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Biomes of the World - Coggle Diagram

- - - - Climates across the world became steadily cooler during that period. Lower ocean surface temperatures reduced water evaporation, which slowed the whole hydrologic cycle, with less cloud formation and precipitation. The vegetation of midlatitude regions, lying between the wet equatorial areas and the moist cool temperate zones, was affected substantially.
    - - In general, savannas grow in tropical regions 8° to 20° from the Equator. Conditions are warm to hot in all seasons, but significant rainfall occurs for only a few months each year—about October to March in the Southern Hemisphere and April to September in the Northern Hemisphere.
    - - Savannas arose as rainfall progressively lessened in the edges of the tropics during the Cenozoic Era (66 million years ago to the present)—in particular, during the past 25 million years. Grasses, the dominant plants of savannas, appeared only about 50 million years ago, although it is possible that some savanna-like vegetation lacking grasses occurred earlier.
- - - - Animals found in the tundra include the musk ox, the Arctic hare, the polar bear, the Arctic fox, the caribou, and the snowy owl. Many animals that live in the tundra, like the caribou and the semipalmated plover, migrate to warmer climates during the winter. Others, like the arctic ground squirrel, hibernate during the winter months. There are very few reptiles and amphibians found in the tundra because the temperatures are so cold.
    - - The tundra is the coldest of the biomes. It also receives low amounts of precipitation, making the tundra similar to a desert. Tundra is found in the regions just below the ice caps of the Arctic, extending across North America, to Europe, and Siberia in Asia.
    - - Animals are adapted to handle long, cold winters and to breed and raise young quickly in the summer. Animals such as mammals and birds also have additional insulation from fat. Many animals hibernate during the winter because food is not abundant. Another alternative is to migrate south in the winter, like birds do.
- - - - Grassland, an area in which the vegetation is dominated by a nearly continuous cover of grasses.
    - - Grasslands are called different things in different areas. In Africa, they are often referred to as savannahs or veldts, while in Australia they’re called rangelands. In North America, people call them prairies and in Asia they’re called steppes
        
        Grasslands occur in environments conducive to the growth of this plant cover but not to that of taller plants, particularly trees and shrubs.
- - - - Because a winter snowpack is a dependable feature of the taiga, several mammals display obvious adaptations to it. The snowshoe, or varying, hare (Lepus americanus), for example, undergoes an annual change in colour of its pelage, or fur, from brownish or grayish in the summer to pure white in the winter, providing effective camouflage.
      - The taiga regions of North America and Eurasia are broad belts of vegetation that span their respective continents from Atlantic to Pacific coasts. In North America the taiga occupies much of Canada and Alaska. Although related transition forest types are present in the northern tier of the lower 48 United States, true taiga stops just north of the southern Canadian border. The vast taiga of Asia extends across Russia and southward into northeastern China and Mongolia.
      - Taiga forests experience lengthy winters and low precipitation and in general, have a cold climate fueled by the Arctic. Fruit-bearing bushes such as lingonberry and wild strawberries can be found in the Taiga forest biome and lichens and moss are common. Ferns and grasses are also present in this ecosystem.
      - Several mammals of the boreal region are valued for their furs, and trapping and trade in furs have been an important part of the culture, economy, and history of the region as long as humans have lived there. Important fur-bearing species include lynx and marten (Martes americana) and, in wetland habitats, beaver (Castor canadensis), American mink (Neovison vison), and muskrat (Ondatra zibethica).
- - - - Rainforests usually occur in regions where there is a high annual rainfall of generally more than 1,800 mm (70 inches) and a hot and steamy climate. The trees found in these regions are evergreen.
    - - Rainforests are characterized by a closed and continuous tree canopy, high humidity, the presence of moisture-dependent vegetation, a moist layer of leaf litter, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire.