Biome

A large terrestrial ecosystem characterized by distinctive kinds of plants and animals and maintained by a distinct climate and soil conditions. To illustrate, the desert biome is characterized by low annual rainfall and high rates of evaporation, resulting in dry environmental conditions. Plants and animals that thrive in such conditions include cacti, brush, lizards, insects, and small rodents. Special adaptations, such as waxy plant leaves, allow organisms to survive under low moisture conditions. Other examples of biomes include tropical rain forest, arctic tundra, grasslands, temperate deciduous forest, coniferous forest, tropical savanna, and Mediterranean chaparral.

Source Citation: “Biome.” Environmental Encyclopedia. Eds. Marci Bortman, Peter Brimblecombe, Mary Ann Cunningham, William P. Cunningham, and William Freedman. Vol. 1. 3rd ed. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2003.

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Lesley W., Evanston Public Library