Chaparral

1. Chaparral Gaby Samour and Stephanie Hoelbling

2. Climate • Chaparral climate is also known as Mediterranean, with hot and dry summers to nearly freezing winters. • Average temperatures range from 10-12 degrees Celsius (around 50° Fahrenheit) in the winter, to 30-40 degrees Celsius (86-104° Fahrenheit). There are many fires in the chaparral because of the heat and dryness. • This biome only gets about 10-17 inches of rain all year, and most of it comes in the winter, bringing in electric storms which can spark a natural wildfire easily due to the dryness of the land.

3. Geographic Information • Many scientists agree that chaparral exists in only five different spots in the world. These locations are the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of South America, in western North America, from southwestern Oregon through California to Baja, California, southwestern Australia, central Chile, and the coastal regions around much of the Mediterranean Sea. • There are two very high atmospheric rings in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. These rings lie between the latitude of 30° and 35° and produce hot, dry weather.

4. Native Plants • Many plants are drought and fire resistant to cope with the climate. • dwarfed eucalyptus trees • Manzanita [perennial shrub] • Saltmarsh Bird’s Beak • Coyote Brush • King Protea

5. Native Animals Because the chaparral contains patches of other biomes in it, it also shares some of the same animals that the other biomes do. However, the chaparral also has animals that depend and live solely in the biome. • Wild dogs called dingoes roam freely • A large number of hawks and eagles • Rattlesnakes • Coyote • Spotted Skunk

6. Invasive (non-Native) Species • 2 Examples : • Feral dogs known as dingoes in Australia and other countries • Feral cats and foxes

7. Predator/Prey Relationships • The spotted skunk has no known predators, however occasionally horned owls and bobcats may attack. The skunk’s prey are small mammals, such as rats and mice. • Dingoes pursue small game such as rabbits, rodents, birds, and lizards. Dingoes have no predator but only die due to starvation.

8. Major Environmental Concerns • Humans have hurt the Chaparral by cutting down trees that shelter birds and animals in order to build new suburbs. • Fires also started by humans are considered necessary by many to cut back on vegetation that could be fuel for fire. • Chaparral has the reputation of creating very hot fires that are difficult to control.

9. Major Environmental Concerns Cont. Burned chaparral has a difficult time regenerating and the open areas become more susceptible to weed invasion. Fires also started by humans are considered necessary by many to cut back on vegetation that could be fuel for fire.

10. Unusual creatures or features - Animals • Armadillo lizard- day time animal that eats insects. When threatened, it will curl up and put its tail in its mouth. The lizard contains spikes that cover its entire body. The animal is not endangered but has many enemies. • Aardwolf- furry hyena that looks like a dog. It has a muzzle that is black, round and is nearly hairless. It is a carnivore but is known as an insectivore. It eats termites and consumes about 200,000 to 300,000 termites a day.

11. Unusual Creatures and Features - Plants Fairy duster- is a plant that is found in a chaparral but has very bright pink coloring throughout it. It contains long spidery petals that have pink or orange puffballs at the ends of them. It is a member of the pea family and is often eaten by many of the chaparral animals.

12. Relationship to other biomes • Chaparral shares certain characteristics with its neighboring biomes. It grows between forests and grasslands, or between desert and grassland biomes. For example, both chaparral and desert contain cacti. Also, both grassland and chaparral suffer from drought and severe wild fires.

13. Australia • Most of Australia's population is concentrated in two widely separated costal regions. Half the area of the continent contains only 0.3% of the population, and the most densely populated 1% of the continent contains 84% of the population. • Christianity is the main religion for more then 70% of the country. • Australia is a country of multiple cultures with a broadminded liberal and comprehensive society. Most of the people of Australia are Europeans with a huge number of aboriginal populations that forms aboriginal Australian culture and these people have their own Australian culture food as well. • Australia’s major industries are mining and farming. Mining includes bauxite, coal, copper, gold, and iron ore. • Major Australian tourist attractions include the coral reefs and the outback • Three major cities in Australia are Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.

14. Thorny Devil • Moloch Horridus • The animal mostly eats ants and termites. It drinks water from mostly soil moisture and the small amounts of rain. • The devil is a slow moving animal that moves using all four of its legs. • The female thorny devil lays 3-10 eggs, usually in November or December. The hatched young are tiny replicas of their mothers. • Their habitat is the chaparral or any dessert area, mostly in southwestern Australia. • The thorny devil has the pointy spines all over its body to help protect itself from predators because its slow moving. It also will curl up like a ball so that predators will leave it alone because of the spikes. When disturbed the thorny devils will inflate themselves like a puffer fish. They can also change color rapidly to blend in with their surroundings. • The thorny devils are small lizards that are brown and have dark spots all over their body. It also has spikes that cover its entire body from head to tail.

15. Jarrah Tree • Eucalyptus Marginata • The jarrah tree gets its energy from the sun and grows in gravely soil but can occasionally grow in sand or loam. • It has a widespread distribution throughout all of southern Australia. • The flowers of the tree have a white cone-shaped bud cap. They also have a magnificent scent but grow every other year. The trees often reproduce from the flowers seeds but the trees live for up to 500 years. • They grow up to 40-50 meters high in an Australian Savannah. • One of the adaptations the jarrah tree has made is called a lignotuber. The lignotuber is a large swelling underground. This swelling can store carbohydrates, and can make it possible for a young jarrah to grow back after a fire. Another adaptation the jarrah tree has made is its long roots. This makes it possible to pull up underground water during a drought. This drought resistance is helpful in its natural dry habitat.

16. Work Cited • “Armadillo lizard”. Web. 18.Oct.2009 http://www.blueplanetbiome.org/armadillolizard.htm. • “Australian Culture, Culture of Australia.” World Map, Map of the World. Web. 20 Oct.2009. http://www.mapsofworld.com/australia/australia-culture/ . • “Australia Geography”. Kidport Home Page. Web. 20.Oct.2009. http://www.kidport.com/reflib/worldgeography/autralia/australia.htm#Maj orIndustries. • “Biomes- Living Woods :: Biomes/ chaparral.” Oracle Think Quest Library. Web. 20.Oct.2009. http://library.thinkquest.org/C0113340/main.php?section=biomes&topic=chaparral. • “Chaparral”. Web. 17.Oct.2009 http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/chaparral.htm. • “Jarrah Tree”. Web. 20.Oct.2009 http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/jarrahtree.htm. • “Thorny Devil”. Web. 19.Oct.2009 http://www.blueplanetbiome.org/thornydevil.htm. • “Religion in Australia.” World Religious Religion Statistics Geography Church Statistics. Adherents.com, 16 Dec.1999. Web. 20.Oct.2009. http://www.adherents.com/loc/loc_australia.html