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"These plants are adapted to this heat, but at some point the heat needs to cool down and the water needs to come," said Hernandez, a research scientist at Phoenix's 140-acre (57-hectare) Desert ...
The prickly mysterious giant grows in the desolate Sonoran desert covering southern Arizona and northern Mexico, but it might be in jeopardy. Daniel Winkler, research ecologist with the United ...
All cacti have some adaptations to promote efficient water use. Most cacti— opuntias and cactoids —specialize in surviving in hot and dry environments (i.e. are xerophytes ), but the first ancestors of modern cacti were already adapted to periods of intermittent drought. [ 10 ]
Many have evolved specialized adaptations to the desert climate. The Sonoran Desert's bi-seasonal rainfall pattern results in more plant species than any other desert in the world. [2] The Sonoran Desert includes plant genera and species from the agave family, palm family, cactus family, legume family, and numerous others. Many of these ...
Likewise, chaparral plants are adapted to Mediterranean climates, which have wet winters and dry summers. Plants that live under arctic conditions also have a need for xerophytic adaptations, since water is unavailable for uptake when the ground is frozen, such as the European resurrection plants Haberlea rhodopensis and Ramonda serbica .
Though very hardy in cold climates, these cactuses will die if transplanted to a hot desert climate. [30] Germination studies on mountain cactus seeds indicate some need of cold-moist stratification. Only 10% of seeds germinated at 21 °C after eight weeks where on the other hand 67% germinated at 4.5 °C in 17 days.
Stenocereus thurberi, the organ pipe cactus, [3] is a species of cactus native to Mexico and the United States. The species is found in rocky desert. Two subspecies are recognized based on their distribution and height. The Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument is named for the species. Cacti are minimally adapted to particular thermal niches ...
Most major kinds of mineral deposits formed by groundwater are located in the deserts. For example, some valuable metallic minerals, such as gold, silver, iron, zinc, and uranium, are found in Western Desert in Australia. This is due to special geological processes, and climate factors in the desert can preserve and enhance mineral deposits. [11]