/quail.jpg

Chaparral

• Threats:

– Human development

• Most Chaparral biome is near the oceans, where there is a lot of sun, mild climate year round = all places humans like to live.

http://californiarealestateandlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/img_00651.jpg http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2398/2150123332_39be375112_b.jpg

http://www.californiachaparral.com/images/555_PS-Chamise-RS-chaparral.jpg

California Chaparral

http://www.blm.gov/or/resources/recreation/tablerock/images/Chaparral.jpg

Grassland

• Because of the dry climate, trees are found only near water sources such as streams

• Usually receives between 50 and 90 cm of rainfall each year

• warm or cold - Summer temperatures can reach up to 38oC (70F), and winter temperatures can fall to –40oC

Temperate Grasslands

• Prairies in North America, steppes of Russia and Ukraine, pampas of South America

• Few natural grasslands remain because they have been replace by farms

Temperate Grasslands

• Plants:

– Prairie grasses and wildflowers

• Have dense root layers, which allow them to survive droughts and fires. Also holds soil in place

http://www.prairiefrontier.com/pages/pfmixpg/img/tallprairiewildflowers.jpg http://www.prairiefrontier.com/pages/pfmixpg/img/shortprairiewildflowers.jpg

Temperate Grasslands

• Animals:

– Grazing animals

• Pronghorn antelope

• Bison

• Badgers

• Prairie dogs

• owls

http://www.fws.gov/huronwetlands/photos/wildlife/images/Pronghorn%20Antelope_jpg.jpg

http://en.academic.ru/pictures/enwiki/65/American_bison_k5680-1.jpghttp://www.emoboyfriend.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/emo-badger-save-them.jpg

Temperate Grasslands

• Threats:

– Farming and overgrazing have changed the grasslands

• Grain crops can’t hold the soil in place like native grasses, so the soil is eroding

• Both farming and overgrazing may cause this biome to move/change more towards a desert-like biome.

http://www.fossweb.com/resources/pictures/578508132.gifhttp://seoeun01px2009.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/biol_02_img0210.jpg

http://homepage.mac.com/wildlifeweb/mammal/bison/bison01.jpg

Temperate Deciduous Forest

• Moderate climate -Temperatures range between –30oC and 30oC

• Most trees will lose their leaves in the winter

• Moderate Precipitation -Averages from 75 to 150 cm of precipitation

• Well developed understory

Temperate Deciduous Forest

• Deciduous – trees with broad leaves that fall during the winter season.

• Layers of the Forest:

– Canopy: tall trees (maples, oak, birch)

– Understory : small trees & shrubs

– Floor: ferns, herbs, mosses

Temperate Deciduous Forest

Forest

http://www.ffpri.affrc.go.jp/labs/femnet/ogawa/photo1.jpghttp://webpub.allegheny.edu/dept/bio/bio220/Milt_lectures/BiomesFigs/DeciduousForestBousson.jpghttp://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://biologyprojectwiki.wikispaces.com/file/view/654fd_forest.jpg/107404859/654fd_forest.jpg&imgrefurl=http://biologyprojectwiki.wikispaces.com/Deciduous%2BMa

Temperate Deciduous Forest

• Animals:

– squirrels eat nuts, seeds, berries

– Grasshoppers eat all vegetation

– Deer eat leaves from trees & shrubs

– Migratory Birds (fly South for winter, in spring come back to North to nest and feed)

http://macroman9.tripod.com/missc2.jpg

http://www.realtrees4kids.org/images/6-8images/microhabitat.jpg

Temperate Boreal Forest/Taiga

• Also known as Taiga• Typically found between 45o

and 60o North latitude• Cold climate in winter (40 – 100

cm snow annually), with summer warm, rainy, and humid

• Very few reptiles• Limited understory - A lot of

coniferous trees • Snow is primary form of

precipitation (40 – 100 cm annually)

Taiga/Temperate Boreal Forest• Many taller trees with long trunks and green tops.

• Floor is dark with little vegetation

• Plants:

– Conifers (trees that have seeds that develop in cones, don’t shed needles)

• Many needles, long, narrow, waxy coating to help retain water when the ground is frozen.

• Needles make the soil acidic (so few plants can grown in this acidic soil). Acidic soil also slows decomposition.

• Pointy shape of trees help them shed snow so the tree doesn’t become weighed down.

