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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
Three level I areas were not subdivided for level 2. [2] Level III subdivides the continent into 182 smaller ecoregions; of these, 104 lie partly or wholly with the United States. [1] [3] Level IV is a further subdivision of Level III ecoregions. Level IV mapping is still underway but is complete across most of the United States.
They are distinct from biomes, also known as major habitat types, which are divisions of the Earth's surface based on life form, or the adaptation of animals, fungi, micro-organisms and plants to climatic, soil, and other conditions. Biomes are characterized by similar climax vegetation. Each realm may include a number of different biomes.
biome A standardized typology for large-scale areas characterized by vegetation, soil, climate, and wildlife in 14 major categories per Dinerstein et al. [81] Within the IUCN Ecosystem Typology, Level 2 "biomes" are reduced to 7 "core" terrestrial types, including an anthropogenic land-use type, and several additional "transitional" biome types ...
Alaska is the most biodiverse state with 15 ecoregions across three biomes in the same realm. California comes in a close second with 13 ecoregions across four biomes in the same realm. By contrast, Rhode Island is the least biodiverse with just one ecoregion—the Northeastern coastal forests —encompassing the entire state.
Biomes are often defined by their structure: at a general level, for example, tropical forests, temperate grasslands, and arctic tundra. [ 4 ] : 14 There can be any degree of subcategories among ecosystem types that comprise a biome, e.g., needle-leafed boreal forests or wet tropical forests.
Ecosystems may be habitats within biomes that form an integrated whole and a dynamically responsive system having both physical and biological complexes. Ecosystem ecology is the science of determining the fluxes of materials (e.g. carbon, phosphorus) between different pools (e.g., tree biomass, soil organic material).
Each ecoregion is classified into one of 14 major habitat types, or biomes. In 2017 the WWF team revised ecosystem names and boundaries in the Arabian Peninsula, drier African regions, and Southeastern United States. [1]