Earth's biomes are areas with similar climate, geography, and other conditions as well as similar plants, animals, and other living things. Click on image for full size (128 Kb) Windows to the Universe

Biomes are large areas of the world where there are similar plants, animals, and other living things. The living things are adapted to the climate. Explore the links below to learn more about different biomes.

Tundra

Taiga

Temperate forest

Tropical rainforest

Desert

Grassland

Ocean

A biome is made of many similar ecosystems. In an ecosystem, the plants, animals, and other organisms rely on each other. They also interact with non-living parts of the ecosystem such as the soil, water, and nutrients.

In an ecosystem, each type of plant and animal has its own role to play.  The role for one animal might be to climb trees and eat their fruit, while the role for another animal might be to hunt for mice.  For a tree, a role might be to grow tall and make food with the Sun’s energy.

Sometimes ecosystems get out of balance. If, for example, it rains a lot and a type of bird that loves water increases in numbers, other species in the ecosystem might be crowded out. The birds might take food or space from other species.  They might eat all the food. Sometimes an ecosystem gets back in balance naturally. Other times an ecosystem will become more and more out of balance.  Today, human actions are having an impact on ecosystems all over the world, sending many ecosystems out of balance.