Transcript Living Things and Their Environment

Living Things and Their
Environment
Lesson 5: Biomes
6 Major Biomes
Taiga
 Desert
 Tundra
 Grassland
 Deciduous Forest
 Tropical Rain Forest
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What is a biome?
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The land on Earth is divided into 6 kinds
of large ecosystem called biomes
In Greek: “bio” = life “omes” = group
bio + omes = biomes
life + group = life group
biomes = life group
What is a biome?
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Each biome has its own kind of:
 Climate
 Soil
 Plants
 Animals
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Tundra Biome map 1
Location: high northern latitudes
Climate: frigid winters, cool summers…VERY SHORT
GROWING SEASON !
Plants: Grasses, wildflowers, mosses
Animals: Oxen, arctic foxes, snowshoe hares, hawks,
polar bears
Tundra Biome
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World’s youngest biome
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Tundra biome formed 10,000 yrs ago
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Covers 20% of the Earth’s surface
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Tundra comes from the Finnish word
for barren land
Winds can blow 40-60 mph
Tundra Biome
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Ground is frozen all year round
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Winters are long and icy cold
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Can’t find many plants taller than 12in.
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Sun melts ice in the top layer of soil
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Permafrost, permanently frozen soil, keeps water fro
flowing downward.
Tundra Biome
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Like Desert: little precipitation
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Bc of permafrost: marshes and lakes
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Millions of Mosquitoes
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Mosquitoes can survive because they can
replace lost water with chemical glycerol
Glycerol = antifreeze
Tundra Biome
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Global Warming is melting the Tundra
every year
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The Tundra is a fragile environment.
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Any disturbance can cause major damage
Tundra Biome
Tundra Biome
Harlequin Duck
Buffalo
TAIGA BIOME map 2
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Taiga is the Russian word for “forest”
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It is the largest biome in the world
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The Taiga Biome covers 11% of the Earth
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It is also known as the boreal forest
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Location: mid- to high latitudes
Climate: very cold winters, cool
summers
Plants: spruce, fir, and other evergreens
Animals: rodents, snowshoe hares,
bears, caribou, wolves
TAIGA BIOME
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In the summer, birds migrate here.
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Millions of insects can be found.
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Chainsaws cut down trees.
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The Taiga is a major source of lumber.
TAIGA BIOME
Plants
Caribou Moss
Pine
White Spruce
Douglass Fir
Hemlock
TAIGA BIOME
Animals
Red Deer
Lynx
Bobcat
Snow Shoe Hare
Wolverine
Desert Biome map 4
Sahara Desert
Largest Desert:
3,500,000mi
Gobi Desert
Atacama Desert
2nd Largest Desert:
500,000mi
Driest Desert:
600mi
Desert Biome
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Location: midlatitudes- near the
Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn
Climate: hot days, cool nights,
precipitation less than 4 cm a year
Plants: cacti, yuccas, shrubs, trees
Animals: rodents, snakes, lizards,
tortoises, insects, and some birds
Desert Biome
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A desert is a sandy or rocky biome
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It has little precipitation & plant life
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Every continent has at least one
desert
The Sahara is the largest desert
The Sahara would cover the entire
continental United States
Desert Biome
Desert Ironwood
Barrel Cactus
Crimson Hedgehog
Cactus
Saguoro Cactus
Ocotillo
Desert Biome
Bobcat
Banded Gila Monster
Kangaroo Rat
Desert Bighorn Sheep
Coyote
Grassland Biome map 3
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Location: Midlatitudes, interiors of
continents
Climate: Cool winter, hot summer, 25-75
cm of precipitation/year
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Soil: Rich topsoil
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Plants: Mostly grasses and shrubs
Grassland Biome
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Grass is the main plant life
Rainfall irregular and not usually plentiful
Grassland example:
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Praires- bread basket of the world
Grasslands have changed
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Now covered in crops such as:
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Wheat
Corn
Oats
Grassland Biomes
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American Grassland Animals
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Prairie dogs
Foxes
Snakes
African Grassland Animals
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Elephants
Lions
Zebras
Giraffe
Grassland Biome
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Grassland Example:
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Savannas
Stay warm all year round
 Soil is not as fertile
 Get more rain (34-60in.)
 Most famous:
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Africa
More hoofed animals in
savannas than anywhere else
on Earth
Grassland Biome
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Much of the land is being used more and
more to graze domestic cattle
Soon, they will replace the native animals
Deciduous Forest
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map 6
Deciduous means the leaves fall to
the ground.
In the deciduous forest biome, leaves
change color in the fall, fall to the
ground, and decay.
