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A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-arid climates, depending on variables such as temperature, and they give rise to different biomes.
Like arid deserts, temperatures can vary greatly in semi deserts. They share some characteristics of a true desert and are usually located at the edge of deserts and continental dry areas. They usually receive precipitation from 250 to 500 mm (9.8 to 19.7 in) but this can vary due to evapotranspiration and soil nutrition.
Many animals obtain energy by eating the surrounding vegetation, however, desert plants are much more difficult for organisms to consume. [10] To avoid intense temperatures, the majority of small desert mammals are nocturnal, living in burrows to avoid the intense desert sun during the daytime.
The Nama Karoo of Namibia has the world's richest desert fauna. [8] The Chihuahuan desert and Central Mexican matorral are the richest deserts in the Neotropics. [9] The Carnarvon xeric shrublands of Australia are a regional center for endemism. [1] The Sonoran and Baja deserts of Mexico are unusual desert communities dominated by giant ...
The term steppe climate denotes a semi-arid climate, which is encountered in regions too dry to support a forest, but not dry enough to be a desert. [2] [3] Steppes are usually characterized by a semi-arid or continental [citation needed] climate. Extremes can be recorded in the summer of up to 45 °C (115 °F) and in winter of down to −55 ...
The biome is dominated by grass and/or shrubs located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and tropical latitudes. Tropical grasslands are mainly found between 5 degrees and 20 degrees in both North and south of the Equator. [2]
In some places, shrubland is the mature vegetation type. In other places, it is the result of degradation of former forest or woodland by logging or overgrazing, or disturbance by major fires. [citation needed] A number of World Wildlife Fund biomes are characterized as shrublands, including the following: [6] [7] Desert scrublands
Representative fauna in tropical deserts include the armadillo lizard, banded Gila monster, bobcat, cactus wren and cactus ferruginous pygmy owl. Moreover, some other animals in deserts including coyote, desert bighorn sheep, desert kangaroo rat, desert tortoise, javelina and Mojave rattlesnake, cougar. Overall, different tropical deserts have ...