Lesson Overview

1. Lesson Overview 4.4 Biomes

2. THINK ABOUT IT • Why does the character of biological communities vary from one place to another? • Why, for example, do temperate rain forests grow in the Pacific Northwest while areas to the east of the Rocky Mountains are much drier? • How do similar conditions shape ecosystems elsewhere?

3. The Major Biomes • What abiotic and biotic factors characterize biomes? • Biomes are described in terms of abiotic factors like ___________and, _____________ and biotic factors like __________ and _________life.

4. The Major Biomes • _______________ and the ______ __________________ are two factors that affect global climate. • Other factors, among them an area’s________________________ _________________________, also influence climate.

5. Regional Climates • In Oregon, ____________that flow from north to south have the effect of making summers in the region cool relative to other places at the same latitude.

6. Regional Climates • Oregon borders the Pacific Ocean, and moist air carried by winds traveling ______________ is pushed upward when it hits the Rocky Mountains. • This air expands and cools, causing the moisture in the air to ____________ and form __________.

7. Regional Climates • The clouds drop rain or snow, mainly on the ______________ of the mountains. • As the air sinks on the downwind side of the mountain, it expands, warms, and ______________________. • As a result, west and east Oregon have very _______________ _________________, and different climates mean different plant and animal communities.

8. Defining Biomes • Ecologists classify Earth’s terrestrial ecosystems into at least ten different groups of regional climate communities called _______. • Biomes are described in terms of abiotic factors like ________ ______________, and biotic factors like _________________. • Major biomes include tropical rain forest, tropical dry forest, tropical grassland/savanna/shrubland, desert, temperate grassland, temperate woodland and shrubland, temperate forest, northwestern coniferous forest, boreal forest, and tundra.

9. Defining Biomes

10. Defining Biomes • Each biome is associated with seasonal patterns of temperature and precipitation that can be summarized in a graph called a ____________. • A climatogram shows the average _____________ and ________________ at a given location during each month of the year. On this climate diagram, temperature is plotted as a red line, and precipitation is shown as vertical blue bars.

11. Defining Biomes • Organisms within each biome can be characterized by ____________________ that enable them to live and reproduce successfully in the environment. • However, even within a defined biome, there is often considerable __________among plant and animal communities. • These variations can be caused by differences in ___________, __________________, or local _________________________. • Local conditions also can change over time because of ______ ____________________or because of community interactions.

12. _________________________ • Tropical rain forests are home to _____________than all the other biomes combined. • Rain forests get at least ____________of rain a year!

13. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Tall trees form a dense, leafy covering called a ___________ from 50 to 80 meters above the forest floor. In the shade below the canopy, shorter trees and vines form a layer called the ________________. • Organic matter on the forest floor is ___________________ so quickly that the soil in most tropical rain forests is __________ in minerals.

14. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Abiotic Factors: • Rain forests are _______ and ________________. • They have ___________________ that are subject to erosion.

15. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Biotic Factors – Plant Life • _________________compete for sunlight, so most have ___ ______________that maximize capture of limited light.

16. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Tall trees growing in poor shallow soil often have _____________ for support.

17. Buttress Roots

18. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • _________________grow on the branches of tall plants as opposed to soil. This allows the epiphyte to take advantage of available ______________ while obtaining nutrients through its host.

19. Epiphytic Plants

20. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Animals are_____________. Many animals use _____________to hide from predators, and some can _________________to match their surroundings.

21. TROPICAL RAIN FOREST • Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Animals that live in the _____ have adaptations for climbing, jumping, and/or flight.

22. _____________________________ • _______________ grow in areas where rainy seasons alternate with dry seasons. • In most places, a short period of _______ is followed by a prolonged period of _________.

23. TROPICAL DRY FOREST • Abiotic Factors • Tropical dry forests are__________________, with alternating ___ and ____ seasons. • Their __________ are subject to _________.

24. TROPICAL DRY FOREST • Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Adaptations to survive the dry season include ________________________________. • A plant that sheds its leaves during a particular season is called ____________________. • Some plants also have an extra thick ____________ _________________to reduce water loss, or they ______________________ in their tissues.

25. TROPICAL DRY FOREST • Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Many animals reduce their need for water by entering long periods of inactivity called ________________. • Estivation is similar to __________________ , but typically takes place during a __________ season. • Other animals, including many birds and primates, ______________ to areas where water is available during the dry season.

