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| ''']s and xeric shrublands''' is a ] characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture.<ref> Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of xeric</ref> | ''']s and xeric shrublands''' is a ] characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture.<ref> Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of xeric</ref> | ||
| ==Definition and occurrence== | ==Definition and occurrence== Ty Fells is a girl. | ||
| Deserts and xeric shrublands receive an annual average rainfall of ten inches or less, and have an ] or hyperarid climate, characterized by a strong moisture deficit, where annual potential loss of moisture from ] well exceeds the moisture received as rainfall. Deserts and xeric shrublands occur in ], ], and ] climate regions. | Deserts and xeric shrublands receive an annual average rainfall of ten inches or less, and have an ] or hyperarid climate, characterized by a strong moisture deficit, where annual potential loss of moisture from ] well exceeds the moisture received as rainfall. Deserts and xeric shrublands occur in ], ], and ] climate regions. | ||
| Desert ]s tend to be sandy or rocky, and low in organic materials. ] or ] soils are common. | Desert ]s tend to be sandy or rocky, and low in organic materials. ] or ] soils are common. | ||
Revision as of 18:51, 6 March 2013
"Xeric" redirects here. For the comic book grant foundation, see Xeric Foundation.Deserts and xeric shrublands is a biome characterized by, relating to, or requiring only a small amount of moisture.
==Definition and occurrence== Ty Fells is a girl. Deserts and xeric shrublands receive an annual average rainfall of ten inches or less, and have an arid or hyperarid climate, characterized by a strong moisture deficit, where annual potential loss of moisture from evapotranspiration well exceeds the moisture received as rainfall. Deserts and xeric shrublands occur in tropical, subtropical, and temperate climate regions. Desert soils tend to be sandy or rocky, and low in organic materials. Saline or alkaline soils are common. Plants and animals in deserts and xeric shrublands are adapted to low moisture conditions. Hyperarid regions are mostly devoid of vegetation and animal life, and include rocky deserts and sand dunes. Vegetation in arid climate regions can include sparse grasslands, shrublands, and woodlands. Plants adapted to arid climates are called xerophytes, and include succulent plants, geophytes, sclerophyll, and annual plants. Animals, including insects, reptiles, arachnids, birds and mammals, are frequently nocturnal to avoid moisture loss.
Desertification
The conversion of productive drylands to desert conditions is known as desertification, and can occur from a variety of causes. One factor is human intervention in imposing intensive agricultural tillage or overgrazing in areas which cannot support such exploitation. Climatic shifts such as global warming or the Milankovitch cycle (which drives glacials and interglacials) also affect the pattern of deserts on Earth.
See also
- Xeriscaping
- Desert
- Shrub-steppe
- Temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands
- Sagebrush steppe
- Mesic
- Hydric
Desert and xeric shrublands ecoregions
| Australasian deserts and xeric shrublands ecoregions | |
|---|---|
| Carnarvon xeric shrublands | Australia |
| Central Ranges xeric scrub | Australia |
| Gibson Desert | Australia |
| Great Sandy-Tanami desert | Australia |
| Great Victoria Desert | Australia |
| Nullarbor Plain xeric shrublands | Australia |
| Pilbara shrublands | Australia |
| Simpson Desert | Australia |
| Tirari–Sturt stony desert | Australia |
| Western Australian mulga shrublands | Australia |
| Biogeographic regionalisations | |||||||||||||||||
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| Biomes |
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| Biogeographic realms |
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References
- Merriam-Webster.com Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition of xeric
- C.Michael Hogan. 2009. Overgrazing. Encyclopedia of Earth. Sidney Draggan, topic ed.; Cutler J. Cleveland, ed., National council for Science and the Environment, Washington DC
- Eric Dinerstein, David Olson, Anup Joshi, Carly Vynne, Neil D. Burgess, Eric Wikramanayake, Nathan Hahn, Suzanne Palminteri, Prashant Hedao, Reed Noss, Matt Hansen, Harvey Locke, Erle C Ellis, Benjamin Jones, Charles Victor Barber, Randy Hayes, Cyril Kormos, Vance Martin, Eileen Crist, Wes Sechrest, Lori Price, Jonathan E. M. Baillie, Don Weeden, Kierán Suckling, Crystal Davis, Nigel Sizer, Rebecca Moore, David Thau, Tanya Birch, Peter Potapov, Svetlana Turubanova, Alexandra Tyukavina, Nadia de Souza, Lilian Pintea, José C. Brito, Othman A. Llewellyn, Anthony G. Miller, Annette Patzelt, Shahina A. Ghazanfar, Jonathan Timberlake, Heinz Klöser, Yara Shennan-Farpón, Roeland Kindt, Jens-Peter Barnekow Lillesø, Paulo van Breugel, Lars Graudal, Maianna Voge, Khalaf F. Al-Shammari, Muhammad Saleem, An Ecoregion-Based Approach to Protecting Half the Terrestrial Realm, BioScience, Volume 67, Issue 6, June 2017, Pages 534–545, .
External links
- Deserts and xeric shrublands (World Wildlife Fund)
- Index to Deserts & Xeric Shrublands at bioimages.vanderbilt.edu
- Xeric World Online Community focused on the study of Xeric Plant Species.