Ecosystems

Front 1

Tundra

Back 1

a vast, flat, treeless Arctic region of Europe, Asia, and North America in which the subsoil is permanently frozen.

Front 2

Taiga

Back 2

the sometimes swampy coniferous forest of high northern latitudes, especially that between the tundra and steppes of Siberia and North America.

Front 3

Savanna

Back 3

a grassy plain in tropical and subtropical regions, with few trees.

Front 4

Grassland

Back 4

a large open area of country covered with grass, especially one used for grazing.

Front 5

Prairies

Back 5

a large open area of grassland, especially in the Mississippi River valley.

synonyms: plains, grasslands

Front 6

Desert

Back 6

an 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

Front 7

Steppe

Back 7

a large area of flat unforested grassland in southeastern Europe or Siberia.

Front 8

Intertidal zones

Back 8

The intertidal zone, also known as the foreshore and seashore and sometimes referred to as the littoral zone, is the area that is above water at low tide and under water at high tide (in other words, the area between tide marks).

Front 9

Continental shelves

Back 9

the area of seabed around a large landmass where the sea is relatively shallow compared with the open ocean. The continental shelf is geologically part of the continental crust.

Front 10

Subtidal zones

Back 10

The subtidal zone is the area below the low tide water line. The vast majority of this area is submerged most of the time, and it includes an array of habitats. Submerged aquatic vegetation beds and coral reefs reside in the subtidal zone.

Front 11

Deep ocean zones

Back 11

Deep sea zones. The deep sea or deep layer is the lowest layer in the ocean, existing below the thermocline and above the seabed, at a depth of 1800 m or more.

Front 12

Estuaries

Back 12

the tidal mouth of a large river, where the tide meets the stream.

synonyms:(river) mouth, delta;

Front 13

Deciduous forest

Back 13

Temperate deciduous forests are forests that are dominated by trees that lose their leaves each year. These types of forest are found in areas with warm, moist summers and fairly mild winters.

Front 14

Tropical forest

Back 14

a tropical woodland with an annual rainfall of at least 100 inches (254 centimeters) and marked by lofty broad-leaved evergreen trees forming a continuous canopy.

Front 15

Temperate rain forest

Back 15

woodland of a usually rather mild climatic area within the temperate zone that receives heavy rainfall, usually includes numerous kinds of trees, and is distinguished from a tropical rain forest especially by the presence of a dominant tree.

Front 16

Arctic ice pack

Back 16

The Arctic ice pack is the ice cover of the ArcticOcean and its vicinity. The Arctic ice pack undergoes a regular seasonal cycle in which ice melts in spring and summer, reaches a minimum around mid-September, then increases during fall and winter. Summer ice cover in the Arctic is about 50% of wintercover.

Front 17

Wetland

Back 17

land consisting of marshes or swamps; saturated land.

synonyms:marsh, bog, swamp