Deserts and xeric shrublands
Deserts and xeric shrublands is a biome characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture.[1]
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Definition and occurrence [edit]
Deserts and xeric shrublands receive an annual average rainfall of ten inches or less, and have an arid or hyperarid climate, characterized by a strong moisture deficit, where annual potential loss of moisture from evapotranspiration well exceeds the moisture received as rainfall. Deserts and xeric shrublands occur in tropical, subtropical, and temperate climate regions. Desert soils tend to be sandy or rocky, and low in organic materials. Saline or alkaline soils are common. Plants and animals in deserts and xeric shrublands are adapted to low moisture conditions. Hyperarid regions are mostly devoid of vegetation and animal life, and include rocky deserts and sand dunes. Vegetation in arid climate regions can include sparse grasslands, shrublands, and woodlands. Plants adapted to arid climates are called xerophytes, and include succulent plants, geophytes, sclerophyll, and annual plants. Animals, including insects, reptiles, arachnids, birds and mammals, are frequently nocturnal to avoid moisture loss.
Desertification [edit]
The conversion of productive drylands to desert conditions is known as desertification, and can occur from a variety of causes. One factor is human intervention in imposing intensive agricultural tillage or overgrazing[2] in areas which cannot support such exploitation. Climatic shifts such as global warming or the Milankovitch cycle (which drives glacials and interglacials) also affect the pattern of deserts on Earth.
See also [edit]
- Xeriscaping
- Desert
- Shrub-steppe
- Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
- Sagebrush steppe
- Mesic
- Hydric
Desert and xeric shrublands ecoregions [edit]
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Australasia Deserts and xeric shrublands
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| Carnarvon xeric shrublands | Australia |
| Central Ranges xeric scrub | Australia |
| Gibson Desert | Australia |
| Great Sandy-Tanami Desert | Australia |
| Great Victoria Desert | Australia |
| Nullarbor Plain xeric shrublands | Australia |
| Pilbara shrublands | Australia |
| Simpson Desert | Australia |
| Tirari-Sturt's Stony Desert | Australia |
| Western Australian mulga shrublands | Australia |
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Indomalaya Deserts and xeric shrublands
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| Deccan thorn scrub forests | India, Sri Lanka |
| Indus Valley desert | India, Pakistan |
| Northwestern thorn scrub forests | India, Pakistan |
| Thar desert | India, Pakistan |
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Nearctic Deserts and xeric shrublands
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|---|---|
| Baja California desert | Mexico |
| Central Mexican matorral | Mexico |
| Chihuahuan desert | Mexico, United States |
| Colorado Plateau shrublands | United States |
| Great Basin shrub steppe | United States |
| Gulf of California xeric scrub | Mexico |
| Meseta Central matorral | Mexico |
| Mojave desert | United States |
| Okanagan (South) shrub steppe | Canada |
| Snake-Columbia shrub steppe | United States |
| Sonoran desert | Mexico, United States |
| Tamaulipan matorral | Mexico |
| Tamaulipan mezquital | Mexico |
| Wyoming Basin shrub steppe | United States |
- This is because it gets only ten inches of precipitation a year.
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References [edit]
- ^ Merriam-Webster.com Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of xeric
- ^ C.Michael Hogan. 2009. Overgrazing. Encyclopedia of Earth. Sidney Draggan, topic ed.; Cutler J. Cleveland, ed., National council for Science and the Environment, Washington DC
External links [edit]
- Deserts and xeric shrublands (World Wildlife Fund)
- Index to Deserts & Xeric Shrublands at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu
- Xeric World Online Community focused on the study of Xeric Plant Species.
