Zoology · Ch 11 — Organisms and Population
Terrestrial Biomes
Terrestrial Biomes
Terrestrial biomes are large communities of plants and animals occupying a distinct geographic region, distinguished primarily by their dominant vegetation type, which is itself mainly set by regional climate; climate, in turn, determines which organisms can live there. The chapter covers grassland, tundra, desert, tropical rainforest, and deciduous and coniferous forest as the principal terrestrial biome types. Each terrestrial biome typically hosts its own keystone species (whose presence disproportionately shapes the whole community) and indicator species (whose presence or absence signals the health of that biome), and collectively terrestrial biomes serve as major sources of food and oxygen, act as carbon dioxide sinks, and help regulate regional and global climate. The major terrestrial biomes treated individually are the Tundra, Taiga, Grassland, Alpine, Forest (tropical and temperate) and Desert (hot and cold) biomes, each defined by its own characteristic temperature range, precipitation pattern, dominant flora, and resident fauna, from the treeless, permafrost-bound Tundra with its dwarf willows and migratory shore birds, through the coniferous Taiga with its moose and timber wolves, the …
What this figure shows. A world map projected with the Equator, Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn marked, shading the planet's surface by biome type from the equator toward the poles: Tropical forest and Savanna near the equator, Desert and Chaparral at subtropical latitudes, Temperate grassland and Temperate broadleaf forest at mid-latitudes, Northern coniferous forest further poleward, then Tundra, with High mountains and Polar ice marked separately wherever elevation or latitude is extreme. The map demonstrates that terrestrial biome distribution follows latitude-driven temperature bands modified locally by altitude, giving a glo …
What this figure shows. A landscape scene of the Taiga (boreal forest) biome, depicting a dense stand of coniferous trees such as spruce, fir and pine typical of this 1300-1450 km wide belt south of the tundra. The scene conveys the biome's characteristic long, cold winters and short summers through snow-dusted evergreen canopy and undergrowth, and hints at its importance to the logging industry and as habitat for migratory herbivores like moose, elk, deer and reindee …
What this figure shows. A landscape scene of an open grassland biome showing rolling terrain covered in low grasses with few or no trees, consistent with the hot summers, cold winters and irregular, often low rainfall that define this biome. The image conveys the open, wind-swept character that supports large grazing herbivores such as antelope, bison and wild horses along with predators like coyotes and foxes, and in the Indian context, fauna such as elephan …
What this figure shows. A landscape scene of a forest biome showing a dense stand of trees with a layered canopy, representative of the broad 'forest' category that spans both tropical and temperate forest types described in the text. The multilayered canopy and undergrowth in the image reflect how tree density and canopy structure control how much light reaches the forest floor, which in turn determines the richness of understorey vegetation and the diversity of animal life the forest can support, from tropical rainforest with over a hundred tre …
What this figure shows. A landscape scene of a hot desert biome showing sparse, specialised xerophytic vegetation such as low shrubs and succulent plants scattered across arid, sandy or rocky open ground with minimal tree cover. The scene conveys the extreme aridity (well under the roughly 500 mm/year rainfall ceiling that defines a desert), strong daily temperature swings, and the kind of terrain that forces resident animals such as the Indian spiny-tailed lizard, blackbuck and white-footed fox to …