BIOMES
Biomes are areas of the world with a similar climate and
groups of plants and animals that are adapted to their environment. Biomes are
named for their vegetation. Three biomes are found in Georgia. They are the temperate
deciduous forest biome, the marine biome and the fresh water biome.
TEMPORATE DECIDUOUS
FORESTS
Temperate deciduous forests are found in the eastern part of
the U.S., Canada, Japan, China and Central and Western Europe. They have four
definite seasons and the weather is influenced by both the polar and tropical
regions. One plant adaptation allows the trees to survive the winters;
deciduous trees drop their leaves.
This is an area near my house that shows plants and trees
that are found in the deciduous forest.
MARINE BIOME
The marine biome covers most of the earth and has very
diverse organisms. Over one million species of plants and animals have been
discovered in the oceans. It includes
oceans, coral reefs and estuaries.
Each ocean is different depending on the water temperature
and amount of sunlight. Coral reefs are found in shallow, warm water, generally
the tropical oceans. They take up 1% of the ocean floor but have almost 25% of
the organisms in the ocean.
Estuaries are areas where freshwater mixes with ocean water
and they are found along the coasts. The salinity of an estuary can change
depending on how much freshwater is running in the rivers. Plants have
adaptations to survive the changing salt content of the water. It is important
to protect estuaries from pollution because they are home to organisms at the
beginning of many food chains. They help maintain the fish population in the
oceans.
The top picture is of an estuary near Galveston, Texas. The bottom picture is an estuary along
Galveston Island. Georgia’s salt marsh estuaries are the second largest in the
continental U.S, behind Louisiana.
FRESHWATER BIOME
Freshwater biomes have less than 1% salt and include ponds
and lakes, streams and rivers, and wetlands. Plants and algae give freshwater
biomes their oxygen and are food for the animal life. Fish, insects,
amphibians, crustaceans and birds depend on freshwater biomes to survive.
People depend on this biome for drinking water, food, transportation,
recreation, and as a hydroelectric power source.
This is a stream near my house. Yes, cell phones were harmed
in the taking of this photo.
This picture is a swamp in Louisiana. Swamps, unlike
marshes, have trees and shrubs.
CONIFEROUS, BOREAL
AND RAIN FORESTS
Along with deciduous forests there are also CONIFEROUS
FORESTS which have conifers, trees that have needles instead of leaves, and
cones instead of flowers. Birds, deer, rabbits, wolfs, fox and bear are some of
the animals found there.
TEMPERATE FORESTS in the U.S. are found in the North Western
part of the country, near the coast. Tropical rainforests are found all around
the world near the equator where the temperature is warmer. They have long and
wet winters and short and drier summers.
Half of all plant and animal species on the earth are found
in the RAINFOREST. The rainforest is divided into layers. The top is the
emergent layer, with tall trees. The canopy has trees that shade the rainforest
floor and vines that are woody and climb the trees to reach sunlight. Flowers
and fruits grow there and the animals have adaptations that help them live in
trees. The understory is shaded by the canopy and is cool and dark. It has
vines, palms, ferns and smaller trees. The rainforest floor is the bottom layer
and it is covered with decaying, wet leave. Almost no plants grow there and
only about 2% of the sunlight reaches the ground.
Cancer fighting drugs, about 25%, come from materials only
found in the rainforest and 70% of the plants found to be cancer fighting are
found only in the rainforest.
These animals live in the rainforest canopy, which is where
most rainforest animals live. There is enough food for them so they don’t have
to go down to the forest floor.
Use these links to see videos of these animals.
Scarlet Ibis
More than 75% of the world’s
frog and toad species live in tropical rainforests. They live in rainforests of
Costa Rica and Brazil. Their bright color is their way of keeping predators
away; this is called aposematic coloration.
The Panamanian Golden frog (Atelopus zeteki) is also only 2
inches long but has enough venom to kill 10 grown men. Their venom has been
used for hundreds of years on the tip of blowgun darts that people in Colombia used
to hunt.
