What are Biomes

The Earth is divided into different surfaces and biomes are the way that the Earth is divided.  Most of the ways that the Earth is divided has to do with what the weather is like, what kind of animals and plants are there and what the soil is like.  Each part of the Earth, land, and water, are part of one or more of the Earths biomes.

Five Major Biomes

Scientists most of the time divide the biomes into five major biomes.  These include aquatic, forest, desert, tundra and grassland biomes.  These biomes are then broken down to more biomes depending on what kind of plants and animals live and grow there, what kind of weather the biome has and where the biome is located.

Aquatic Biome

The Aquatic Biome is made of any of the biomes that are covered in water.  This can include both saltwater biomes and freshwater biomes.

The Aquatic Biomes can be broken down into Coral Reef Biomes, Freshwater Biomes, Ocean Biomes, Wetland Biomes, and Estuaries.

These breakdowns can happen based on what types of animals and plants are there and what kind of water each biome is made of.

Forest Biome

The forest biome makes up around 30% of all of the Earth.  The forest biome has different types of plants and animals and trees.

The forest biome can be broken down to the Tropical Rainforest Biome, the Temperate Forest Biome, the Chaparral Biome, Taiga Biome, and the Alpine Biome.

Desert Biome

The Desert Biome is a different type of biome because it has very little water.  Since there is hardly no water, the desert biome has very little plant life.  The plant life that does exist consists of plants that have adapted to very little water.

The Desert Biome has very high temperatures during the day and the temperatures get very cold at night.

The Desert Biome consists of cold deserts, coastal deserts, and dry deserts.

Tundra Biome

The Tundra Biome is the coldest areas of the Earth.  The Tundra gets very little rain and even though it gets hardly any rain and is very cold, it is still a home to many different animals and plants.

Grassland Biome

The Grassland Biome is called grassland because it is covered by mostly grasses.  There are very few trees and the trees that do grow there are generally very small.  The Grassland Biome gets rain but not enough rain to grow tall trees.

There are two different types of grasslands, the Temperate Grassland and the Savanna Grassland.  Both of these grasslands are home to many different plant and animal species.

More Facts About What Biomes Are:

• The animals and plants in each biome have the same type of characteristics.
• A biome is not an ecosystem.
• The plants and animals in each biome have adapted to that biome for survival.
• Biomes help to keep life on earth.
• The Aquatic Biome helps to continue the watercycle.
• The land biomes help to give us oxygen and help to absorb harmful carbon dioxide.
• Each of the biomes help to keep the temperature of the Earth good.

What Did You Learn?

• What is a biome?  A biome is how the Earth is divided into different areas.  Each part of the Earth is part of some biome.
• How many major biomes are there?  There are five major biomes:  aquatic, desert, forest, tundra and grassland.
• Which biome is important for keeping the watercycle going?  The aquatic biome helps to keep the watercycle going.
• What biome has very little rainfall each year?  The desert biome has very little rainfall each year.
• Which of the biomes have the most animal species?  The aquatic biome has the most animal species of all of the biomes.

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