Biomes Flashcards
1
Q
Tropical Rainforests
A
- lots of rain
- diverse evergreen (mosses, palms, vines)
- butterflies, birds, bats, small mammals
- multilayered canopy, little light penetration
2
Q
Savannas
A
- seasonal rainfall, frequent fires
- open, widely spaced trees, grasses and forbs
- grazing animals: elephant, rhino, zebra, giraffe, hyena
- Africa
3
Q
Desert
A
- little rain, less than 25cm per year, hot sands
- vegetation sparse: cacti, yucca, brittlebrush
- camels, reptiles, kangaroo mice
- 1/4 of world’s land surface
4
Q
Temperate Grasslands
A
- seasonal drought, occasional fires, moderate rainfall
- bison, antelope, wild horses
- most have been turned into farms or grazing land
- midwest
5
Q
Deciduous Forests
A
- mild climate, plentiful rain
- trees drop leaves in winter, e.g. maple, oak, elm
- deer, bear, raccoon
6
Q
Taiga
A
- little rain in summer
- pine, fir, spruce (needle evergreen trees)
- elk, moose, wolves, bear
- extensive fur trapping, lumber production
7
Q
Tundra
A
- permafrost within 1m of surface; windswept, boggy
- few trees, small, at margins of streams and lakes
- musk-oxen, caribou, reindeer, wolves, foxes, lynx
- lemming populations rise and fall
8
Q
Chaparral
A
- dry summer
- evergreen, spiny shrubs, low trees
- jackrabbit, wild goat, puma, skunk, cactus wren
- historically derived from deciduous forest
- Santa Ynez Mountains, Santa Barbara
9
Q
Polar Ice Caps
A
- almost no precipitation
- algae
- prokaryotes, small insects, penguins, beluga whale, polar bear
- sun barely rises in winter
- global warming threatens them
10
Q
Monsoon Forests
A
- seasonal rainfall, lots during monsoon season but not much otherwise
- deciduous trees, dense layer of shrubs/small trees
- bengal tiger, orangutan, silvery gibbon
11
Q
Biomes in Oregon
A
- deserts
- temperate grasslands
- deciduous forests