Taiga/Temperate Boreal Forest

• Animals:– Many lakes and swamps that attract birds

(migratory birds, travel South in winter)

– Shrews & rodents live there year round because they can burrow underground during winter

– Lynxes, wolves, foxes live there year round

– Moose and snowshoe hare eat any vegetation they can find.• Snowshoe hare shed brown fur in winter and grow

white fur (camouflage)

Foods of Taiga or Boreal Forests

• Maple Syrup – comes from the sap of maple trees

– Put it on our pancakes• The O'Brien

Family Tradition ofMaking MapleSyrup

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/18/Maple_syrup.jpg

http://biomesfirst.wikispaces.com/file/view/taiga-exhibit.jpg/32197307/taiga-exhibit.jpghttp://bioweb.uwlax.edu/bio203/s2009/nelson_lau4/Picea_glauca_taiga.jpg

http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/D/DaneTaiga2.jpg

http://biologyprojectwiki.wikispaces.com/file/view/Taiga_winter.jpg/105847573/Taiga_winter.jpg

http://www.bio.miami.edu/dana/pix/taiga.jpg

http://www.ticrk.ru/resources/7649-original.jpeghttp://home.mcn.net/~wtu/images/lynx2.jpg

http://www.spiracanada.com/spiralbound/2007/Ostara/SnowshoeHare.jpg

Tundra

• Means treeless or marshy plain• Characterized by permafrost –

permanently frozen soil starting as high as a few centimeters below the surface – which severely limits plant growth

• Winter temperatures (low)average –34oC while summer temperatures usually average below 10oC

• Low precipitation (15–25 cm per year) but ground is usually wet because of low evaporation

Tundra

• Permafrost = permanently frozen soil (that lies underneath the topsoil)

• Tundra gets bogs and swamps during summer months when the top layer of soil thaws.

– In the summer these bogs/swamps breed many insects (mosquitoes, black flies, etc)

Tundra

• Plants:– Dominated by grasses, lichens, and herbs. Moss

and lichens grow on rocks.

– Have wide, shallow roots since the soil is very thin

– Flower plants (campion, gentian) are short so they can avoid winds and keep warm

– Woody plants & perennials (willow, juniper) are dwarf forms and grow flat along the ground

Tundra

• Animals:

– Millions of migratory birds fly to the tundra to breed in the summer

– Many plants, mollusks, worms, insects

– Caribou, wolves, deer, moose, live there

– smaller animals (mice, rabbit) burrow themselves underground in the winter.

– Many (like arctic fox) lose their brown fur and grow white fur to camouflage in the winter

Tundra• Threats:

– Its one of the most fragile biomes with a simple food chain, so it can be easily disrupted

– Oil Explorations

• Ex.) Prudhoe Bay, Alaska

• It distrupts habitats of plants and animals

• Pollution caused by oils spills/leaks could poison their food and water sources.

http://opinionhead.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/oil-rig-exploration-tundra.jpg

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01377/bp_1377049c.jpg

http://www.uwsp.edu/geo/faculty/ritter/images/biosphere/vegetation/tundra_ice_mounds_Alaska_DDS21_LMC0007.jpg

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.hickerphoto.com/data/media/166/tundra-animals_523.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.hickerphoto.com/tundra-animals-523-pictures.htm&usg=__9nPtAHTOEPsgs12uaSqxiIf1WOA=&h=345&w=468&sz=40&hl=en&start=1&zoom=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=9Vlpwo3w4UjxIM:&tbnh=94&tbnw=128&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtundra%2Banimals%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:*%26tbs%3Disch:1

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www2.lhric.org/kat/owl.gif&imgrefurl=http://www2.lhric.org/kat/3tundra.htm&usg=__dTuLYyyScWnbeLV9fYWN6yx_h6g=&h=216&w=192&sz=39&hl=en&start=5&zoom=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=9k3rOTYlKQEDUM:&tbnh=107&tbnw=95&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dtundra%2Banimals%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Dactive%26rls%3Dcom.microsoft:*%26tbs%3Disch:1

http://animals.timduru.org/dirlist/bear/Cute-PolarBear-Cub-SittingOnSnow.jpg)

http://www.wallpaperweb.org/wallpaper/nature/1600x1200/Caribou_Autumn_Tundra_Denali_National_Park_Alaska.jpg

Biome Locations