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A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation .
Gulf of Oman desert and semi-desert: Oman, United Arab Emirates: Hobyo grasslands and shrublands: Somalia: Ile Europa and Bassas da India xeric scrub: Bassas da India, Europa: Kalahari xeric savanna: Botswana, Namibia, South Africa: Kaokoveld desert: Angola, Namibia: Madagascar spiny thickets: Madagascar: Madagascar succulent woodlands: Madagascar
Rank Name Type Image Area (km 2) Area (sq mi) Location [note 1] Nation(s) 1: Antarctic Desert: Polar ice and tundra: 14,200,000 [1]: 5,482,651: Antarctica: N/A 2: Arctic Desert: Polar ice and tundra
A biome (/ ˈ b aɪ. oʊ m /) is a distinct geographical region with specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. It consists of a biological community that has formed in response to its physical environment and regional climate. [1] [2] Biomes may span more than one continent. A biome encompasses multiple ecosystems within its boundaries
Deserts and xeric (Ancient Greek ξηρός xērós 'dry') shrublands form the largest terrestrial biome, covering 19% of Earth's land surface area. [2] Ecoregions in this habitat type vary greatly in the amount of annual rainfall they receive, usually less than 250 millimetres (10 in) annually except in the margins.
Desert ecology is the study of interactions between both biotic and abiotic components of desert environments. A desert ecosystem is defined by interactions between organisms, the climate in which they live, and any other non-living influences on the habitat. Deserts are arid regions that are generally associated with warm temperatures; however ...
To delineate "hot desert climates" from "cold desert climates", a mean annual temperature of 18 °C (64.4 °F) is used as an isotherm so that a location with a BW type climate with the appropriate temperature above this isotherm is classified as "hot arid subtype" (BWh), and a location with the appropriate temperature below the isotherm is ...
The water in the North American desert is mainly freshwater. There is an ephemeral flow of underground water during the wet seasons that slows during each sub-desert’s dry season. [9] Oases form in all four deserts when the groundwater reaches the surface and pools in the hollows of the desert basins. [10]