Biomes

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Biomes

• Section 1
• What is a Biome?

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Biomes of the World
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What is a Biome?

• a large region characterized by a specific type
  of climate and certain types of plant animal
  communities
• made up of many individual ecosystems

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Biomes Vegetation

• biomes get their name from the plants that grow
  in the area
• WHY?
• plants cant move on their own (theyre stuck
  there!)
• plants determine what other organisms can live
  there (i.e. theyre the food source)

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Biomes Vegetation

• plants in a particular biome have
  characteristics, specialized structures, or
  adaptations that allow the plants to survive in
  that biome
• includes
• size
• shape
• color
• ability to conserve retain water

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Vegetation Examples

• rhododendron shrubs need cooler temps
• mahogany trees need warm, moist weather
• some shorter plants cant get enough water to
  grow taller
• most desert plants dont have leaves to conserve
  water

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Biomes Climate

• the climate in a region determines what plants
  can grow in that area
• this refers to the weather conditions
• temperature
• precipitation
• humidity
• prevailing winds
• in an area over a long period of time (average of
  20-50 years or more)

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Temperature Precipitation

• most organisms are adapted to live within a
  particular range of temps
• bigger organisms need more water -this is limited
  by the amount of precipitation
• overall higher temps and higher precipitation
  yields taller denser vegetation

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Latitude Altitude

• latitude the distance north or south of the
  equator (measured in degrees 0 to 90)
• altitude the height of an object above sea
  level
• both affect climate

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Latitude Altitude

• As both latitude altitude increase, the climate
  gets colder
• Ex. (latitude? altitude ? both?)
• climbing up the mountain
• moving to Alaska
• driving the Canadian Rockies

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Discussion

• The equator passes through the country of
  Ecuador. The climate in Ecuador can range from
  hot humid to cool dry. Explain what might
  cause this range in climates.