Biotic and abiotic desert factors

The Biotic desert factors They are all living beings that are part of it, such as fauna, flora and other organisms, as well as its interactions between the same species and between different species. These living organisms must have physiological characteristics and behaviors that allow them to survive in a given environment, being in this case the desert environment, which stands out for having extreme conditions. Both vegetation and animals that inhabit the desert are conditioned to Survive extreme temperatures and water scarcity.

Examples of biotic desert factors

Among the desert flora you can find well adapted species and that survive these extreme conditions such as:

• Palm trees
• Thickets
• Pastizales
• Cactus, such as nopales or candlestick.
• Weeds in the oasis.

Here you can learn more about desert plants.

Similarly, among the desert fauna are only species that manage to survive these extreme conditions, such as:

• Camels.
• Dromedaries
• Goats
• Spiders
• Owls.
• Mice.
• Snakes, such as the rattlesnake and the cobras.
• Alacranes.
• Desert foxes, such as fennec foxes or Arctic foxes.

If you want to learn more about what animals there are in the desert, we recommend you read this other post. In addition, if you seek to learn more about this type factors in ecosystems, encourage you to read this specific article about biotic factors: what are, characteristics, classification and examples.

While biotic factors are those alive, Abiotic factors are those who have no life and that determine The habitat of living organisms. Those that most characterize a bioma such as deserts are water, light and temperature. Next, some will be exhibited Examples of abiotic desert factors:

• The temperature of an area depends fundamentally on the amount of radiation it receives from the Sun. Extreme temperatures occur, these being very high during the day and very low during the night. Also in cold deserts there is a great thermal amplitude between winter and summer, being able to be hot or not too cold and the winter very cold and extreme.
• The sunlight in the desert is a very characteristic factor of the bioma, having this great intensity. In addition, vegetation shortages makes the surface much more exposed to sunlight.
• The presence of water in the desert is scarce, with an average rainfall of 200 to 500 mm per year.
• The desert floor can be sandy or stony, in addition to being very dry.
• It has a very strong barometric pressure.
• Desert humidity is very low.
• They give wind processes that are very important for landscape formation.
• The nutrients in the desert are scarce, as a consequence of their low biodiversity and water shortage.
• Atmospheric gases are another abiotic component of the desert.
• Ice is an abiotic factor of cold deserts.

Learn much more about abiotic factors: what are, characteristics and examples.

Desert vegetation is not abundant or very variedwhich leads us to ask what factors are responsible for it.

Although the Precipitation shortageor the lack of water in general, in the deserts it is one of the abiotic factors that most influences the absence of plants in the deserts, it is true that also extreme temperatures, intense sunlight and low environmental humidity are determining factors in this situation.

The Sahara desert is the bigger warm desert in the worldwith more than 9,400,000 km2, being the habitat of the tribes of the Berbers and the Tuarecs. It is currently considered that the climate of Sahara is one of the most severe in the world. In addition, in this desert, geographical accidents such as mountainous mountain ranges, dissected plateaus, dry valleys, dunes or volcanoes, as well as seasonal rivers, aquifers and oasis are found. As for the vegetation and fauna present in this region of the planet, it should be noted that they are scarce, but goats, camels and dromedaries are the animals that are most frequently found.

One of the most important deserts in Perulocated northwest of the country with a width of 100 km and a length of 150 km. The Sechura desert presents little vegetation and some flashing gaps. It is a desert very rich in phosphates and, although superficially scarce water, it is crossed by groundwater currents.

The Antarctic desert is a Ice desertwith annual rainfall that does not reach 200 mm. It is the greatest in the world and is considered as the Dry, cold and windy territory of all Those who form our planet. Some of the animals that can be found there are the emperor penguin and the marine leopard, while among the vegetation of the area the Antarctic carnation and the Antarctic grass stand out, as well as ferns, mosses and lichens.

If you want to discover more desert characteristics, do not hesitate to read our other article about the desert ecosystem: characteristics, flora and fauna. Now that you have already learned all this about the biotic and abiotic factors of the desert ecosystem, we encourage you to continue learning about the factors of ecosystems and biomes with this other article about the difference between biotic and abiotic factors.

If you want to read more articles similar to Biotic and abiotic desert factorswe recommend that you enter our category of ecosystems.