TEMPERATE DESERT

A temperate desert is a barren area of land where little precipitation occurs and living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life.

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NO ALternate names

average annual temperatures above 10 C and precipitation up to 100 cm/year. The temperate desert is less well-defined, but again precipitation is less (usually much less) than 100 cm/year and average annual temperature is less than 10 C.

TOPOGRAPHY

• Temperate deserts are typically rockier regions, dotted with grasses and shrubs. Canyons, exposed bedrock and hoodoo formations are common features of the temperate desert.

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• Latitude: between 25-45 degrees north Longitude: between 110-120 degrees west-55-115 east

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• The average temperature range in temperate desert biomes is between 30° F and 70 ° F. Winters are long and cold below 32F. Most precipitation is in the winter when the snow melts. One example is the sagebrush vegetation of the Great Basin and northern Colorado Plateau.

Environmental factors for survival

• -Low Rainfall
• -Intense sunlight and heat
• -Wide temperature range
• -Sparse vegetation
• -High mINERALCONTENT
• -sandSTORMS

The floor of the temperate desert is often covered by rocks and small pebbles that have been left behind after strong winds have removed soil cover.

In desert ecosystems, plant growth and nutrient uptake are restricted by availability of soil nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P).

The dry condition of deserts helps promote the formation and concentration of important minerals. Gypsum, borates, nitrates, potassium and other salts build up in deserts when water carrying these minerals evaporates. Minimal vegetation has also made it easier to extract important minerals from desert regions.

According to United Nations statistics, over 50 percent of world copper comes from deserts in Mexico, Australia and Chile. Other minerals and metals like bauxite, gold and diamonds can be found in large quantities in the deserts of China, the United States and Namibia. Desert regions also hold 75 percent of known oil reserves in the world.

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

Plants and their adaptations

• -prickly pear cactus -christmas cactus -desert spoon cactus -ball cactus -Mammillaria Parkinsoii

ANIMALS and their adaptations

• -Armadillo
• -Desert camel
• -Prarie rattlesnake

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