1. Module 4: Biomes of the World (Part-I)

2. Biomes are the the world's major communities, classified according to the predominant vegetation and characterized by adaptations of organisms to that particular environment (Campbell )
Biome is a large geographical region whose climate produces a characteristic climax association of plants and animals

3. Major Biomes of the World
Desert
Grassland
Forest
Tundra
Aquatic
Freshwater
Marine

4. Distribution of major biomes of the world

5. Key points to understand a biome
Climate
Distribution and geography
Special adaptations of vegetation
Types of animals found and their adaptations

6. Desert Biome: Distribution

7. Desert Biome Hot and Dry Deserts Semi-arid Deserts Coastal Deserts
Covers one fifth of the land surface
Rainfall is less than 50 cm per year
Specialized vegetation and animals
Soils have abundant nutrients, but little or no organic matter
Disturbances are fairly common
Hot and Dry Deserts
Semi-arid Deserts
Coastal Deserts
Cold Deserts

8. Hot and Dry Deserts: Distribution
North America: Chihuahua, Sonoran, Mojave and Great Basin; Southern Asia: Thar; Africa: Sahara, and Australia
                                     

9. Hot and Dry Deserts
Climate is warm throughout the year and very hot during summers
Evaporation rates exceeds rainfall
Soils are course-textured, shallow, rocky or gravely with good drainage; no subsurface water
Flora:
Cactus, ocotillo, turpentine bush, prickly pears, false mesquite, sotol, ephedras, agaves and brittlebush
Fauna:
Small nocturnal carnivores, insects, reptiles, birds

10. Sonoran desert

11. Hot and Dry Deserts: Animals
Thorny devil
Moloch horridus

12. Hot and Dry Deserts: Animals
Kangaroo-rat
Dipodomys spectabilis

13. Semi arid Deserts
Montana and Great Basin; North America, Newfoundland, Greenland, Russia, Europe and northern Asia.
Summers are moderately long and dry
Soil ranges from sandy to fine textured

14. Semi arid Deserts Flora:
Creosote bush, bur sage (Franseria deltoidea), Acacia constricta, cat claw cactus, Prosopis spp., brittle bushes (Encelia farinosa), Zizyphus spp.
Fauna:
Rabbits; insects like grasshoppers and ants; lizards and snakes; burrowing owls and the California thrasher

15. Semi arid Deserts

16. Coastal deserts Occur in moderately cool to warm areas
Soil is fine-textured with a moderate salt content; fairly porous with good drainage

17. Coastal Desert
Flora:
salt bush, buckwheat bush, black bush, rice grass, little leaf horsebrush, black sage, and Euphorbia spp.
Fauna:
spoonbill, sandpiper, coyote and badger, toads, great horned owl, golden eagle and the bald eagle, lizards and snakes

18. Coastal Desert: Fauna
spoonbill
Fennec fox
Dorcas gazelle

19. Cold Deserts
Cold winters with snowfall less than 10 inches; short, moist and moderately warm summers
Soil is heavy, silty and salty

20. Cold Deserts
Flora:
Bunchgrass, Artemisia spp.(sagebrush), Chrysothamnus spp. (rabbit bush)
Fauna:
Proghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, marco polo sheep, mountain lion

21. Marco polo sheep
Basin wildrye
Proghorn antelope

22. Grassland Biome: Distribution
Large terrains of grasses, herbs and grasses
Average annual precipitation is enough to support grasses; erratic..drought and fires prevent growing of trees
Soil is thin and dry

23. Steppes Dry, cold grassland
Found in USA, Mongolia, Siberia, Tibet and China
Found between forest and desert biome
Grasses dominate
                                                                                          

24. Steppes

25. Steppes: vegetation Rhubarb Rheum rhabarbarum Tumble weed
Salsola collina
Fringed sagebrush
Artimisia frigida

26. Steppes : Fauna
Saiga antelope
Saiga tatarica
Northern Lynx
Felis lynx

27. Prairies: Distribution
Found in North America
Dominated by herbaceous plants and grasses
                                                                                                

28. Prairies: Vegetation Indian grass Sorghastrum nutans Milkweed
Asclepias currasavica
Turkey feet grass
Andropogon gerardii

29. Prairies: Fauna American bald eagle Haliaeetus leucophalus Prairie dog
Cynomis ludovicianus

31. Pampas: Distribution Found in South America
Flat, fertile plains; warm, humid climate
Frequent fires
                                                                                                

32. Pampas: vegetation Geofrroy’s cat Silver pampas grass
Oncifelis geoffroyi
Silver pampas grass
Cortaderia selloana
Ombu
Phytolacca dioica

33. Savanna Also known as tropical grasslands
Warm temperature year around with a very long dry winter,and a lots of rain in the summer
                                                                                                

34. savanna

35. Savanna: Flora and Fauna
Cynodon dactylon, Pennesetum perpureum (napier grass/ elephant grass), Eucalyptus cinerea, Acacia tortilis, Acacia senegal
Fauna:
Elephant, buffaloes, antelopes, rhino, Giraffe, Wild Dog, Black Mamba, Caracal, Chacma Baboon, Egyptian Mongoose, Emu, Grant's Zebra, Koala Bear, Lion, leopard, cheetah, Nigriceps Ants, Nile Crocodile

36. Savanna: vegetation
Euphorbia ingens
Acacia tortilis

37. Savanna: Fauna
Emu
Black mamba
Egyptian mongoose
savanna baboons

38. Forest Biome Tropical forests Deciduous forests Alpine forests
Boreal forests OR Taiga

39. Tropical forest: Distribution
                                                        

40. Tropical Forest Biome Occur near the equator
Cover around 6% of the earth’s surface
Distinct seasonality: winter is absent, and only two seasons are present (rainy and dry).
Temperature and water are not limiting
Soil is nutrient-poor and acidic. Decomposition is rapid and soils are subject to heavy leaching
Greatest diversity of species

41. Tropical Forest Biome
Canopy is multilayered and continuous, allowing little light penetration
Vegetation:
mostly evergreen, with large dark green leaves. Plants such as orchids, bromeliads, vines (lianas), ferns, mosses, and palms are present
Fauna:
numerous birds, bats, small mammals, and insects

42. Tropical forest: vegetation
Bambusa tulda
Ceiba pentandra
Ficus spp.

43. Tropical forest: Fauna
spider
Golden toad

45. Temperate deciduous Forest Biome
Occur in eastern North America, northeastern Asia, and western and central Europe
Well-defined seasons with a distinct winter
Moderate climate and a growing season of days during 4-6 frost-free months

46. Temperate deciduous Forest Biome
Temperature varies from -30° C to 30° C
Precipitation ( cm) is distributed evenly throughout the year
Soil is fertile, enriched with decaying litter

47. Temperate deciduous Forest Biome
Flora:
Broad leaved deciduous plants-oak, hickory, pine, beech, hemlock, maple, basswood, cottonwood, elm, willow, and spring-flowering herbs
Fauna:
squirrels, rabbits,
skunks, birds, deer,
mountain lion, bobcat,
timber wolf, fox, and
black bear.

48. Alpine Forests: Distribution
                                                                                                
Himalayan mountains
Andes mountains…South America
Rocky mountains…western North America

49. Alpine: Climate
Found in the high mountains all over the world usually above 10,000 ft.
Cold and dry throughout the year
Soil is well drained
Vegetation:
Alpine Phaceli, Bear Grass, Bristle cone Pine, Moss Campion, Polylepis Forest, Pygmy Bitterroot, Wild Potato
Fauna:
mountain goat, snow leopard, Yak, Himalayan tahr, takin, marmot etc.

50. Himalayan Alpine: Distribution and climate
                                                                                            
Dry air, low precipitation
Harsh environment with long cold winters, mild short summers

51. Himalayan Alpine: Vegetation
Rhododendron spp.

52. Himalayan Alpine: Fauna
Snow leopard
Panthera uncia
Himalayan tahr
Hemitragus spp.
Yak
Bos grunniens

53. Himalayan Alpine: Fauna
Takin Budorcas taxicolor
Marmot Marmota himalayana

54. Taiga biome: Distribution
                                                        

55. Boreal forests/ Taiga biome
Largest terrestrial biome, covers 11% area
Broad belt of Eurasia and North America: two-thirds in Siberia with the rest in Scandinavia, Alaska, and Canada
short, moist, and moderately warm summers and long, cold, and dry winters
The length of the growing season is 130 days
Precipitation is primarily in the form of snow, cm annually.

56. Boreal forests/ taiga Soil is thin, nutrient-poor, and acidic
Canopy permits low light penetration, and as a result, under story is limited.
Flora :Evergreen conifers with needle-like leaves: Balsam Fir, Black Spruce, Douglas-fir, Eastern Red Cedar, Jack Pine, Paper Birch, Siberian Spruce, White Fir, White Poplar, White Spruce
Fauna: American Black Bear, Bald Eagle, Bobcat, Canadian Lynx, Gray Wolf, Grizzly Bear, Long-Eared Owl, Red Fox, River Otter, Snowshoe Rabbit, Wolverine

57. Taiga Biome: vegetation
Balsam fir Abies balsamea
Jack pine Pinus banksiana

58. Taiga Biome: vegetation
White Birch Betula populifolia
White popular Populus alba

59. Taiga Biome: vegetation
Douglas fir Pseudotsuga menziesii
White spruce Picea glauca

60. Taiga Biome: Fauna American Black bear Ursus americanus
Snow shoe rabbit
Lepus americanus
Bald eagle Haliaeetus leucocephalus

61. Tundra biome: Distribution
Tundra Finnish word ‘tunturia’ barren land
Bleak and treeless place
World’s youngest, coldest and driest biome..formed 10,000 years ago
Covers 20% of the Earth’s surface..Northern hemisphere

62. Tundra biome: Climate
The ground is permanently frozen 10 inches to 3 feet
Main seasons: Winter..summer
Average annual temperature -280C [ max –700C; max 120C]
Land of midnight sun
Strong winds; 6-10 inches of precipitation each year
One of the major sinks of carbon

63. Tundra biome: Lichens

64. Tundra biome: vegetation
Bear berry
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Adaptations: low growing plant; fine silky hair, leathery leaves
Arctic willow
Salix arctica
Arctic moss
Calliergon giganteum

65. Tundra biome: animals Arctic fox Lagopus alopex Caribou / Reindeer
Rangifer tarandus

66. References
Campbell, N.A. 1996. Biology, 4th Edition. The Benjamin/Cummings Publishing Company, Inc., Menlo Park, California.