1. Lawrence Garber Jack Dugan Brendon Godshall
Biomes
Desert
Lawrence Garber
Jack Dugan
Brendon Godshall

2. Geological Features Sand Hills Flat land
Rocky, with mountains in some deserts
Very scarce vegetation
Scattered oases

3. Temperature Desert temperatures vary greatly between night and day
Day temperatures reach up to 113°F
Night temperatures drop to 32°F

4. Precipitation Very little rain Precipitation occurs unpredictably
Mostly less than 30 cm of precipitation every year

5. Types of Plants Vegetation consists of low, spread out plants
Desert plants have adapted to include resistance to heat, drought and predators
Example: cacti-adapted to predators and heat with spines and hollow trunks which store water during droughts

6. Types of Animals
Most animals Inhabiting the desert are reptiles: lizards and snakes
Insects also populate the desert:
Ex.- scorpions, beetles and ants
Migratory and resident birds are also found in the desert

7. Human Impact Off-road driving Safaris dwindle animal population
Human irrigation, turning deserts into wetlands
Nuclear weapons testing

8. Save the Desert!!! Humans should stop digging irrigation canals
We should stop developing the desert for human use
Building of towns and cities in deserts should be stopped because they use groundwater, which changes the ecosystem of the desert

9. Commercial Value of Deserts
Sodium nitrate (used for fertilizer & explosives)
Sodium chloride (salt)
$1 billion worth of borates were mined from deposits at Searles Lake, CA and other deserts
Iron, lead-zinc ore, gold, silver, and uranium
Oil, especially in the Middle-East is abundant in deserts

10. Bibliography/Works Cited
"Mineral Resources in Deserts." USGS Publications Warehouse. Publications Service Center, 29 Oct Web. 23 Oct <
"[Biomes - Living Worlds] :: Impact :: Desert :: Destruction of Desert." Oracle ThinkQuest Library. ORACLE Educational Foundation. Web. 23 Oct <
Biggs, Alton. "Chapter 3, Section 2, Communities and Biomes." Biology the Dynamics of Life. New York: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, Print.
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