2. Biomes
Terrestrial ecosystems that cover a large region of Earth
Characterized by communities of plants and other organisms adapted to the
climate and other abiotic factors
3. Major Terrestrial Biomes
Temperate Woodland/shrubland
Tropical Rainforest (Chaparral)
Tropical Dry Forest Temperate forest
Tropical Savannah Northwestern Coniferous
Desert Boreal Forest/Taiga
Temperate Grasslands (Prairie) Tundra
What You Need To Find For Each Biome:
Temp:
Precipitation:
Soil:
Plants:
Animals:
Human Impact/degradation:
Other Facts:
4. What You Need To Find For Each Biome:
Temp:
Precipitation:
Soil:
Plants:
Animals:
Human Impact/degradation:
Other Facts:
5. Tropical Rainforest
Canopy: dense covering of tree
tops
Understory: 2nd story of shorter
trees and vines under the canopy
Fern Gully/Medicine Man
6. Tropical Dry Forest
Deciduous trees: broad leaves that fall
Wet/Dry season
“Jungle Book” forest
7. Tropical Savannah
In the tropics
Wet/dry season
Large mammals keep large trees from
growing in
Less rainfall than tropical Dry forest
Organisms ADAPT to fires during dry
season
Think “Lion King”
8. Desert
Around 25-35o Latitude N and S
Hot Days and Cold Nights
Plants and animal adaptations
Spines, waxy cuticles, scales
Think “The Mummy” and “The Sahara”
Rain shadow effect
9. Rain shadow
Effect
Warm air on coast
rises rapidly because
of mountain
“Orographic lifting”
Lots of precipitation
on one side=lush
vegetation
Other side very dry
air=desert like
conditions
11. Temperate Grassland
prairies
Midwest (Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri)
Brush fires
Think movie “Twister” “Wizard of Oz” and
“Little House on the Prairie”
12. Temperate Forest
Mix of coniferous and deciduous trees
Humus (HUE-Mus) material formed from
decaying leaves….very fertile!!!
Forests with leaves that change colors
Think fairy tale forest “Snow White” and
“Sleeping Beauty”
13. Northwestern Coniferous
“Rainforest” of the temperate climate
zone…very DIVERSE vegetation
Mild, moist temperatures
Think “Twilight” “New Moon” “Eclipse”
14. Boreal Forest/ Taiga
Bitter cold winters
Coniferous trees
Make the timberline…border between taiga
and the tundra…LINE of TREES
Think “X-Men Origins”…Wolverine’s home
16. Other interesting
ecosystems…
Mountain Ranges
On all continents
Abiotic and biotic factors change with ELAVATION (as u go
up)
Therefore plants and animals change VERTICALLY
Grassland at base woodland/pines spruce/conifer
forest tundra like open area at summit with
wildflowers
Polar Ice Caps
Border the Tundra
Cold year round
Characterized by ice and snow
Plants and algae are few but include Mosses and Lichens
North Pole
Sea ice and ice cap that covers Greenland
Polar bears, seals, insects and mites
South Pole
5 km thick layer of ice
Penguins and marine mammals