Ecosystem & the Biosphere

1. Ecosystem & the Biosphere Honors Biology

2. Earth’s Major Biomes

3. Tundra Did you know that the Arctic Tundra is the world's youngest biome? It was formed 10,000 years ago. Located at latitudes 55° to 70° North, the tundra is a vast and treeless land which covers about 20% of the Earth's surface, circumnavigating the North pole.

4. Tundra • A cold & largely treeless biomes • Forms a continuous belt across northern North America, Europe & Asia • Largest & northernmost biome • Covers 1/5 of the worlds land surface

5. Tundra Climate • It is cold through all months of the year • Summer is a brief period of milder climates when the sun shines almost 24 hours a day. (6-10 weeks) • It has been called "the land of the midnight sun". • It never gets any warmer than 45 or 50° F. Winter temperatures don't reach above 20° F and average -20° to -30°F. • Unusually cold and dry climate • Precipitation totals 6-10 inches of rain/year, which includes melted snow

6. Permafrost • Permafrost is a permanently frozen layer of soil under the surface, characterizes the tundra • Even the surface soil above the permafrost remains frozen for all but 8 weeks of the year

7. Melting permafrost

8. Trees do not usually grow because the winters are long & extremely cold Permafrost prevents their roots from penetrating far into the soil Plants on the Tundra Colorful wildflowers bloom from the end of June to the end of July. There are many flowering plants like purple saxifrage,mountain havens, wild crocus, arctic poppies, buttercups, cinquefoil, moss companion, campanulas, arctic azaleas and arctic lupine

9. Animals on the Tundra Artic Fox Caribou Polar Fox Polar Bear Snowy Owl THE ARCTIC HARE lives farther north than any other hare

10. Forest Biomes Forest biomes are divided into three main types: 1. Tropical 2. Temperate 3. Boreal (or Taiga)

11. Tropical Forest Did you know that the tropical rain forest is a forest of tall trees in a region of year-round warmth. Rainforests now cover less than 6% of Earth's land surface. Scientists estimate that more than half of all the world's plant and animal species live in tropical rain forests. Tropical rainforests produce 40% of Earth's oxygen.

12. Tropical forest • Occurs near the equator known as the tropics • Includes parts of Asia, Africa, S. America, & Cent. America • Stable temperature and abundant rainfall make tropical forest the most productive biome type

13. Tropical forest have 2 seasons • One wet and one dry • Tropical rain forest are characterize by long wet seasons and tall trees and plants that grow year-round • Tropical dry forest have long dry seasons during which trees lose their leaves • Temperate Rain Forest: are found on the Olympic peninsula in Washington state and in other places throughout the world, such as South America, New Zealand, and Australia

14. Plants in the Rain Forest • Competition for light is intense and small plants live on the branches of tall trees called epiphytes. (mosses, orchids, bromeliads) • Most plants are trees, & some have evolved to grow as tall as 50 to 60 m • Treetops for a continuous layer called the canopy which shades the forest floor

15. Epiphytes (EP-uh-FIETS)

16. Animals of the Rain Forest • animal life is very diverse • Vertebrates ie: kinds of monkeys, snakes, lizards & birds • Insects species are particularly diverse ie: there is more than 1 million species of tree-dwelling beetles • Probably contain about ½ of the worlds species

17. Animals of the Rainforest tucan Chimpanzee King Cobra

18. The canopy layer, 25-45 meters high, is a living roof The tree tops are exposed to rain, sunlight, and strong winds Animals found: monkeys, & scarlet macaws Rain Forest: Canopy

19. In the understory, the air is still, humid, and dark. Vines grow from the soil to the canopy The limbs of the trees are hung with a thick layer of epiphytes, plants that get most of their moisture from the air Animals/Plants found: leaf cutter ants, insects, bats, ferns, & dwarf palm Rain Forest: Understory

20. The ground layer is a moist forest floor. Leaves and other organic materials decay quickly Roots spread throughout the top 18 inches of soil There is great competition for nutrients Animals found: rodents, cats, ants, termites, worms, bacteria, fungi… Rain Forest: Ground

21. Tropical Rain Forest Climate • The average temperature is about 250C and receive at least 200 cm of rain annually • Rain forests belong to the tropical wet climate group • One reason for the large number of niches in rain forests is vertical layering

22. Some rain forest plants are important sources of medicine Hardwood trees provide a source of income for people Agricultural land is not common in rain forests because do not have a large amount of organic matter because leaf matter which disappears so quickly. Once rain forest soil is exposed and farmed, it becomes hard, almost brick-like, and nutrient-poor in a matter of a few years. Importance of the Rain Forest

23. Temperate Forest • The deciduous forest has four distinct seasons, spring, summer, autumn, and winter. In the autumn the leaves change color. During the winter months the trees lose their leaves.

