7.+Desert+(Hot+and+Cold)

Desert (Hot and Cold)

Location:

 * Hot deserts are found in every continent.
 * Some of the bigger hot deserts are Kalahari, Sahara of Africa, Simpson of Australia, Atacama of South America and Sonoran of United States.
 * Cold deserts are in the rain shadows of mountains
 * They include the Great Basin Desert of North America
 * Hot deserts have 30 degrees latitude north and south
 * Cold deserts above 30 degrees latitude north and below 30 south

**Climate:**

 * In hot deserts there is annually less 25 cm of rain a year
 * In cold deserts there is also annually less then 25 cm of rain a year
 * In the hot deserts the temperature averages at 38 degrees during the day and 7 at night.
 * In the cold deserts the temperature is 21 to 26 degrees during the summer and in the winter -2 to -4 degrees

**Physical Features:**

 * In the hot deserts there is either basically no rain or a lot in a very short period of time
 * In the cold deserts there rain usually turns to snow but they do get rain in the spring

**Plant Adaptations:**

 * In the hot deserts there are very few plants due to the heat and no water
 * The most common plant in the cacti
 * Many plants have spines or produce chemicals that protect them from being eaten
 * In cold deserts there are very few plants because they get water but no heat

**Animal Adaptations:**

 * In hot deserts reptiles are common and have thick skin and scales that prevent water loss
 * At night when the temperatures are lower the animals are more active
 * In cold deserts most animals burrow themselves to escape the cold
 * The animals that live in the cold deserts have to either be very furry or have a lot of blubber.



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