Biomes

Alejandro Martinó 7-1 #8 Feb. 4, 2011Biomes:

The first biome I will talk about is the tundra. A tundra is a biome in which it’s difficult for plants to grow because of the lowtemperatures and the very short harvesting season. Tundra is Russian for “treeless mountain tract.” In all, there are three types of tundra: the Arctic tundra, the alpine tundra, andthe Antarctic tundra. In tundra, the plants are dwarf shrubs, sedges and grasses, mosses, and lichens. Besides plants, in tundra there are caribou, musk ox, arctic hare, arcticfox, snowy owl, lemmings, and polar bears, which are only found in the extreme North. Tundra can be found in places like Alaska, Russia, the Arctic, and the Antarctic. They arenormally very windy, often having winds blowing upwards at speeds of 48 to 97 miles per hour. Normally, they receive only 6 to 10 inches of precipitation per year.

This istundra of the Kerguelen Islands.

Now, I will talk about rain forests. Rain forests are forests that are characterized by lots of rain falling in their area, usually of an annualminimum of 68 to 78 inches of precipitation. A good example of a local rain forest is “El Yunque,” right here in Puerto Rico. In rain forests, plants grow everywhere, even on topof other plants. Rain forests have lots of animals including parrots, frogs, toucans, insects, and lots more. The biggest rain forest of all is the Amazon rain forest, shared byVenezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Bolivia, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana. The climate of rain forests is very humid, which can make it vary from hot, warm, or extreme cold.