Biomes are large land areas consisting of similar
ecosystems. Regional climates and
regional physical environments interact with the living communities to produce
these large areas of similar ecosystems.
For example, large areas of the earth are covered
with grasslands. Smaller, basically
self-contained ecosystems of different types of grasses and associated animals
are found in local areas and when considered together form the grassland biome
worldwide. Each biome has a
distinct vegetation structure related to the prevailing climate and physical
environment. Basically, these
biomes are oriented along the earth's latitudes and tend to be shifted by ocean
currents northward or southward along the continental coasts.
For example, the warm waters of the Gulf Stream give England, which has
almost the same high latitude as southern Alaska, a climate and vegetation
similar to the Carolinas. Other
factors such as mountain ranges, large bodies of water, and prevailing wind
direction also introduce climatic variations and influence the pattern of
regional vegetation.
Types
of Biomes
1.
Tundra
Located in Northern latitudes of the Arctic Circle.
A fragile environment characterized by relatively short vegetation composed of
only a few species
(i.e., low diversity), e.g., some grasses,
mosses, lichens, dwarf trees.
Birds and insects are abundant in summer.
Except for the summer, very cold area for much of the year with the ground
moisture frozen as permafrost.
Free, non-frozen water
is scarce - a limiting factor.
No corresponding biome occurs in the southern regions of the earth, because the
southern oceans occupy
the corresponding latitudes.
Note that on some high mountains around the world there is an alpine tundra
where the prevailing climate
is similar to that of the arctic, even
though the mountains may be much farther south.
Very low productivity.
2.
Taiga = Coniferous Forest
Northern border is tundra and southern border is deciduous forest and prairie,
e.g., Canada.
The dominant vegetation is not dormant in the winter, i.e., the trees are the
species that do not lose
their leaves in the winter, that have needle-shaped
leaves (e.g., spruce), that have cones rather than
flowers.
The climate consists of long, dark, cold winters and short, warm summers.
The productivity is higher than the tundra but lower than the deciduous forest.
3.
Temperate Deciduous Forest
Historically located in eastern North America, and western Europe, however the
natural deciduous
forest has been reduced to small remnants (e.g., Joyce
Kilmer Memorial Forest in North Carolina)
because of Human development.
Present-day forests are just "brush heaps" in comparison to the
historical forests.
Climate consists of relatively moderate temperatures (both in summer and winter)
and relatively
moderate rainfall (30 inches to 60 inches
per year).
Dominant vegetation consists of deciduous hardwoods (trees that become dormant
in the winter and
lose their leaves)
Productivity is moderately high.
4.
Grassland
Includes the prairies of North America, the steppes of Eurasia,
the pampas of South America, the veld
of Africa.
The area is usually flat or gently rolling hills.
Natural grassland areas are extensively and
intensively used for Human agriculture -
only a very few natural remnants are left, e.g. along old railroad
rights-of-way.
Vegetation consists of different types of grasses.
Climate consists of cool to cold winters and hot and dry summers.
Rainfall is between 10 inches and 30
inches per year.
Productivity is lower than the deciduous forest.
5.
Savanna
A savanna is basically a grassland with widely scattered trees.
Savannas are found in Africa, South America, and Australia.
The climate consists of moderate rainfall (30 - 60 inches of rain per year).
The rainfall is about the
same as for the temperate deciduous forest, however the
rainfall in a savanna is highly seasonal with
long dry periods each year.
6.
Desert
The defining characteristic is the climate with very little water - rainfall
less than 10 inches per year.
Temperatures vary considerably in different deserts.
Some deserts are very hot, while others are very
cold.
Productivity is very low with sparse plant growth.
Brief spurts of growth and reproduction occur after
a rare rain.
7. Tropical Rainforest = Jungle
The climate consists of high temperatures and very high rainfall (about 400
inches per year)
Productivity is very high.
Diversity is very high.
Tropical rainforests cover only about 2% of the earth's land surface, but they
are home to about half
of all the earth's species.
The soil is very poor, since the organic material in the tropical ecosystems is
mainly in the plants and
recycled rapidly.
Less than one-fourth of the organic material in an ecosystem is in the
soil. If you clear
the land and plant crops, you get very
poor production. In contrast, in
temperate regions, such as in the
USA, over one-half of the organic material
in an ecosystem is in the soil..
8. Oceanic "Biome"
The Oceans consist of salty water and makeup about two-thirds of the earth's
surface.
In general, overall, the ocean is not very productive compared to other biomes.
The reason is there are
very small amounts of nutrients out in the
ocean. People have a misconception
of this, since the edges
of the ocean are very productive.
The "Immeasurable riches" of the sea is a gigantic myth, from the
perspective of food production. Just
as much of the land area is not suited for
agriculture, about 90% of the ocean is essentially a
"biological desert."
The upper layer of the ocean, where there is enough light for
photosynthesis,
lacks the nutrients necessary
for high productivity.
The edges of the ocean are extremely productive.
Marsh estuaries have many nutrients available.
Half of all fish production in the ocean
is dependent upon the marshes around the edge as a nursery
ground for the young.
Humans are busily destroying the most productive part of the ocean by filling in
and polluting the
marshes around the ocean edges.
Furthermore, modern fishing fleets are completely wiping out
historically productive fishing grounds
with no thought to the future.
Food production from the ocean will, indeed, be an important part of food
resources for Humans,
but primarily for communities that live
near the ocean edges.
Current Percentage Metric Time is |
|
O'Clock |
Front Page |
Dr. Winstead's Blood Pressure Tracker: Free Templates for Graphing Blood Pressure in Microsoft Excel
Dr. Winstead's Current Local and World Standard Percentage Metric Time Clock