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Unlike the other biomes, deserts can be classified by what they do not have: water. Deserts receive less than 25 centimeters of rain a year. Desert biomes are located in the southwestern part of the United States. Although deserts can be hot or cold, the deserts of the American Southwest are hot.

 Plants in a desert are adapted to the lack of rainfall. For example, the thick, fleshy stems of cacti help them to store water. A giant saguaro cactus in the Sonoran Desert, of Arizona can store up to a ton of water The Joshua tree, a giant yucca, is one of the few trees that can survive in the deserts of the Southwest. Most flowering plants in the southwestern deserts flower, produce seeds, and die within a few weeks of a rare desert rainfall.

Like the plants, desert animals must be able to survive on little water. Plant-eating animals, such as kangaroo rats and jack rabbits, obtain most of their water from the plants they eat. Meat-eating animals, such as cougars, obtain most of their water by eating the plant eaters. Most desert animals hide from the hot sun during the day and come out to eat only at night, when temperatures are cooler.

The Joshua Tree is one of the few trees in the desert

 

The jack rabbit (left) has very long eart as a means of cooling. This is just one of several animals and plants that have adaptations that allow it to survive in the desert.