E+C: Biomes and Climate

Climate, weather, climate change, land and aquatic biomes.

Define climate:

The long-term meteorological conditions of a place, e.g. precipitation, temperature, hours of sunlight.

Define weather:

The day-to-day meteorological variation.

Define a biome:

A biological subdivision that reflects the ecological character of the vegetation, useful when discussing ecology. They broadly correspond with climactic regions, but there are many ways to define them.

Define the 8 main biomes:

• Tundra

• Boreal forest

• Temperate forest

• Temperate grassland

• Desert

• Tropical rainforest

• Tropical dry forest

• Tropical savanna

Define some key marine aquatic biomes:

• Open ocean

• Coral reefs

• Estuaries

• Mangroves

• Salt marsh

Describe the intertidal zone:

Where the open ocean meets land. Can be stratified in rocky areas depending on water coverage, or less diverse in sandy areas.

Describe the pelagic zone:

Waters further from the land, including open ocean. Plants include surface seaweeds, and animals include fish, mammals, and plankton.

Describe the benthic zone:

The area below the pelagic, on the seafloor. Very nutrient dense.

Describe the abyssal zone:

The deep ocean, with temperatures of ~3 degrees. It is highly pressurised and has much oxygen, but is low in nutrients. Hydrothermal vents exist here, supporting chemosynthetic bacteria.

Describe coral reefs:

Widely found in warm shallow waters along continents, fringing islands and atolls (ring-shaped structure surrounding a lagoon).

Describe estuaries:

Where freshwater and seawater mix, creating a unique ecosystem with many species such as mangroves, marsh grasses, waterfowl, and oysters.

Describe some factors affecting aquatic zones:

• Salinity – freshwater is usually <1% salt 

  • Estuaries are brackish (intermediate salinity) 

  • Mangroves interestingly can range from brackish to very saline 

• Temperature (varies by depth and latitude) 

• Light levels (varies by depth and sediment load)