Major Biomes of the World

Sheina Rose C. Delfin

What's a
Biome? desert and grasslands
Here we see two different biomes—deserts on

the left and grasslands on the right. But both are
land environments. Images by Bob Protus and
Bkell.
 To make sense of complexity, humans often need to categorize, or group,
things. We have food groups, sexes, eye colors, ages, and movie genres, to
name a few. We categorize all types of things, whether they are ideas or
objects, and whether they are small or large. One of the largest things that
we try to categorize may be the types of environments found on Earth.

The natural world is more varied than we can imagine, and one way to try to make this
variation easier to handle is to put different environment types into groups. We can
divide our surroundings many ways—by how much water there is, by how warm it is,
or by the types of plants or animals we find there. Depending on what characteristics
we choose to describe an environment, the groupings we end up selecting may be
different.
 Usually we group the different natural areas on Earth into categories
based on plant and animal life and how they are able to survive in that
part of the world. Making groups based on living organisms can be very
complicated. We already know of over 1.7 million species of organism,
and there are likely over 17 million that exist. But again, by grouping
organisms with similar adaptations together, we can see through some of
the complexity and have a chance to better understand the living Earth.

This biome map shows both land (terrestrial) and water (aquatic) based habitat types.
 A biome is a type of environment that is defined
by the types of organisms that live there. We can
also think of these as life zones ("bio" means life).
Dividing land up in this way lets us talk about
areas that are similar, even if they’re on different
continents. But depending on whom you talk to,
the way we divide up the world into separate
biomes differs.
Biome vs.
Biome
Biome categories can be broad or
narrow. When we say forest, you
may picture a cool, quiet area
with pine trees, where bears,
deer, and rabbits wander around.
Or instead, you might imagine a
wet, dark, and noisy rainforest,
where you can see monkeys,
parrots, and big cats.
According to some people, all forest
types belong in one group – the
forest biome. But others think that
temperate forests (seasonally cold)
with pine trees, are very different
from tropical rainforests, with
dense, leafy canopy and lots of rain.
This difference of opinion means
that the number of biomes can
range anywhere from 5 to 20
biomes.

 How
Different is
Different?
and in their temperatures.
With those cold temperatures, the plants and
animals in temperate rainforests have to have
adaptations to deal with cold weather. Do those
groups seem different enough to you to be in a
separate biome?
If we take a closer look at these
temperate and rain forests, we
see that they differ quite a bit
in the amount of rain they get
Tropical rainforests are warm
and don't experience a winter
season. But temperate forests
have a defined winter, with
snow and temperatures below
zero.
 Biomes of the
World

In order to give you a small taste of the

huge diversity of the types of environments
out there, we divide the world up into only
nine biomes. Just remember that these
groups could also be divided into nearly 20
biomes. That means that within each of
these biomes there is a range of
temperature and weather conditions, and
we also find some organisms that are
adapted to only part of the biome and
others that are adapted to the full range of
conditions within the boundaries we are
defining.
 Tropical
Rainforest
 You probably picture tropical rainforest as a jungle, where it stays warm all
year. There are too many animals to count and the huge numbers of trees keep
their leaves year-round. Many of these forests get so much rain that there isn't
even much of a dry season – more like a rainy season and a rainier season.
Temperate
Forest
 This is the kind of forest where there are four relatively distinct seasons.
Many of the trees shed their leaves in the fall and become inactive
through the cold winter. In these forests, you find deer, woodpeckers, and
bears, some of which hibernate through the winter.
Desert
Deserts make up the hottest biome, but can also get cold temperatures in winter.
Such temperature swings make this an extreme environment, where many
animals have to burrow underground to find more stable temperatures in order
to survive. Plants and animals here must be able to withstand long periods
without water.
Tundra
Tundra is flat and cold with low plants like grass and moss that only grow during
the short summer. A thick layer of ice lies just below the shallow soil
(permafrost) all year around, and trees cannot penetrate it to anchor their roots.
Many birds visit the tundra in the summer to nest, but most escape the winter by
migrating to warmer areas. Mice and other small mammals stay active during the
winter in protected tunnels under the snow.
Taiga (Boreal
Forest)
 Taiga is the largest land (terrestrial) biome in the world. It is made up of mainly
conical-shaped evergreen trees with needle-like leaves. These trees are called
conifers because their seeds are clumped into cones. The taiga has long, cold winters
when most mammals hibernate and birds migrate, or leave the area because the
winters are too cold for them to stay. Animals like weasels, grouse and rabbits that
do not migrate or hibernate grow dense feathers or fur and turn white to match the
snow.
Grassland
 Sometimes called plains or prairie, grasslands are almost entirely short to tall
grasses with no trees. This land type gets just enough rain to help grasses,
flowers, and herbs grow, but stays dry enough that fires are frequent and trees
cannot survive. Here we find large mammals that often travel together in huge
herds.
Savanna
 These tree-studded grasslands receive enough seasonal rainfall so that
trees can grow in open groups or singly throughout. The animals living
here have long legs for escaping predators and usually are seen in herds.
A combination of fire and grazing animals are important for maintaining
the savannah.
Freshwater
This water biome is named for the low concentration of salt found in the
water. This includes most ponds, streams, lakes, and rivers. Because salt
is important to body function, the plants and animals here have many
adaptations that help them save salt.
Marine
 This water biome is the largest biome in the world, as it includes the five
major oceans that cover 70% of the Earth. Marine water has high levels of
salt, so animals and plants living here have adaptations that help them get rid
of salt or take on water.
Thank you!
Do you have questions?