BIOSPHERE: BIOMES

María Jesús Camposlearningfromgeography.wikispaces.com

Biosphere It comes from the ancient Greek “bio” which means life and “sphaira” which means sphere.

It is formed by all living organisms: animals, plants and microbes. It is the global sum of the ecosystems.

Ecosystem or Biome

An ecosystem or a biome is a community of living organisms interacting with their environment (air, water, soil…).

It is the interaction of: The Lithosphere The Hydrosphere The Atmosphere The living organisms

(biosphere)

Ecosystems / Biomes

Ecosystem / Biome

Soil, Relief…(Lithosphere)

Water on, under and over the surface (Hydrosphere)

Climate (Atmosphere)

Living organisms: plants, animals, fungi…

(Biosphere)

Climate zones

The earth’s has different types of climate distributed according to latitude and altitude:

Warm zone: located between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. All of its climates have an average annual temperature above 18ºC.

Temperate zones: there are 2 temperate zones located between the Tropics and the Polar Circles. Its climate has four seasons.

Cold zones: there are 2 cold zones located within the polar circles and in mountains higher than 2,500 metres. The temperature is very cold and there is no summer.

Tropical or Hot

Climates

Equatorial Climate

Humid Tropical Climate

Dry Tropical Climate

Temperate or Moderate

Climates

Humid Subtropical

Climate

Mediterranean Climate

Maritime/Oceanic Climate

Continental Climate

Cold Climates

Polar Climate

Tundra Climate

Alpine Climate

Dry Climates

Arid or Hot Dessert

Semiarid

Biomes•E

quatorial rainforest

•Tropical rainforest

•Savannah

Warm Climates

•Humid subtropical forest

•Mediterranean forest and scrubland

•Decidious forest

•Coniferous forest or taiga

Temperate Climates

•Perpetual Ice

•Alpine Climate

•Tundra

Cold Climates

•Hot desert

Dry Climates

Hot climates

Equatorial Climate

Equatorial rainforest

Humid/Dry Tropical Climate

Tropical rainforest Savannah

Equatorial RainforestVegetation Fauna

• Varied vegetation that competes for sunlight. Very high and mid-height trees block the light from reaching the forest floor. Moss, orchids and vines grow on them. •Dense forests of evergreen trees.•Tropical rainforests cover only 6% of the Earth’s surface but they produce 40% of the oxygen in the atmosphere and support nearly half of all plant and animal species known to Earth.

• The rainforest is so packed full of trees that big animals do not live on them. • Monkeys, snakes, frogs, birds, small mammals (jaguars), reptiles (alligators and snakes), and lots of insects.

Tropical RainforestVegetation Fauna

• Less variety of vegetation than in the equatorial rainforest. The trees are not so tall or so closely packed together. •Mixed species: tropical trees + temperate trees

• Similar to the equatorial rainforest but less varied.

•Monkeys, lizards, pumas, anteaters…

SavannahVegetation Temperature

• Savanna: large grassland with a few scattered trees (baobabs, acacias).•Thick grass up to 4 m high during the rainy season that dry up during the dry season.• The lack of regular rainfall prevents most trees from surviving.

• Many herbivores who graze in the grasses. They usually migrate to find water and grass.•Elephants, zebras, gazelles, giraffes…•Many carnivores also who hunt the herbivores: lions, cheetahs, hyenas.

Temperate Climates

Humid Subtropical

Climate

Humid subtropical forest

Mediterranean Climate

Mediterranean forest and scrubland

Oceanic Climate

Deciduous forest

Continental Climate

Coniferous forest (taiga)

Humid subtropical forestVegetation Fauna

• Species from both tropical and temperate latitude (bamboo, oak, pine…)

•Deer, foxes, birds

Mediterranean forest and scrubland

Vegetation Fauna

•Perennial trees (holm oaks, cork oaks, pine trees).•Scrubland: instead of trees we find plants such as thyme and rosemary. •Very eroded and in danger because of human activity.

•Deer, rabbits and birds of prey.

Decidious forestVegetation Fauna

•Deciduous trees that lose their leaves in the autumn (oak, beech, maple…).•Bushes and low grass grow in areas where the forest deteriorate.•Very eroded and in danger because of human activity.

•Deer, rabbits, many species of birds.

Coniferous forest or taigaVegetation Fauna

•Conifers that resist cold winters and do not lose their leaves (pine and fir trees)•Deforestation threatens the ecosystems. •Steppe: grasslands with no trees, usually close to the taiga.

•Deer, bears, lynxes, foxes, moles

Cold Climates

Polar Climate

Perpetual ice

Tundra Climate

Tundra

Alpine Climate

Alpine landscapes

(tiers)

Perpetual IceVegetation Fauna

•No vegetation as the ground is frozen all the year round.

• Few species are able to adapt to these climate and the lack of vegetation. •Seals, polar bears…•Southern hemisphere: penguins

Alpine landscapesVegetation Fauna

•The vegetaion is in tiers. The higher up you go, the poorer the vegetation gets: forests are replaced by bushes, grassland and in the highest areas, moss. •Above certain altitude the vegetation dissappears as the peaks are covered with snow or ice thorughout the year.

• Mountain goats, chamois and variety of birds

TundraVegetation Fauna

• Plain coveredby lichens, moss, shrubs and bushes because of permafrost.

• Arctic hares, arctic foxes, lemmings, moose and reindeers that may migrate from higher latitude. • A lot of insects.

Dry Climates

Arid Hot Desert Climate

Hot desert

Hot desertVegetation Fauna

• Very sparse vegetation: grass, small prickly bushes and plants such as the cactus that resist the scarce precipitation and the differences in temperature between the day and the night. •In oasis, there is enough water for palms and fruit trees to grow.

•Snakes, lizards, beetles, scorpions, doves, falcons, camels, dromedaries, etc… that can resist the lack of water.

Biomes•E

quatorial rainforest

•Tropical rainforest

•Savannah

Warm Climates

•Humid subtropical forest

•Mediterranean forest and scrubland

•Decidious forest

•Coniferous forest or taiga

Temperate Climates

•Perpetual Ice

•Alpine Climate

•Tundra

Cold Climates

•Hot desert

Dry Climates

Developed by María Jesús CamposChusteacherWikiteacher

Thanks to «Climate Types for Kids»