Location Weather Species Succession Precipitation

Tundra -Eurasia
-North America
-Long/cold winters
-Permafrost
-Short summers (2-4 months)
-Meadow-like vegetation
-Sedges (few grasses)
-Lichens
-Few species
Exceedingly
slow
succession
Low annual
rainfall
(4-10 in a year)
Taiga -Eurasia
-North America
(largest biome)
-Long/cold winters
-Short winter days
-Short summer days
-Growing season 3-5 months
-Daily temp below freezing
-Large mammals abundant
-Dominant Species: Cone bearing
plants
spruce (Picea), fir (Abies), pine
(Pinus)
-Leaves evergreen, needle like
-low shrubs and forbs
-no grasses
Slow
succession
Little
precipitation
10-30 in/yr
Temperate
Deciduous
Forest
Northern
Hemisphere
-Warm summers
-Cold winters
-4 seasons
-Growing season 200 days
-More vegetation on forest floor
-Animal life on ground & in trees
-Dominant Plants:
Maple: Acer
Oak: Quercus
Slow
succession
Forbs-grasses-
pines-oaks
Moderate Rainfall
30-60 in/yr
Grassland -Hot summer
-Cold winter

-Large quants. of grasses
-Many burrowing rodents
-Herds of large grazing animals
-Rich soil converted to agg
-Rice, corn, wheat, bison, rabbit
Slow
Succession
15-30 in/yr
Relic
Conifer
Forest
-California
-Pacific coast
regions from
California to
Canada
-Cone bearing trees
-Sequoiadendron, Sequoia,
Metasequoia
-Tallest and biggest trees


Chaparral -Western side
of continents
-Cool, wet winters
-Warm, dry summers
-Dominant Plants:
drought & fire adapted shrubs, forbs
-Fire climax
-Leaf with wax; hard & thick
-Well developed underground stems
and roots
Very rapid
succession

Desert -Extremely dry and hot
-Temperature extremes (30
degree difference from day to
night)
-Sparse vegetation
-Dominant Plants:
many succulents adapted to drought
-Large number of annual herbs
-Wettest plants
Very slow
succession
0-10 in/yr
uneven rainfall
may be plenty on
year and no rain
at all another year
Savanna Found between
tropical
rainforests and
deserts
-Two seasons: dry and wet

-Open grasslands (tall grasses)
-Scattered shrubs
-trees
-Large herds of herbivores (zebra,
gazelle)
-Carnivores (lions, etc.)
-Invertebrates (many insects including
termites)
Relatively fast
succession
4-6 months of
rainfall and 6-8
months of no
rainfall
10-60+ in/yr
-Could be as high
as 500 inches
Tropical
Forest
-Regions of high temperature -Abundant species
-Plants including vines, epiphytes,
orchids, bromeliads, lianas
-Tress support diverse plants &
animals
-GREATEST biodiversity
-Largest number of layers
-Buttressed trees, cauliflory (flowers
bloom on stem), smooth bark (to get
rid of excess water)
Very rapid
succession
Rainfall 60+ in/yr
Normally (100-
200 in)
-Rains each
month, each
week, and maybe
every day