The Desert Biome

THE DESERT

No Rain

Koray Matthew Wesley John Cena

The desert is a very hot and dry place. They receive less than 50 cm of rainfall a year! Â Deserts cover about 1/5 of the Earth's surface. Deserts are not just hot though, there are such things as cold deserts. In fact, Antarctica is the Earth's largest cold desert!Â

ABIOTIC FACTORS PRECIPITATION

TEMPERATURE

Rainfall is usually very low and in

The seasons are generally warm

short bursts between long rainless

throughout the year and very, very

periods. Evaporation rates

hot in the summer. The winters

regularly exceed rainfall rates.

usually bring little rain.

Sometimes rain starts falling and

Temperatures show daily extremes

evaporates before reaching the

because the atmosphere contains

ground! Rainfall is lowest on the

little humidity to block the Sun’s

Atacama Desert of Chile, where it

rays. Desert surfaces receive a little

averages less than 1.5 cm. Some

more than twice the solar radiation

years are even rainless. Inland

received by humid regions and lose

Sahara also receives less than 1.5

almost twice as much heat at night.

cm a year. Rainfall in American

Annual temperatures range from 68-

deserts is higher—almost 28 cm a

77° F. The extreme maximum ranges

year.

from 111-120° F. On the contrary, temperatures sometimes drop to -1° F.

Annual Temperatures (*F) in the La Quinta Desert, CA 150 100 50

D ec

Se p O ct N ov

Ju l A ug

Ju n

Ja n Fe b M ar A pr M ay

0

Ecological Succession Primary In deserts, primary succession could occur on a sand dune or a fresh lava flow. Bacteria or seed species find a grip where a microclimate offers a chance of increased moisture and protection.

These original colonizers form biofilms and put down roots that stabilize the upper layer of soil and break down rocks. The improved soil can hold more moisture and support other plants, which crowd out the original colonizers.

Eventually the ecosystem may be able to support grasses and shrubs, if there is enough water.

Secondary Desert ecosystems can be disturbed by fire, flash flood or land clearing. After disturbance, succession is set back, but the soil has already been developed. Secondary succession in deserts is fast compared to primary succession, but it takes much longer to establish a desert community than it does in dryer regions. For example, in the southwestern deserts of North America, it can take 76 years to establish plant cover and 215 years for full ecosystem recovery. If the disturbance is big enough, secondary succession may produce an entirely different ecosystem.

Organism Spotlight Producers

Decomposers

(Lophophora williamsii)

(arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus)

The African Peyote cactus is native to the SW United States, particularly  Texas, and Mexico, where it grows in dry soil. The plant is light blue and green,  grows small pink flowers, and has a carrot-shaped root. The mushroomlike crown, called a peyote is cut off, and chewed, brewed into a concoction for drinking, or rolled into pellets to be swallowed.

Mycorrhizae are mutualisms formed between fungi and plant roots.

Mycorrhizae is very important; it has been suggested that as many as 95% of all the world's plant species form mycorrhizal relationships with fungi and that in the majority of cases the plant would not survive without them. Mycorrhizae have existed for a very long time and can be demonstrated in the fossilized roots of some of the earliest land plants.

They can be found in plants growing in habitats ranging from humid to dry tropics all the way to the far north and south. Scientists have suggested that plants were only able to move on to land when they had developed mycorrhizal relationships with fungi.

Conservation Status: Conservation Status: Vulnerable Least Concern

The Bactrian Camel PRIMARY CONSUMER

Conservation status:

Critically endangered

The Bactrian Camel or Camelus bactrianus is a primary consumer that eats plants including thorny dry plants. The Bactrian Camel also can drink 30 gallons of water in under 13 minutes. The natural predator of the Bactrian camel is the Wolf but it is much more threatened by Human Hunters.

A Bactrian Camel can live up to 17 years, and start mating at 7 years. Bactrian camels have 2 humps and can grow up to a height of 6 ft and a length of 10 ft, they also usually weigh 1,320 to 2,200 pounds, also when it gets cold Bactrian Camels will grow a thick layer of fur to stay warm.

Bactrian Camels live in the Gobi Desert (In Mongolia) and other parts of Central Asia, temperatures can vary from 20 degrees to 120 degrees.

Some fun facts about the Bactrian Camel are that its humps contains fat, when there is no food the hump will diminish, until the camel eats or drinks again. A camel can run up to 40 mph, and they make a variety of noises, one of these noises was even used for Chewbacca!

The Cairo Spiny Mouse SECONDARY CONSUMER

Conservation Status: Least Concern S

The Cairo spiny mouse or Acomys cahirinus is a secondary consumer. Its an omnivore and its diet consists of spider, snails, seeds, various plant materials and other insects, it also only feeds at night and are prey to Blanford's foxes (Vulpes cana).

A Cairo spiny mouse's expected lifetime can range from 3-5 years, and they start to mate at about 8 weeks old. Cairo spiny mice are social animals that live in groups, with males competing for dominance.

Cairo spiny mice are also commonly found throughout Northern and Eastern Africa and in the Middle East, they favor arid rocky canyons, cliffs and gravel plains and live in places with temperatures ranging from 80 to 100 degrees.

Some fun facts about Cairo spiny mice are that they have been recorded to eat almost anything including mummies! They've existed for 11 million years, and will forfeit skin and fur patches when threatened

The Coyote TERTIARY CONSUMER

.

CONSERVATION STATUS:

LEAST CONCERN

The Coyote or Canis latrans is a tertiary consumer and a carnivore that eats a variety of other animals (fresh or spoiled) such as fish, birds, and livestock, since the coyote is a tertiary consumer it has no predators.

The Coyote has a average lifespan of about 6 to 8 years and matures at a year old. Coyotes can weigh up to 20 pounds and can travel in packs or alone. They claim their territory by urinating on it and they dig their own den. They also have the capability to easily leap over eight feet and have great vision.

Coyotes live in a range of places such as Mexico, Florida, Canada, Arizona, and Panama. They will normally live in the desert, mountains, valleys, grasslands, and low foothills.

Some fun facts about the coyote are that on 5-20% of pups survive the first year, coyotes can breed with wolves and domestic dogs, and coyotes are more afraid of humans than you being afraid of them.

DESERT BIOME There are desert biomes in the U.S.A., Africa, Mexico, and Austrailia.

THREATS TO THE DESERT AND WHAT WE ARE DOING TO HELP

Global warming is increasing drought, which dries up water holes. Higher temperatures may produce an increasing number of wildfires that alter desert landscapes by burning slow-growing trees and shrubs and replacing them with fast-growing grasses instead.

The main thing us humans could do to help is to stop global warming. You could do this by not burning so much oil, coal and other fossil fuels. When you burn those items it creates carbon dioxide which is the climates worst enemy.Â

Bibliography -.edu, B. (n.d.). The Desert Biome. Retrieved from Berkelely.edu website: http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/deserts.html -Ecological Succession. (n.d.). Retrieved from Ecological Succession in the Desert website: http://education.seattlepi.com/ ecological-succession-desert-5078.html -Food Chain (Desert). (n.d.). Retrieved from Food Chain USA website: https://www.desertusa.com/desert-food-chain/food-chain-2.html Created : 02/20/18 01:56PM -Decomposers. (n.d.). Retrieved from Desert Decomposers website: https://www.tutorvista.com/biology/desert-decomposers

-https://www.desertusa.com/animals/coyote.html

-https://www.livescience.com/27503-camels.html

-https://www.desertusa.com/animals/Cairospiny-mouse.html