Chaparral
Chaparral has hot, dry summers and wet, cool winters
The chaparral biome is found on the western sides of continents
at mid-latitudes (around 40°) where cool ocean currents flow
offshore. Winters in this biome are cool and wet; summers are
warm and dry. Such climates are found in the Mediterranean
region of Europe, coastal California, central Chile, extreme
southern Africa, and southwestern Australia.
The dominant plants of chaparral vegetation are low-growing
shrubs and trees with tough evergreen leaves that conserve water.
The shrubs carry out most of their growth and photosynthesis
in early spring, when insects are active and birds breed. Many
chaparral species produce strong-smelling defensive chemicals
to reduce losses of hard-to-replace foliage to herbivores. Annual
plants are abundant and produce large quantities of seeds that
fall onto the soil, supporting many small rodents, most of which
store seeds in underground burrows. Burrowing to avoid midday
heat and nocturnal foraging are strategies used by many
chaparral animals. Chaparral vegetation is adapted to periodic
fires; the seeds of some species do not germinate until after they
have survived a fire. Many shrubs of Northern Hemisphere chaparral
produce bird-dispersed fruits that ripen in late fall, when
large numbers of migrant birds arrive from the north.