1. Major Deserts of the World

2. Picture from National Geographic’s Surviving the Sahara

3. Learning Goals Know what a desert is and its characteristics. List the characteristics of both hot and cold deserts. Name the world’s largest deserts and be able to show where they are found on a map.

4. Desert – an ecosystem where there is very little precipitation. The essential feature of any desert is its dryness, or aridity. Deserts average less than 10 inches of precipitation a year. Precipitation - moisture in the form of rain, snow, hail, or sleet.

5. Desert Temperatures Hot and dry. Temperatures can range from 30° at night to 136° during the day. Cold Temperatures can be below freezing. Deserts located closer to the ___________ tend to be the hottest.

6. Desert Landforms Bedrock Gravel Sand

7. Wind erosion helps to shape the desert. Gravel “Desert Pavement”

8. Water erosion helps to shape the desert. The Grand Canyon was formed through water erosion.

9. Life in the Desert How can there be life in the desert with very little water and extreme temperatures? Adapt: to change or adjust for survival The key survival factor for people, animals, and plants is their ability to adapt to the environment.

10. Desert Plants Many plants are found in the desert. They usually grow close to the ground. These plants have special parts that help them save water. The special parts are: thick stem, shallow and wide roots, and thick skin covered with spines instead of leaves.

11. Desert Animals There are many animals in the desert. They can survive by eating other animals or by eating plants that store water. To protect them from the hot sun, they stay in the shade or in their shelter. Some animals sleep during the day and are active at night. Nocturnal: Active or awake at night or taking place during the night Some animals have hard shells to protect them from losing much water. More animals live in hot deserts than in cold deserts.

12. Roadrunner Scorpion Gila monster (lizard) Camel

13. Humans have changed the deserts Shrinking deserts: We have brought water in through irrigation. We have built dams to transport water to desert regions to help farmers and keep up with growth in the cities. Growing deserts: Desertification: the growth or expansion of deserts due to human activities. Semi-arid: receiving 10- 12 inches of annual precipitation and supporting only short grass.

14. Deserts in Africa

15. Deserts in Australia

16. Marsupial: A type of mammal that carries its young in a pouch that is part of its abdomen Aborigine: A native person who originally settled and lived in an area.

17. Deserts in Asia

18. Deserts in North America

19. Mojave Desert California Nevada Arizona Utah

20. Fault lines: a crack in Earth’s outer crust along which movement takes place

21. Sonoran Desert California Arizona

22. Chihuahuan Desert Arizona New Mexico Texas

24. South America ~ Patagonia

25. Basalt: A dark or black rock that looks like glass; Basalt forms when volcanic rock cools.

26. Habitat: the environment in which a plant or animal normally lives.

27. Vocabulary Aborigine: a native person who originally settled and lived in an area. Adapt: to change or adjust. Basalt: a dark or black rock that looks like glass; basalt forms when volcanic rock cools. Desertification: the growth or expansion of deserts due to human activities. Fault line: a crack in Earth’s outer crust along which movement takes place. Habitat: the environment in which a plant or an animal normally lives. Marsupial: a type of mammal that carries its young in a puch that is part of its abdomen. Nocturnal: active or awake at night or taking place during the night. Precipitation: moisture in the form or rain, snow, hail, or sleet. Semi-arid: receiving 10-12” of annual precipitation and supporting only short grass.

28. Learn more about deserts http://www.jlhs.nhusd.k12.ca.us/Classes/Science/Net_Lessons/Biomes /deserts.html#anchor325870http://www.jlhs.nhusd.k12.ca.us/Classes/Science/Net_Lessons/Biomes /deserts.html#anchor325870Desert information http://idptv.state.id.us/dialogue4kids/season3/desert/plants.html http://idptv.state.id.us/dialogue4kids/season3/desert/plants.html Desert information http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/desert/tplants.htmhttp://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/desert/tplants.htmDesert plants http://www.brainpop.com/science/ecology/desert/index.weml?&tried_ cookie=truehttp://www.brainpop.com/science/ecology/desert/index.weml?&tried_ cookie=trueDesert