Characteristics of World Biomes

Fill in the table below outlining the key characteristics of each world biome. Use bullet points and be concise. http://kids.nceas.ucsb.edu/biomes/ and https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/index.php
Biome Location in the world Climate Plants Animals Threats to sustainability
Tropical Tropical rainforests are Stable temperature and Epiphytes like orchids. Home to half of plant and Deforestation for firewood,
rainforest generally found between warm all year long – average Broad leaves and thin animal species on the Earth. building materials,
30°N and 30°S latitudes, between 21-30 degrees C. smooth bark. Grow tall to Adapted to living in trees. commercial agriculture, cattle
covering 6 - 7% of the High humidity 77-88% all reach sunlight. Canopy New World monkeys, ranching, mining.
Earth’s land surface. year and high rainfall, 200 – layers. parrots, butterflies, insects.
1000cm a year.

Desert Covers 1/5 of Earth’s Dry, very little rainfall. Adapt to survive dry Hot desert: cold-blooded Tourism: needs to be
surface. Hot and cold Rainfall evaporates before environments. Cacti with snakes, insects and lizards. managed to not destroy
deserts. Hot deserts in North hitting the ground. Some are waxy coating. Bushes with Small mammals like habitat.
of Africa, central Australia, hot, others are cold. extensive root systems. Salt kangaroo rat and kit fox.
parts of Middle East and bush along coast. Gazelles, geckos.
Asia. West of North America.

Grasslands Temperatures in this biome Grasses, few trees or large Lack of shelter from Conversion of grassland into
Major grasslands in North vary greatly between shrubs. predators and abundance of farmland (rich soil is ideal for
America are the Great Plains summer and winter. The There are many species of grass for food. Horses, deer, farming).
of the Midwest, The Palouse summers are hot and the grasses that live in this antelope, bison, coyotes, Instead of native grasses,
Prairie of eastern winters are cold. biome, including, purple antelopes, fox, falcons. now grasslands supply corn,
Washington State, and other Rains in late spring, snow in needlegrass, wild oats, wheat, and other grains, as
grasslands in the southwest. winter. foxtail, ryegrass, and buffalo well as grazing areas for
In Eurasia temperate grass. domestic ungulates, such as
grasslands are known as Wildflowers. sheep and cattle. The food
steppes and they are found supplied by farmlands is
between the Ukraine and important, but so is this
Russia. In South America unique biome, and the plants
they are called pampas, and and animals that live in the
are located in Argentina and temperate grassland.
Uruguay. In South Africa
temperate grasslands are
known as veldts.
Temperate forest Found along coasts in 150-500cm of rain a year. Epiphytes (plants that grow Most live on or near forest Deforestation for firewood,
temperate regions such as Fog. Mild temperatures and on the surface of other floor where they are building materials,
Pacific coast in North two distinct seasons: one plants) like mosses and protected from elements. commercial agriculture, cattle
America. Parts of Europe, long wet winter, and a short ferns. Chipmunks, birds, ranching, mining.
India and China, SW and SE drier summer. Mostly coniferous trees amphibians, cougars and
of Australia. (having needles). Some live bobcats.
Other temperate rainforests up to 1000 years.
are found along the coast of
Chile, the United Kingdom,
Norway, Japan, New
Zealand, and S. Australia.
Biome Location in the world Climate Plants Animals Threats to sustainability
Mountain Mountain ranges. Alpine Warm summer, freezing Low lying vegetation won’t be No shelter and high UV. Tourism and pollution.
vegetation biomes are found in winter. Fairly dry. Windy and blown over, strong sunlight. Hibernate or migrate.
(Alpine) mountain regions worldwide, cold. Some of the plants found Mountain goats, sheep, elk,
including the Andes, Alps, here are tussock grasses, chinchilla.
and Rocky Mountains. The small-leafed shrubs, and
alpine biome usually lies dwarf trees. These trees only
between an altitude of about grow to about 60 feet (18
10,000 feet (3,000 meters), meters). Bristlecone pines
and the place where the can live to be over 4,000
snow line of a mountain years old.
begins.

Taiga/Boreal Taiga, also known as Long, cold winters, and short, Conifer, or cone-bearing tree. Animals may hibernate in Logging, mining,
forest coniferous or boreal forest, is mild, wet summers are Conifers, also known as winter. Squirrels, moles, hydroelectric development.
the largest terrestrial biome typical of this region. Winter evergreens, include pines, deer, moose, elk, snowshoe
on earth. It extends in a days are short, while summer spruces and firs. There may hare, insects, bears, lynxes.
broad band across North days are long because of the also occasionally be
America, Europe, and Asia to tilt of the earth on its axis. deciduous species present,
the southern border of the High rainfall and snow in such as oak, birch, willow, or
arctic tundra. It is also found winter. alder, in a particularly wet or
at cool, high elevations in the disturbed area. The soil in
more temperate latitudes, for the taiga is thin, acidic and
example, in much of the not very nutrient rich. It also
mountainous western region is rocky.
of North America.
Tundra Covers 1/5 of Earth’s land Coldest and driest of all Permafrost – top layer thaws Lemmings, caribou, arctic Urbanisation. Mining for oil.
surface. Tundra means: biomes. Very little rain. Long but underneath is always hares. Polar bears, seals. Climate change.
treeless plain (Finnish). winters and short summers. - frozen. Owls, foxes, wolves.
Tundra biome is located in 45degrecess C for winter, Many lichens, mosses, and
the arctic circle, which is a rarely above 10degrees C in small shrubs flourish in the
circle that surrounds the summer. arctic tundra. The plants that
north pole, but this is not the live in the harsh permafrost
only place we can find soil usually adapt to the
freezing cold temperatures weather by being short and
and a few animals. grouped together to resist
winds and to be protected.
The growing season in the
tundra is short and lasts up
to 60 days.
Polar lands Antarctica and north pole. Very cold and dry. Almost no vegetation. Similar Antarctica: seals, penguins. Research, protect from
Antarctica is largest cold to cold desert. mining in future?
desert. Cold deserts: algae, grasses
with thin leaves.