1. Desert Ecosystems

2. Desert – an ecosystem found where there is very little rainfall.
Deserts are dry and hot. There are very few clouds.
Two kinds of deserts:
Hot deserts
Cold deserts
Temperatures are very warm all year round
The summers are very hot
Short, warm summers
Long, cold winters
Found in places near the north and south poles

3. Desert Plants
Many plants are found in the desert. They usually grow close to the ground.
These plants have special parts that help them save water.
The special parts are: thick stem, shallow and wide roots, and thick skin covered with spines instead of leaves.

4. Desert Animals There are many animals in the desert.
They can survive by eating other animals or by eating plants that store water.
To protect them from the hot sun, they stay in the shade or in their shelter.
Animals may build their shelters inside plants.
Some animals sleep during the day and are active at night.
Some animals have hard shells to protect them from losing much water.
More animals live in hot deserts than in cold deserts.

5. Anteater
Camel
Roadrunner
Gila monster (lizard)
Scorpion

6. Deserts in the United States
Great Basin Desert
Mojave Desert
Chihuahua Desert
Sonoran Desert

7. Great Basin Desert
Idaho
California
Nevada
Utah

8. Mojave Desert
Utah
California
Nevada
Arizona

9. Chihuahuan Desert
Arizona
New Mexico
Texas

10. Sonoran Desert
California
Arizona

11. Review What is a desert? How do plants survive in the desert?
How do animals survive in the desert?

12. Learn more about deserts
What is a Desert?
Desert plants
Chihuahuan Desert
Sahara Desert: The Sea of Sand
Desert Survival
Jobs in the Desert