24. Temperate Deciduous Forest • Occur in N. America, W. & Cent Europe, & NE Asia • Characterized by distinct seasons and a moderate climate • Can be characterized by the type of tree that is most common 1. Coniferous Trees: bear seeds in cones 2. Deciduous Trees: shed their leaves each year

25. Temperate Forest Climate • The average annual temperature in a deciduous forest is 50° F. The average rainfall is 30 to 60 inches a year.

26. Temperate Forest Animals • Animals hibernate in the winter and living off the land in the other three seasons. • animals adapt to the land by trying the plants in the forest to see if they are good to eat for a good supply of food. • trees provide shelter • Animal use the trees for food and a water sources. • Most of the animals are camouflaged to look like the ground.

27. Temperate Forest Animals White Tail Deer American Black Bear Bald Eagle

28. Temperate Forest Plants • The plants have adapted to the forests by leaning toward the sun. Soaking up the nutrients in the ground is also a way of adaptation.

29. Temperate Forest Plants Pecan American Beech Lady Fern

30. Taiga or Boreal Forest • Taiga is the Russian word for forest and is the largest biome in the world

31. Taiga/Boreal Forest • Just south of the tundra lies another biome that circles the north pole • Also called the boreal or northern coniferous forest • Somewhat warmer and wetter than tundra, but still harsh with long severe winters and short mild summers • The topsoil, which develops slowly from decaying coniferous needles, is acidic and poor in minerals

32. Taiga Animals Snowshoe Rabbit Wolverine American Black Bear

33. Taiga Plants Balsam Fir Douglas Fir Eastern Red Cedar

34. Taiga Climate • The average temperature is below freezing for six months out of the year. • The winter temperature range is -54 to -1° C (-65 to 30° F). • The winters, as you can see, are really cold, with lots of snow • The summer gets as low as -7° C (20° F). The high in summer can be 21° C (70° F).

35. Grasslands • Grasslands are dominated by a variety of grasses • Grasslands are known by different names in different parts of the world • Prairies: North America • Steppes: Asia • Pampas: South America • Veldts: South Africa

36. 1. Temperate Grassland

37. Temperate grasslands • Usually formed in the interior of continents at about the same latitude as temperate deciduous forest • Rainfall patterns make these areas too dry to support trees • Have rich fertile soil

38. Once covered a large portion of the US and supported huge herds of herbivores like bison Temperate grasslands

39. The American Bison Temperate Grassland Animals & Plants

40. 2. Savanna

41. Savanna • Savanna is a grassland community with scattered individual trees. This Biome covers areas of central South America, central and southern Africa and parts of Australia. • The climate generally shows 3 distinct seasons: cool and dry, hot and dry, warm and wet, in that order.

42. Soils are generally porous with a thin humus layer; and water drainage is rapid. Large herbivores (zebras, giraffes) and burrowing animals are commonly most active in the rainy season and many are nocturnal.

43. 3. Chaparral

44. Chaparral • Chaparral (scrubland) are regions of dense, spiny shrubs with tough evergreen leaves found along coasts where cool ocean currents circulate offshore to make mild, rainy winters and long, hot dry summers • Occur in Mediterranean and coastlines of California, Chile, SW Africa, and S. W. Australia. • This type of habitat is maintained by periodic fires

45. Many shrubs have root systems and seeds that are adapted for fire; root crowns may be fire resistant and resprout quickly, others have seeds that only germinate after a fire. Other plants are colonial and use asexual reproduction. Browsers such as deer, fruit-eating birds, rodents, snakes and lizards are common Chaparral Plants & Animals

47. Desert • Are areas that receive an average of less than 25 cm of rainfall/year

48. Desert Climate • Areas: large parts of N. Africa, Cent. Australia, SW N.A., E. Asia • Temperatures may fall to as much as 54 F at night b/c the dry air is poor insulators (heat builds during the day, but escapes at night)

49. Cold Deserts • Contrary to popular belief, not all deserts are hot. • The Great Basin (W. U.S.) and the Gobi ( E. Asia) are hot in the summer and cold in the winter Gobi Desert

50. Vegetation • Leaves have a waxy covering that reduces evaporation • Plants have only few stomata and may only open at night • Cactus is common type