APES Biomes Questions and Answers

APES Biomes Questions and Answers Tundra treeless plains that are the coldest of all the biomes; occur in the arctic and Antarctica. Dominated by lichens, mosses, sedges, and dwarfed shrubs Characterized by extremely cold climate, permanently frozen ground (permafrost) low biotic diversity, simple vegetation structure, limitation of drainage, short season of growth and reproduction. Tropical Rainforest most diverse and hottest terrestrial biome, biome near the equator with warm climate wet weather and lush plant growth Temperate Deciduous Forest the biome characterized by warmer temperatures than the boreal forest and plenty of precipitation thats huge forests of broadleaf trees; covers regions in southeastern Canada, and eastern United States; biome humans live in Temperate Rain Forest occurs in North America, Australia, and New Zealand; mostly located in the Pacific Northwest (a maritime biome); cool, humid weather; abundant rainfall; mosses, lichens, and ferns; dominated by evergreen trees (e.g. Douglas Fir, Sitka Spruce); cool winters, mild summers; located north of most other rain forests; maintains a moderate temperature year round Savannah Grassland a grassland biome with scattered individual trees, large herbivores, and three distinct seasons based primarily on rainfall, maintained by occasional fires and drought Taiga "Boreal"Forest biome just south of the tundra; it has long, cold winters ans small amounts of precipitation; characterized by a northern coniferous forest composed of pine, fir, hemlock, and spruce tree and acidic, mineral-poor topsoils, a cool forest biome of conifers in the upper Northern Hemisphere Temperate Grassland a biome found in North America, Eurasia, South America and Africa. Characterized by nutrient-rich soil that supports many grass species, a region that has cold winters and rainfall that is intermediate between that of a forest and a desert; characterized by extensive grasses and few trees Steppe Grassland a temperate shrubland biome of dense, spiny evergreen shrubs found at midlatitudes along coasts where cold ocean currents circulate offshore; characterized by mild, rainy winters and long, hot, dry summers; Desert "Hot" a biome characterized by low moisture levels and infrequent and unpredictable precipitation; daily and seasonal temperatures fluctuate widely; because of little rainfall that it supports only sparse and widely spaced vegetation or no vegetation at all Desert "Cold" Deserts the get below freezing for extended periods of time. Great example is the Great Basin Desert in the Western United States.