This frog is an endangered species and their spots are like
a human fingerprint, they are unique to each frog. Panama uses the golden dart
frog as their national symbol and it is found on lottery tickets and
tee-shirts.
The bottom picture is a blue poison dart frog.
The top photo is a lapacho tree which is a Brazilian walnut
tree. It has antimicrobial, antiviral, and antifungal properties. Medicine to
treat small skin cuts, insect bites and psoriasis can be made from this plant.
Its inner bark is used to make an herbal tea called Lapacho that is used to
relieve coughs and colds.
On the bottom is the rain tree (Samanea saman) grows in
South America and its roots are used to treat stomach cancer and the seeds are
chewed to relieve sore throats.
The giant Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus titanium) is found
only in Sumatra, Indonesia. It gets its name because when it flowers the plant
gives off a smell like rotting flesh. This attracts carrion beetles and sweat
flies that pollinate the plant. They are an
endangered species in Indonesia.
Use link to see video of
Giant Corpse Flower
GRASSLANDS
Grasslands are open, flat areas of grass. There are few
trees and they are usually found around streams. Winters are cold and summers
are warm with some rain. They are found on every continent except Antarctica. The Great Plains in the U.S. are grasslands.
Savannas are grasslands and make up about half of Africa.
During the dry season fires are common and usually kill mainly insects and
lizards. Other animals can outrun the fire or go into underground holes. Birds
and other animals come back to eat the barbequed insects and smaller animals. Some
grasses, trees and shrubs survive because their roots are alive.
DESERTS
Desert biomes are the driest biome. They get only 10% of the
rain the rainforest does. Plants have to adapt to the limited water and many
store water in their stems or root systems. Not all deserts are hot and cold
deserts can be found in the South West U.S., and Western Asia.
In EPCOT’s Land Pavilion research is being done to find ways
to grow food in deserts and other locations where they are not normally found.
These pictures show some of the plants they are growing.
TUNDRA
The arctic tundra is the coldest biome and gets very little
precipitation. It is located in areas below the ice caps of the Arctic and a
large part of Alaska and half of Canada is in the tundra. Winters are cold and
dark and the ground has a layer of permafrost, or permanently frozen ground
below the surface. Plants are mostly mosses and lichens with very few trees.
Animals found include polar bear, seals, caribou, wolves, arctic foxes,
falcons, mosquitoes, cod, salmon and trout.
DETRITIVORES - Lobsters and sea stars
are primary detritivores, an organism that feeds on dead organic materials. The
lobster will also feed on small mollusks or arthropods if it can catch them.
KEYSTONE SPECIES
In building a keystone is a stone at the top of an arch that
holds the other stones in place. I found this out this summer because I had a
job painting trim on a house. In biology
a keystone species do the same thing in an ecosystem. They are species that
have a great effect an ecosystem even though there may not be a large number of
them. They are needed for the survival of other species in the area. A keystone
species was originally defined as being a predator.
These are mangroves growing in the Rainforest Pyramid in
Moody Gardens in Galveston, Texas. They live in tropical areas in the salt
water of the littoral zone. They are a keystone plant in the Everglades in
Florida. You can see larger roots in the background. They have many adaptations
to live in salt water. Their roots can filter out salt, but if too much gets
into the tree their leaves collect it, turn yellow and fall off. They help in
the littoral zone because they reduce erosion of the soil with their roots.
Mangroves also are like nurseries for fish, shrimp and other ocean animals who
stay in their roots so they are protected from predators.
Link for video about mangroves:
This is a pictures of the Giant Flying Fox bat (larger) and
the Rodrigues Fruit Bat (smaller). These bats are considered KEYSTONE SPECIES
in the rainforest. They help restore areas that have been cleared because they
eat fruit and then deposit the seeds by pooping as they fly. They also collect
pollen on their bodies when they eat the nectar of flowers, then they pollinate
other plants when they fly to other flowers.
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