Its getting hot in here
\nPicture
\nOn this webpage you will find out about:
\nthe climate of hot deserts
\nthe soil of hot deserts
\nthe vegetation and how it is adapted its environment
\nVideo on the desert biome – no narration –
\nhttp:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/learningzone\/clips\/images-of-a-hot-desert-biome-no-narration\/3206.html<\/p>\n
The climate
\nDaytime temperatures can get up to over 40 degrees in the summer. But it can get very cold at night (below freezing), because there’s no cloud to keep the heat in. There is a big daily temperature range
\nIt has less than 250mm of rain a year. It might not rain for months or years. When it does it is often in the form of a torrential downpour
\nThere are two seasons – summer, when the sun is high in the sky and its very hot and winter when, although it’s very warm compared to the UK, it’s cooler than the desert summer
\nSoils<\/p>\n
Desert soils are rocky, sandy and grey in colour
\nThey are thin, and can have a crus caused but the impact of the infrequent heavy rainfall
\nEvaporation draws water up through the soil, leaving salts deposited near the surface
\nThe soil is dry, but it can soak up water quickly when it rains
\nVegetation in hot deserts
\nThe vegetation has adapted to survive in the harsh desert climate – below is a diagram showing the stratification of the desert vegetation:
\nPicture
\nDesert yellow daisy
\nDesert yellow daisy – small linear leaves that are hairy and slightly succulent. Seeds are dropped at the end of the dry season on the surface of the soil. When
\nit rains the seed germinate to grow new plants.
\nPicture
\nGiant Saguaro Cactus
\nGiant saguaro cactus – roots very close to the surface so that it can soak up water before it evaporates. Outside skin is pleated so that it can expand when
\nwater is soaked up. Grows very slowly.
\nPicture
\nJoshua tree
\nNeedle-like leaves coated with waxy resin to prevent evapotranspiration
\nGreat basin sagebrush – tap roots up to 25m long and small needle-like leaves to
\nreduce water loss<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"