Biosphere Contents

6. Biomes

Biomes can often be distinguished by a combination of latitude and altitude

Air temperature decreases by about 6.5°C every 1000 metres, causing substantial variation between the ecosystems found at different elevations. Because the scale is smaller, it is easier to study and view how different ecosystems inhabit different altitudes within a mountain range, from the tropical rain forest in the foothills of the Peruvian Andes all the way up to the glaciers remaining near the peaks of the Cordillera Blanca. It is possible to find, compressed into these 6,000 metres, the latitudinal gradient of biomes from the Equator to the North Pole.

The effect of altitude and latitude on biomes

How does altitude affect biomes?