Biomes

What are the biomes like?

Visit and explore Mission: Biomes from NASA's Earth Observatory to learn about biomes.

Look at the interactive map. Hover over the labels at the bottom. What do you think the colours are for?

Notice the biomes that are in Australia. Think about a time when you have visited or read about these places. What are they like?

Choose one to concentrate on.

Think about making some notes using a table. Put the features down one column and describing words in the other, like the one on the left.

BPS Library's Orbit homepage provides how-to guides for notetaking.

To use this one on Google Docs, click it. Then click the blue button "make a copy".

Top Tip

Good inquirers always write down where they found their information. They can go back and reread it later.

Learn more!

Just the Facts

Go on a virtual reality journey through the biomes of the world. You can use any computer or mobile device for this, but why not come to the BPS Library and borrow a virtual reality kit to see a truly 3D immersive experience?

Australia's Biomes

Australia is rare in the world because it has so many climate zones or biomes. But why is it so?

As you watch, think about any details you would add to your notes table.

Biomes in Australia vs China

So far we have looked at Australian biomes.

Let's look wider. What are the biomes in China? Are they similar or different? In what ways?

This world map shows biomes found in different areas of the world. You may notice that the biomes seem to broadly form stripes across the world. Deserts and tropical rainforests form a stripe across the middle of the world because they are close to the equator and so the average temperature is higher. The amount of rain in an area determines whether it will be a desert or a rainforest. The stripes at the top and bottom of the map are polar regions. The temperature is much colder there because it is further from the equator. Mountain ranges also affect life found in the biomes.

Image by Sabine Deviche from Arizona Board of Regents / ASU Ask A Biologist. In Moeller, K. (2013, July 19). Boundless Biomes. ASU - Ask A Biologist. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/explore/biomes

Top Tip

To answer this question, you need to know where China is.

You could find this out in the BPS Library Reference Section by looking in an atlas, or you could look in an online atlas like WorldAtlas.com.

Use a Venn Diagram

To make a note of how things are similar and different, geographers use a Venn diagram. Try one yourself to explore the biomes in Australia vs China. Use the video to help.

Share your Venn diagram with friends. Do they agree? Do they have other suggestions too? You can adjust your Venn diagram as you go.

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