Desert Facts: Biome, Extreme Weather Conditions, Importance and Key Characteristics

Deserts are one of the most fascinating biomes covering one third of the total land surface on earth. Despite being the harshest and driest regions on earth, deserts are home for many incredible plants and animals species with unique characteristics. From icy Atlantic to hot Sahara, the special survival abilities of these fascinating species make deserts highly interesting. Here are some interesting desert facts.

Table of Contents

• What is a Desert
• Characteristics of Desert Biome
• Climate in Desert
• Why Desert are Important
• Interesting Desert Facts

What is a Desert

A desert is a terrestrial ecosystem with little annual rainfall of less than 250 millimeters. These extremely dry lands with sparse vegetation are defined by its extreme climate conditions and unique biome. The desert region on earth is divided majorly into four types: 

• Subtropical desert
• Coastal desert
• Cold Winter desert
• Polar desert

Subtropical deserts are typically hot and dry with scorching sun and sandy terrain. Some of the subtropical desert regions include Sahara and Thar desert. 

Coastal deserts are arid-regions often referred to a mild-desert which are cool and foggy. Despite being located near oceans they receive only 13 cm of rainfall annually. Atacama desert in Chile is the biggest coastal desert.

Cold winter deserts are the regions with mild temperatures and shrubby plants. Unlike the hot sandy deserts these low altitude deserts do not have extremely hot summers. They have extremely cold winters and low shrubby vegetation such as cacti. The Great Basin in the USA is a cold winter desert.

Polar deserts are regions largely covered with ice or glaciers that receive only 250 mm of annual rains with extremely low temperature below 10℃. Even during the warmest months this desert is among the harshest environments on earth.

Characteristics of Desert Biome

Low Precipitation: The desert is mainly characterised by low precipitation or low rainfall. Not only is the rainfall low, it is often sudden or intense causing flash floods. Due to low absorption capacity of sand the water accumulates in these regions. They are highly prone to floods that can be dangerous.

Sparse Vegetation: Some special species of plants adapted to aridity and temperature fluctuations survive in the extreme climatic conditions of deserts. Xerophytes are the desert plants that survive in these regions. Date palms, cacti, creosote bush and desert rose are some of the common plants and trees found in the desert. 

Humidity: The air of desert regions is extremely dry with a low humidity level falling below 25%. This type of low humidity is the major rapid evaporation of sweat. Common health issues such as dehydration is a serious concern in such areas. Therefore, an adequate supply of water is vital for survival.

Temperature: The surface temperatures in hot deserts can reach up to 70°C or 158°F during the day while it can drop at night to 40°C or below, sometimes even 0°C. This extreme heat and cold temperature fluctuations during day and night are the desert's most distinctive features. Cold deserts usually have a surface temperature of −40°C that is freezing.

Climate in Desert

The desert climate is one of the most difficult climates on earth for survival of both plants and animals. It is extremely hot, severely cold and extensively dry. The Sahara desert in North America is one of the largest hot and dry deserts of the world. The days are extremely hot and the nights are extremely cold that can fall below freezing temperatures. In such climatic conditions a few rare and special species of plants and animals with unique features can survive. These special species can adapt to arid-regions. One such most densely populated desert region in the world is the Thar desert. It spans across 2,00,000 kilometers of distance and receives 100-150mm of precipitation. It is home to some most fascinating species of animals such as blackbuck antelope and chinkara (Indian gazelle).

Why Deserts are Important 

Deserts play an important role in maintaining life on earth. From climate regulation to storing minerals and resources, here is why the desert is an important part of earth.

Climate Regulation: As the sand in deserts cannot absorb the solar radiations, they are reflected back into space in large amounts which helps in regulating global temperatures.

Hotspot of Biodiversity: Deserts are the home for many rare species of plants and animals found nowhere else in the world. Their unique flora and fauna make it special and suitable for survival of some amazing plants and animals.

Storehouse of Minerals: From coal to petroleum deserts are important minerals stores world-wide. Today, most of the world's natural oil reserves are under sands in desert regions. 

Cultural Significance: Some of the most ancient civilizations such as the Indus valley and Egyptian civilization, survived in the deserts teaching us the importance of irrigation and water management.

Interesting Desert Facts about Desert

• Camel is known as the ship of the desert that stores fat in its hump to survive without food and water for days.
• Deserts cover one-third of the total land on our planet.
• Welwitschia is a desert plant that can survive up to 2,000 years.
• Silver ants of the Sahara desert are the most heat tolerant insect on earth.
• The Antarctic desert is the coldest and largest desert in the world that spans around 14.2 million kilometers.