Deciduous forests once covered most
of the US east of the Mississippi
River and Western Europe
Deciduous Forest
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Location: Midlatitudes
Climate: Mild summers and cold
winters. 150 cm of rain/year
Plants: Hardwoods such as oaks,
beeches, hickories, maples
Animals: wolves, deer, bears, birds,
amphibians, reptiles, and insects
Deciduous Forest
American Beech
Lady Fern
White Oak
White Birch
Shagbark Hickory
Deciduous Forest
Brown Bear
Moose
Bald Eagle
Black Bear
Wolf
Tropical Rain Forest
 Location:
map 5
near the equator
 Climate: hot all year round,
humid, rainy
 Plants: greatest diversity; vines,
orchids, ferns
 Animals: most species of insects,
reptiles, and amphibians
Tropical Rain Forest
 Multiple
layers in the forest
 Tree canopy = wide umbrella
 The canopy is so thick, sunlight
never reaches the ground
 Limited sunlight means limited
ground growth
Tropical Rain Forest
Tropical Rain Forest Tree Canopy
Tropical Rain Forest
Most of the
The howler
life in the
monkey
tropical
and purple
rain forest
is found up
high in the
branches.
orchids can
be found
clinging to
the treetops
Tropical Rain Forest
Tropical rain forests can be found in…
India
Africa
South America
Australia
Pacific Islands
India
Tropical Rain Forest
 Victims
to people’s needs:
 Lumber
 Farmland
 Minerals
India
Tropical Rain Forest
Millions of animals live in the tropical rain forests
India
Many have yet to be discovered…
Tropical Rain Forest
People are
starting to
replant and
restore the
world’s
tropical
rainforests.
Still, some
species will
become
extinctIndia
before ever
being
discovered.
Tropical Rain Forest
The Tropical Rain Forest is home
to the world’s most colorful birds
India
QUETZALS
TOUCANS
Tropical Rain Forest
…And some of the largest snakes…
India
Anaconda
Tropical Rain Forest
Tropical
Yet they
Rainforests
hold
now cover
half of the
less than
world’s
6% of the
plants and
Earth.
animals.
Tropical Rain Forest
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25% of medicine comes from rainforest
 Curare- anesthetic and muscle relaxer
 Quinine- treats malaria
 Rosy Perwinkle- treats leukemia
Tropical Rain Forest
There is thought to be…
…over 1400 kinds of plants
that could one day lead…
…to a cure for cancer!
Marine Biome
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Largest biome in the world
Covers 70% of the Earth
Includes 5 main oceans:
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Indian
Atlantic
Pacific
Southern
Artic
Marine Biome
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Usually very salty
Average 1 cup of salt per gallon of water
3 Vertical Zones
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Top Layer: Euphotic Zone
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2nd Layer: Disphotic Zone
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Light penetrates
Only some light penetrates (dusk)
3rd Layer: Aphotic Zone
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No light penetrates (deep sea)
Marine Biome
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Deep sea:
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Very cold and completely
dark
80% of habitats on earth
found here
Deepest point: Mariana
Trench
Deeper than Mt. Everest is tall
 36,200 feet deep
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Marine Biome
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Weather:
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Marine Biome effects our climate
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Constant motion of ocean results in:
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Sunny or cloudy
Currents and waves
Water Temperature
Range from nearly freezing to as warm as bathtub
 Average temperature: 39 degrees
 Sun only warms up surface water
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Marine Biome
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Plants:
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Over 1 million plants and animals discovered
in the ocean
Scientist say there may be 9 million yet to be
discovered
Algae: Very Important
Without it we wouldn’t be able to breathe
 Provides most of world’s oxygen
 Consumes tons of carbon dioxide
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Marine Biome
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Plants:
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Kelp
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Important because:
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Provides shelter and food
Used by humans for: toothpaste and ice cream
Buffer: absorbs energy from waves before shoreline
Phytoplankton
Tiny plants serve as food for ocean creatures
 Provide world with almost half oxygen
 Live in euphotic zone because needs sun’s energy
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Marine Biome
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Animals:
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Home to most of earth’s biodiversity
Mollusks, fish, whales, crustaceans, bacteria,
fungi, sea anemones and many other animals
Most marine mammals have blubber
Sea otters have fur
1,000,000 hairs per square inch
 Most people have ten times less than that on their
heads
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Marine Biome
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Animals:
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Blue whale
Is the biggest animal on earth
 Over 100 feet long
 Person could crawl through main arteries
 20 people could stand on their tongue
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Angler Fish
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Deals with the darkness by attracting its prey with
a lure lit up by light-producing bacteria