Introduction
A biome is a large region of Earth that has a certain climate and certain types of living things. Major biomes include tundra, forests, grasslands, and deserts.
The plants and animals of each biome have traits that help them to survive in their particular biome. Plants and animals that live within smaller areas of a biome also depend on each other for survival. These smaller areas are called ecosystems. Each biome has many ecosystems.
The tundra biome is found in extreme northern regions. This biome has cold, dry conditions. The main plants include mosses, lichens, and short grasses. Arctic foxes, reindeer, and migrating birds are some common tundra animals.
Trees are the main plants in forest biomes. There are several different types of forest biome.
The taiga is a conifer forest biome. It lies just south of the tundra biome. The taiga has long, cold winters and short, mild summers. It gets more rain than the tundra does, so it can support conifers. Conifers are trees with needles, such as spruces and firs. Lynx, gray wolves, moose, and beavers live in this biome.
Grassland biomes are places that get enough rain for grasses to grow but not enough to support forests. Temperate grasslands have hot summers and cold winters. Tropical grasslands, also known as savannas, are hot all year long. Prairie dogs and mule deer live in the temperate grasslands of North America. Giraffes, zebras, and lions live in the tropical grasslands of Africa.
Deserts are the driest biome. The largest desert, the Sahara, is in northern Africa. Deserts receive less than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain each year. Cacti and creosote bushes are two types of plant that can survive the dry conditions. Rattlesnakes, lizards, roadrunners, and owls are some of the animals of this biome.
More about biomes and our ecosystem!
What are biomes exactly?
Biomes are regions of the world with similar climate (weather, temperature) animals and plants. There are terrestrial biomes (land) and aquatic biomes, both freshwater and marine.
Would you like to know what the weather is like in different biomes around the world? How about the types of plants and animals that live in these biomes? Here you will find all sorts of information about the world's biomes.
How many biomes are there?
There is really no completely right answer to this question. Some people say there are only 5 major types of biomes: aquatic, desert, forest, grassland, and tundra. Others split biomes further. Forests are separated into rainforest, temperate forest, chaparral, and taiga; grasslands are divided into savanna and temperate grasslands; and the aquatic biome is split into freshwater and marine.
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AQUATIC BIOMES |
TERRESTRIAL BIOMES: |
Task
We are going to learn about biomes and ecosystems by playing a word search game, a crossword puzzle game or by naming each biomes and the animals that live there. Please choose one assignment to complete from the list below:
1. How many different biomes can you count and what kinds of animals live there? Create a model listing and drawing the animals that live in each biome. Use at least two biomes from what you've learned.
2. Word Search
https://kids.britannica.com/kids/article/biome/403913/248922-toc
3. Crossword Puzzle
Process
To access the biomes and ecosystem vocabulary games online, click the blue link in the Task tab.
Evaluation
All students must complete one option from the list of assignments to receive an A.
Conclusion
What did we all learn about biomes today? Which of our favorite animals live in those biomes?