BIOMES Chapter 6

A) What Is a Biome? (6.1) Large regions of land that are characterized by a specific type of climate and certain types of plants and animal communities. Made up of many individual ecosystems Vary according to their location from the equator

B) Biomes and Vegetation Biomes are described by the plants that grow there because plants determine the other organisms that can live there.

Plants in a particular biome have characteristics, specialized structures, or adaptations that allow them to survive in that biome. EX) cactuses have specialized structures to conserve and retain water

C) Biomes and Climate Climate determines which plants can grow in a certain area Temperature and precipitation are the 2 major important factors that determine a region’s climate Organisms adapt to these conditions and cannot survive when the climate changes.

All organisms need water- very important abiotic factor. The higher the temperature and precipitation, the taller and denser the vegetation is.

Biomes are also affected by latitude and altitude because they influence climate. Climate gets colder as latitude and altitude increases. EX) The trees of the rainforest grow closer to the equator while mosses and lichens grow closer to the poles.