Comparing Biomes

Comparing Biomes

The earth’s vegetation and animal life have become adapted to different climates, soils, and other abiotic features of the environment. As a result, broad ranges of similar life forms, called biomes, have developed.

Biome	Rainfall Temperature	Physical Features Geographical Location	Animals	Plants	Importance of Biome	Ecological Challenges
Tropical Rain Forest	80 – 400 inches of rain/year 70 - 85º F Warm and humid	Rich in plant & animal life, high degree of species diversity Located near equator in Latin America, Southeast Asia & Western Africa	Cougars, pumas, snakes, birds, monkeys, bearded pig, tapir, capybara, chimpanzee, tree shrew, crested guan, flying dragon, gorilla, loris	Orchids, ferns, bromilads, mangroves, bamboo, bananas, plantains, cassava, rubber, cacao, vanilla, rattan, cola, ebony, fig, palm, fishbone cactus	Home to ½ of the world’s species; potential source of medicines, helps to maintain rain and weather patterns	Destruction of rainforest – loss of species; plants compete for sunlight;
Temperate Forest (Deciduous)	30 – 60 inches of rain/year Has 4 seasons, average temp is 50º F , hot summers, cold winters	Leaves change color in fall, prior to dropping Eastern half of US, Canada, Europe, parts of Russia, China & Japan	Vole, black bear, squirrel, raccoon, deer, wild boar, cardinal, goshawk, turkey, rat snake, Spring Peeper (frog),	Silver maple, oak trees, walnut, sycamore, sweet gum, dogwood	Home to many species, source of wood products, maple syrup, important for recreation activities	Water is frozen in winter & is scare, animals and plants must adapt to cold winters and hot summers,
Tundra	Less than 10 inches/year Lows of -60º F High of 50º F, annual average is 10 – 20º F, summer is very short	Permafrost, no trees, small vegetation North pole	Caribou, musk oxen, gyrfalcon, rock ptarmigan, turnstone, snow bunting, snowy owl (birds) artic fox, lemming, polar bear, rabbits	Lichens, cushion plants, cotton grass, artic moss, artic willow, bearberry, caribou moss, tufted saxifrage, pasque flower	Major carbon dioxide sink (reservoir), reservoir for water stored as ice, source of oil, gas and minerals	Cold temperatures, high winds (30 – 60 mph), little vegetation, no trees for shelter
Tiaga (Boreal Forest)	12 – 33 inches of rain/year Winter -65 - 30ºF Summer 20 - 70ºF	Long nights in winter and long days in summer, Northern parts of Canada, Europe and Asia	Waxwing, hawk owl, grosbeak, loon, ermine, beaver, squirrel, lynx, marten, moose, rabbit	Primarily a coniferous forest (evergreen trees) includes spruce hemlock and fir; birch, poplar and aspen (broadleaf), some lichens and mosses	Home to many insects and birds during the summer, source of oil, minerals, fishing, logging	Prone to wildfires, decomposition is slow due to cool temps, logging causes erosion and flooding
Biome	Rainfall Temperature	Physical Features Geographical Location	Animals	Plants	Importance of Biome	Ecological Challenges
Desert	Less than 10 inches rain/year Day time can exceed 100 ºF, nights as low as 40 ºF	Very dry, sandy soil, mountainous 30 º north and south of equator Africa, Latin America, Middle East, Australia, southwestern US	Addux, wren, lark, dingo, fat sand rat, fennel fox, gila monster, snakes, thorny devil, jeroba	Saguro cacti, sagebrush, barrel cactus, aloe, spoon desert, yucca, Joshua tree	Home to some unique species, a source of oil, and gas, soil are abundant in nutrients	Human impact has caused some deserts, very little rainfall,
Grasslands	10 – 30 inches of rain/year Temp varies with region, tropical are near the equator, temperate further north/south	Rich, fertile soil, very few bushes or trees (found near rivers or streams) Found on every continent except Antartica	African elephant, bison (buffalo), black rhinoceros, ferret, hyena, giraffe, lion, ostrich, prairie chicken, pronghorn (deer like), warthog	Milkweed, coneflowers, blazingstar, stinging nettles, poison ivy, some silver maple trees, red bud tree, grasses	Rich soil, highly productive lands, lies between desert and forest	In US, once grassland was abundant, now it is farmland and ranch lands; if rain fall was scarce, grassland could become a desert, wildfires
Rivers and Streams (Flowing water)	Rainfall and temp vary with location of river or stream	Contain 0.3% of world’s water, Found all over the world	Anaconda, turtles, fish, birds, otters, gavial (alligator-like), hellbender, piranha, sunbittern (bird)	Algae, mosses, ferns, phytoplankton, grasses	Can be used for hydroelectric power (dams), recreation, food sources,	Pollution (industrial, farm, and cattle), erosion, sedimentation, invasive species, can be difficult for plants due to current
Ponds and Lakes (Standing Water)	Rainfall and temp vary with location of pond or lake; temps will also vary with the depth or layer of the water	Has little to no wave action Found all over the world	Fish, bullfrog, birds, pelicans, platypus, newts, speckled caiman, Zambasi soft shell (turtle-like)	Algae, grasses, lily pads, diatoms, euglena, dinoflagellates	Food source, water reservoir, recreation,	Pollution, erosion, sedimentation, invasive species
Biome	Rainfall Temperature	Physical Features Geographical Location	Animals	Plants	Importance of Biome	Ecological Challenges
Temperate Oceans	Will vary due to location	Covers about 75% of world’s surface, salt water Temperate oceans are further from the equator, Atlantic, Pacific, Indian	Zooplankton, fishes, dolphins, whales, birds (pelicans, penguins,),crustaceans, sponges, mollusks, squids, octopus	Algae, seaweed, kelp, phytoplankton	Food source and source of many food additives, recreation, oxygen reservoir and producer	Overfishing, pollution
Tropical Oceans (Coral Reefs)	Temperatures will be warm due to proximity of equator, rain fall varies	Grows very slowly, is a community of thousands of organisms living together, warm shallow waters, Found near equator (Australia, central America, Hawaii, Red Sea)	Fish (clown fish, marlin, barracuda, hammerhead, tuna), birds, porpoise, sponges, corals, squids, octopus, jellyfish, lobsters, crab	Algae, seaweed, kelp, phytoplankton	Natural beauty, home to many species and protection for smaller fishes, recreation,	Coral reef destruction, overfishing, pollution,
Wetlands	Temperatures will be warm due to proximity of equator, rain fall varies	May be temporary due to seasonal rains, Found all over the world	Birds (herons, bittern, snipe), alligators, snakes, dwarf siren, lungfish, fish, frogs, walking catfish, insects	Lotus plants, lily pads, moss, grasses, rushes, cattails, bushes,	Prevent flooding, water reservoir, filtration of waters that pass through it, recreation	Development, pollution, erosion,
Shorelines (Marshes)	Will vary due to location	Can be barrier island, rocky shores, marshes and estuaries, Can be found all over the world	Sea stars, clams, oysters, birds (gulls, kingfisher, plover), turtle, crocodile, alligator, snakes, insects, fish	Seaweeds, algae, kelp, phytoplankton, grasses,	Natural beauty and recreation, food sources, habitat for many, fish and crustacean nursery, rich soil	Litter, pollution, development, erosion