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A desert is a landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions create unique biomes and ecosystems. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About one-third of the land surface of the Earth is arid or semi-arid.
Jun 21, 2024 · Desert, any large, extremely dry area of land with sparse vegetation. It is one of Earth’s major types of ecosystems, supporting a community of plants and animals specially adapted to the harsh environment. In deserts, trees are usually absent, and shrubs or herbaceous plants provide only very incomplete ground cover.
A place that receives less than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain per year is considered a desert. Deserts are part of a wider class of regions called drylands. These areas exist under a ...
The meaning of DESERT is arid land with usually sparse vegetation; especially : such land having a very warm climate and receiving less than 25 centimeters (10 inches) of sporadic rainfall annually.
If desert communities use groundwater faster than it is replenished, water shortages can occur. The Mojave Desert, in southern California and Nevada, for instance, is sinking due to aquifer depletion. The booming desert communities of Las Vegas, Nevada, and California’s “ Inland Empire ” are using water faster than the aquifer is
Under these conditions, it is rare for clouds and rain to form. Add in a bit of wind to accelerate evaporation at the surface, and the continental regions below become extremely arid owing to the lack of available moisture. Deserts thus become dry. You may picture sand and dunes when you think of a desert, but deserts can occur in colder areas too.
Oct 19, 2023 · Many desert animals, such as the fennec fox (Vulpes zerda), are nocturnal, coming out to hunt only when the brutal sun has descended. Some animals, like the desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizzi) in the southwestern United States, spend much of their time underground. Most desert birds are nomadic, crisscrossing the skies in search of food.
Oct 19, 2023 · Vocabulary. The desert biome covers about one-fifth of Earth’s surface. This biome has a layer of soil that can either be sandy, gravelly, or stony, depending on the type of desert. Deserts usually get at most 50 centimeters (20 inches) of rainfall a year, and the organisms that live in deserts are adapted to this extremely dry climate.
Desert Map. Deserts and xeric, or dry, shrublands rarely receive more than 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rainfall annually. These bone-dry ecosystems have an abundance of life and are ...
desert, Large, extremely dry area of land with fairly sparse vegetation. It is one of the Earth’s major types of ecosystems. Areas with a mean annual precipitation of 10 in. (250 mm) or less are generally considered deserts. They include the high-latitude circumpolar areas as well as the more familiar hot, arid regions of the low and mid ...
