The Desert Biome

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The Desert Biome
DESERT RAP VIDEO
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C.H.A.M.P.S

• Conversation Level 0
• Help Raise hand
• Activity Lecture Notes
• Movement seated,unless given permission
• Participation teacher lead discussions
• Success annotating of notes.

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OBJECTIVE

• S.W.B.A.T analyze the different types of desert
  biomes to determine the many aspects that make up
  our deserts nationwide.
• S.W.B.A.T. use information gathered to hold
  group discussions about the desert, while using
  academic language.

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Desert Characterization

• A Desert is a region on Earth which receives less
  that 10in of annual rain fall, and is generally
  taken over by high temperatures.
• Deserts cover one fifth of all of Earths surfaces

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What is a desert?

• Deserts are formed by mountains blocking the
  path of precipitation

• Deserts can be hot or cold but they are always
  dry.

• They receive less than 25 cm of precipitation
  annually.

• They cover 22 million km2 or 1/5 of the earths
  surface.

• There are four major types of deserts

COASTAL
HOT DRY
COLD
SEMI-ARID
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Temperature

• Annual temperature ranges from 20-25º.
• Many deserts receive little rainfall.
• The heaviest rainfall occurs most frequently in
  April or May.

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Average Temperatures
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Formation of a Desert

• Many deserts have been formed by the flow of air
  masses over the planet.
• As the earth turns on its axis, it makes huge
  air swirls causing the hot air to rise over the
  equator and flow north and southward.
• This in turn sucks up moisture while warming the
  land which causes it to become dry.

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Desert Soil

• Caliche is a reddish-brown to white layer of soil
  found in many desert solids.
• This type of soil is formed by plants releasing
  water and carbon dioxide from their.
• Soils that form in arid climites mineral soils
  and have low organic contents.

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Water Channels

• In the desert, underground channels carry water
  from mountains that are most of the time near by
  into the desert.
• If the channels were not covered by the soil it
  the water would evaporate.
• Moisture in the desert can come from sources such
  as rain, sweat, dew, pools, lakes, sap, and
  breath, these evaporate quickly in the hot air.

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Winds

• A desert wind can vary from a warm breeze to a
  sand storm.
• Wind sometimes even sandblasts rocks which will
  then build sand dunes which can become 200 meters
  high

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Animals

• Animals in the desert must survive in a hostile
  environment. Intense heat, searing sun, and lack
  of water are just a few of the challenges facing
  desert animals.
• Animals that live in the desert have many
  adaptations.
• Some animals adapt by spending most of the day
  underground and out of the hot sun.
• Some animals rarely spend any time above ground.

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Plant an Animal Species

• Only second to the Rainforest, the Desert has the
  most variety of plant and animal species.
• Though many desert plants look different than
  plants in other Biomes.

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Addax

• The color of the addax varies widely between
  individuals, but there is always a mat of
  dark-brown hair on the forehead, and both sexes
  have thin, spiral horns.
• The addax has adapted to walking on soft sand,
  and they never drink, obtaining all the moisture
  they need from their food, which includes
  succulents.

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Cactus Wren

• . Cactus wrens are found in areas with thorny
  shrubs, cacti and trees and forage mostly on the
  ground around vegetation for insects, such as
  beetles, ants, wasps and grasshoppers, and
  occasionally lizards or small frogs.

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Desert Night Lizard

• The desert night lizard varies in coloration over
  its range but is marked with many small dark
  spots.
• Night lizards give birth to live young.
• It frequents yucca plants and agaves and feeds on
  termites, ants, beetles and flies, which it finds
  among vegetation or rocks.

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Blind Western Snake

• It lives almost anywhere where there is sandy or
  gravelly soil suitable for burrowing and spends
  much of its life below ground, occasionally
  emerging at dusk on warm evenings or on overcast
  days.
• It feeds on ants and termites, which it locates
  by smell, and with its slender body, it can enter
  right into their nests.

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Thorny Devil

• Its body is covered with bristles with large,
  conical spines, and it has spines above each eye
  and a spiny hump behind its head.
• It is a slow-moving creature, which forages for
  its food, mainly ants and termites, on the
  ground.

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Vulture

• Its powerful hooked bill cuts easily into
  carrion, and its bare head and neck save lengthy
  feather-cleaning after plunging deep into a messy
  carcass.
• The immense broad wings, with widely spaced
  primary feathers, are ideal for soaring and
  gliding for long periods.

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SaguaroCactus

• The green stem of the Saguaro Cactus stores all
  of its water.
• Photosynthesis occurs in the top layer of the
  stem instead of in leaves. Under ground this
  cactus has another adaptation that is hidden from
  us, its roots.
• Theses roots extend far away from its trunk. The
  roots collect water after rain and is then Stored
  in the stem,the water keeps the saguaro alive
  until the next rainfall.

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Fish Hook Cactus

• The fish hook shaped spines of the Fish Hook
  Cactus help divert heat and shade the growing tip
  of the plant.
• Many barrels lean further toward the sun as they
  grow. Some may eventually uproot themselves.

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Barrel Cactus

• The pleated shape of the Barrel Cactus allows it
  to expand when it rains and store water in its
  spongy tissue.
• It shrinks in size during dry times as it uses
  the stored water.

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C.H.A.M.P.S

• Conversation Level 2
• Help Group/elbow partner
• Activity Observing Puddle
• Movement Outside, walking
• Participation Sharing Predictions
• Success Active Participation