GROUP: _________ (T = terrestrial; A = Aquatic)
Name: _________________________________
Using the internet or one of the textbooks on reserve in the library, research the following information.
Suggested websites include:
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/
http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/world_biomes.htm
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Laboratory/Biome/
https://royercenter.cwc.psu.edu/biodiversity/defined/biosphere/biomes-p5.html
Terrestrial Biomes
Biome
Precipitation
(amount)
Temperature
(range)
Tropical
rainforest
Wet tropical –
200-400 cm
Dry tropical –
150-200 cm
with seasonality
25-29 deg C
Desert
less than 30 cm/
year
Deserts can be
very hot (such
as Mohave or
Sahara) or very
cold (Gobi
Desert)
Savanna
seasonal, 3050 cm
24-29 deg C
Dominant plants (trees,
shrubs, cacti, herbs, grasses
etc…)
dominated by multiple strata of
woody plants
Major animals- insects,
grazers, predators, reptiles,
mammals etc…
High diversity in all animal
phyla
Human impacts
succulents, deeply rooted
shrubs and ephemeral herbs
reptiles, insects, nocturnal
mammals
Human Impact – loss of
aquifers, conversion to
agriculture, urbanization
large herbivores, some
predators, invertebrate
herbivores
urbanization, overhunting,
agriculture
scattered thorny trees,
grasses and forbs (annual
herbs)
Population growth leading to
mass loss of forest and species
Biome
Precipitation
(amount)
Temperature
(range)
Dominant plants (trees,
shrubs, cacti, herbs, grasses
etc…)
Plants: succulents, deeply
rooted shrubs and
ephemeral herbs; special
adaptations to dry
environments
Major animals- insects,
grazers, predators, reptiles,
mammals etc…
reptiles, insects, nocturnal
mammals
Human impacts
Chaparral
less than 30 cm/
year
Hot summers,
mild winters
Temperate
grassland
seasonal, 30100 cm/ year
hot summers,
cold winters
Plants: grasses and forbs
large grazing mammals,
burrowing mammals
conversion to agriculture,
urbanization
Temperate
broadleaf
forest
seasonal, 70200 cm/year
winter – 0 deg
C; summer
hot and humid
deciduous trees in multiple
strata with a closed canopy
nesting migratory birds;
small mammals
logging, conversion to
agriculture, urbanization
Tundra
seasonal, 20-60
cm/ year
long cold
below freezing;
summers warm
short, less than
10oC
Plants: lichens, mosses,
grasses, forbs
large migratory animals;
carnivores
oil extraction
Aquatic Biomes
loss of aquifers, conversion to
agriculture, urbanization
Type
Freshwater
or saltwater
or both?
Oxygen
rich or
oxygen
poor?
Nutrient rich
or nutrient
poor?
Thermocline
present? If yes, it
is always present
or seasonal
Major
photosynthesizers
(e.g. plants, algae,
phytoplankton)
Major animals
Human impacts
Lakes
Fresh with a
few
exceptions –
Great Salt
Lake and
Mono lake
have high
salinity (more
than the
ocean!!!)
Can be
both –
depends
on
nutrient
load
Can be both
Oligotrophic –
is nutrient
poor, oxygen
rich
Eutrophic is
nutrient rich,
oxygen poor
Seasonal in
most lakes
phytoplankton
Zooplankton,
invertebrates,
fish
Water pollution,
draining,
construction
Wetlands
both
poor
rich
absent
Aquatic and
marsh plants
Rich bird,
mammal and
invertebrate
fauna
Urbanization,
pollution
Streams and
rivers
fresh
Usually
rich is
moving
fast
Can be rich
in slow
moving ones
absent
Some algae and Fish and
aquatic plants
invertebrates
Dams, pollution,
rechannelization,
draw down for
irrigation
Estuaries
Brackish –
mix of salt
and fresh
poor
rich
absent
Algae, aquatic
plants, marsh
plants (cattails
and other
grasses)
Filled in for
urbanization,
pollution,
Invertebrates,
fish;
waterfowl
Type
Freshwater
or saltwater
or both?
Oxygen
rich or
oxygen
poor?
Nutrient rich
or nutrient
poor?
Thermocline
present? If yes, it
is always present
or seasonal
Major
photosynthesizers
(e.g. plants, algae,
phytoplankton)
Major animals
Human impacts
Intertidal
zones
salt
rich
poor
absent
algae
Mollusks,
crabs, other
invertebrates,
small fish,
pollution
Oceanic
pelagic zone
salt
rich
poor
May be present
in some areas
phytoplankton
Fish, marine
mammals
Overfishing,
pollution
Coral reefs
salt
rich
rich
absent
Algae that live
in the corals
Coral, fish,
crabs, sharks
medium rich
absent
none
Mostly
invertebrates
Pollution, global
warming,
overfishing,
damage from
chemicals and
dynamite
Little impact
from humans
currently
salt
Marine
benthic zone