A biome (see Life Zone) is a subdivision of the Earth's biota corresponding in spatial extent to one of the great vegetation regions of the Earth such as tundra (q.v.), tropical forest (q.v.), steppe (q.v.), and desert (q.v.). As a subdivision of the biota, the biome includes humans, and is characterized by a particular assemblage of animals, plants, and other living things. There is substantial evidence, especially for plants, that the global pattern of biomes reflects, in part, convergent evolution of life forms among species from different lineages wherever similar environmental conditions prevail (Mooney, 1977; Orians and Solbrig, 1977).
The apparent unity of each type of biome on the land is based on the differences in physiognomy that result when a particular life form of plants exhibits relatively uniform dominance in an area: cushion plants in the tundra, trees in the tropical forest, grasses in the steppe, and succulent plants in the desert. Marine and freshwater biomes are...
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Franz, E.H. (1999). Biome. In: Environmental Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4494-1_37
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-4494-1_37
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