| S. No. | Biomes and | Vegetation | Annual | Temperature | Water Balance | |||||||
| Ecosystem | Characteristics | Precipitation Range | Pattern | |||||||||
| 1 | Tropical Rain Forest | Leaf canopy thick and continuous; | 180-400 cm | (21-30oC; avg. 25o | Surplus all year | |||||||
| broadleaf, evergreen trees; | (>6 cm/mo) | C) | ||||||||||
| vines (lianas), epiphytes, tree | ||||||||||||
| ferns palm | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Tropical Deciduous | Transitional between rain forest and | 130-200 cm, | Variable | always | Seasonal surpluses and | ||||||
| tropical-grasslands; | (40 rainy | warm (>18oC) | ||||||||||
| broadleaf, some deciduous | days during | |||||||||||
| trees; open parkland to dense | four summer | |||||||||||
| undergrowth | months) | |||||||||||
| 3 | Tropical Savanna | Transitional between season- | 90-150 cm, | |||||||||
| al forests, rain forests, and | seasonal | limitations | ||||||||||
| semi-arid tropical steppes and | drought susceptible | |||||||||||
| deserts; trees with flattened | ||||||||||||
| crowns, clumped grasses, and | ||||||||||||
| bush thickets; e association | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Mid-latitude Broadleaf | Mixed broadleaf and needle- | 75-150 cm | Temperate, with | Seasonal pattern with | |||||||
| and Mixed Forests | leaf trees; deciduous broad- | cold season | summer maximum | |||||||||
| leaf, losing leaves in winter, | precipitation (PRECIP) | |||||||||||
| southern and eastern ever- | and potential evaporation | |||||||||||
| green pines demonstrate re | transpiration (POTET); | |||||||||||
| association. | no irrigation needed | |||||||||||
| 5. | Northern needle-leaf | Needle-leaf conifers, mostly ev- | 35-100 cm | Short summer, cold | Low POTET, moderate | |||||||
| (Taiga, | Boreal and | ergreen pine, spruce, , larch | winter | PRECEIP, waterlogged and | ||||||||
| Montane Forest) | (deciduous needle-leaf) | |||||||||||
| 6. | Temperate Rain | Narrow margin of lush ever- | 150-500 cm | Mild summer and | Large surplus and run- | |||||||
| Forest | green and deciduous trees on | mild winter for lati- | off | |||||||||
| windward slopes; redwood, | tude | |||||||||||
| duglus r, tallest trees on Earth | ||||||||||||
| (about 100 m high) | ||||||||||||
| 7. | Mediterranean | Short shrubs, drought adapted, | 25-65 cm | Hot, dry summer, | ||||||||
| trending to grassy woodlands; | (summer | |||||||||||
| chaparral, marquise etc. | season dry) | |||||||||||
| 8. | Mid-latitude Grass- | Tall grass prairies and short | 25-75 cm | Temperate | Soil moisture utilization and | |||||||
| lands | grass steppes, highly modified | continental regimes | recharge balanced; | |||||||||
| by human activity; major areas | irrigation and | |||||||||||
| of commercial grain farming; | dry farming in drier | |||||||||||
| plains, steppes, prairies pam- | areas. | |||||||||||
| pas, veld and downs | ||||||||||||
| 9A. | Hot Deserts and Semi- | Bare ground graduating into | < 10 cm | Average annual tem- | Chronic deficits, ir- | |||||||
| deserts | xerophytic plants including | perature, around 18oC | regular precipitation | |||||||||
| succulents, cacti, saquaro and | highest maximum | events PRECIP,1/2 | ||||||||||
| dry shrubs | temperature on Earth | POTET | ||||||||||
| 9B. | Cold -desert and Semi- | Short grass, and dry shrubs | 2-25 cm | Average annual tem- | PRECIP, 1/2 POTET | |||||||
| desert | 15-80 cm | perature 18oC | ||||||||||
| 10. | Arctic and Alpine Tun- | Treeless; dwarf shrubs, stunted | Warmest month | Not applicable most of | ||||||||
| dra | sedges, mosses, lichen, and | 10oC, only 2 or 3 | the year, poor drainage | |||||||||
| short grasses, alpine pastures, | m o n t h s | a b o v e | in summer | |||||||||
| grass-meadows (Margs) | freezing | |||||||||||
