Which of the following are key environmental parameters that determine the distribution of biomes?

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The question asks: Which of the following are key environmental parameters that determine the distribution of biomes?
Option 1: 'Temperature and Soil Type' — While soil type influences plant communities locally, the broad global distribution of biomes is governed primarily by climate factors like temperature and precipitation, not soil type. So this pairing is not the best pair for biomes as a general rule.
Option 2: 'Temperature and Precipitation' — This pair captures the two dominant climatic controls on biome distribution. Temperature sets the metabolic rates and growing season length, while precipitation determines water availability; together they largely define major biome categories (e.g., tundra, deserts, tropical forests, temperate forests).
Option 3: 'Cloud Cover and Wind Speed' — Cloud cover can influence surface temperature and radiation balance, but wind speed is generally not a primary determinant of biome zoning on a large scale. These factors are more about microclimate dynamics and weather patterns rather than the overarching biome map.
Option 4: 'Precipitation and Soil Type' — Precipitation is essential, but soil type, while important for nutrient availability and rooting, does not drive the large-scale worldwide distribution of biomes as strongly as climate does. Soil is more a modifier of productivity within a biome than a primary splitter of biome zones.
Option 5: 'Precipitation and Wind Speed' — Precipitation matters, yet wind speed per se is not a principal axis used to classify biomes globally. It can affect evapotranspiration and microclimates, but it does not define major biome boundaries as clearly as temperature paired with precipitation.
In summary, the strongest, most widely accepted combination for determining biome distribution is temperature and precipitation, since these two climate variables directly shape heat regimes and water availability that define major biome types across the globe.

Biol 1106 Rosenzweig Sp2025 CRN's11552 & 11553 Lesson 23 Homework Problems

Which of the following are key environmental parameters that determine the distribution of biomes?

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