26. ____________________________________ • This biome receives more seasonal rainfall than ____________ but less than __________________. • ______________are spotted with isolated ______ and small groves of trees and shrubs.

27. TROPICAL GRASSLAND/SAVANNA/SHRUBLAND • ______________, fairly__________, and the _____________________ prevent some areas from turning into dry forest.

28. TROPICAL GRASSLAND/SAVANNA/SHRUBLAND Abiotic Factors • This biome is ________, with __________________. • The soil is __________, and there are ____________set by lightning.

29. TROPICAL GRASSLAND/SAVANNA/SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Plant adaptations include ___ ___________________and _______________________.

30. TROPICAL GRASSLAND/SAVANNA/SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Some grasses have a high ______ content that makes them less appetizing to grazing herbivores. Unlike most plants, grasses grow ____________, not their tips, so they can continue to grow after being grazed.

31. TROPICAL GRASSLAND/SAVANNA/SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Many animals ___________ during the dry season in search of water. • Some smaller animals _________ and _________________ during the dry season.

32. _____________________ • Deserts have __________________ of precipitation annually, but otherwise vary greatly, depending on elevation and latitude. • Many deserts undergo extreme _______________ _______________, alternating between hot and cold.

33. DESERT Abiotic Factors • Deserts have ______ precipitation and __________ ______________________. • Their soils are rich in ______________, but poor in _______________________.

34. DESERT Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Many plants, including cacti, _____ ___________ in their tissues, and minimize __________________ to cut down on water loss. Cactus spines are actually ___________ ____________.

35. DESERT Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Modified _______________ in some plants requires leaf pores to open _________________, enabling plants to __________ ____________on hot, dry days.

36. DESERT Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Many desert animals get the water they need from the _____ ______________. To avoid the hottest parts of the day, many animals are _____________—active only at night.

37. DESERT • Large or elongated ears and other extremities often have many ______________close to the surface to help the animal lose body heat and __________ _________________________.

38. Desert Adaptations

39. ____________________________ • _________ and ____________ once covered vast areas of the midwestern and central United States. • Periodic ________ and heavy __________ by herbivores maintained grassland plants. • Today, most have been converted for __________________ because their soil is so rich in nutrients and is ideal for growing crops.

40. TEMPERATE GRASSLAND • Temperate grasslands experience _____ _______________________________, with moderate seasonal precipitation. • The soil is ______and there are __________ ______.

41. TEMPERATE GRASSLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Grassland plants—especially _______, which _______________—are resistant to grazing and fire.

42. TEMPERATE GRASSLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • __________________ of seeds is common in this open environment. The root structure and growth habit of grassland plants help establish and retain deep, rich, fertile topsoil.

43. TEMPERATE GRASSLAND Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Because temperate grasslands are such open, exposed environments, _____________ is a constant threat for smaller animals. • ______________and __________ are two common protective adaptations.

44. __________________________________ • In open woodlands, large areas of grasses and wildflowers are interspersed with ___and other ______. • Communities that are more shrubland than forest are known as ___________. • Dense low plants that contain flammable oils make _______a constant threat.

45. TEMPERATE WOODLAND AND SHRUBLAND Abiotic Factors • The ______________experience hot dry summers and cool moist winters. • They have thin, ________________ and experience periodic ____________.

46. TEMPERATE WOODLAND AND SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Woodland plants have adapted to _________. • Woody chaparral plants have tough _____ ____________that resist water loss.

47. TEMPERATE WOODLAND AND SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Plant Life • Fire resistance is important, although the seeds of some plants ____________ to germinate.

48. TEMPERATE WOODLAND AND SHRUBLAND Biotic Factors – Animal Life • Woodland animals tend to eat varied diets of _____________ _______, and other vegetation. • In exposed shrubland, _______________ is common.

49. ________________________ • ________________are mostly made up of deciduous and evergreen coniferous trees. • _________________ trees, or conifers, produce seed-bearing cones, and most have needle-shaped leaves coated in a waxy substance that helps reduce water loss.

50. TEMPERATE FOREST • Temperate forests have _____________. In autumn, deciduous trees _____________. In the spring, small plants burst from the ground and flower. • The fertile soils are rich in _______, a material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter.