Thursday, November 29, 2012

Fauna and Vegetation



Plant Life
 http://www.abc.net.au/science/photos/2012/11/21/3636626.htm
http://home.vicnet.net.au/~fgvd/plants.htm
 http://home.vicnet.net.au/~fgvd/plants.htm
Despite the Great Victoria Desert being a hot, arid desert with an abundance of sand dunes, the ecoregion sports great diversity in plant life.  The vegetation mostly consists of open woodlands, with the majority of the trees being eucalyptus trees, such as Marble Gum, and other endemic trees such as the Western Myall.  These trees are sparsely laid out, providing little shade from the sun for the desert wildlife.  Also present are grasses and shrubs like hummock grass, mulga, and belah.  All in all, 140 different plant species were found in 2009 by the Friends of the Great Victoria Desert, a testament to how diverse the plant life is in the desert. 
-http://home.vicnet.net.au/~fgvd/plants.htm 
-http://www.eoearth.org/article/Great_Victoria_desert?topic=74361 

Animals
http://www.abc.net.au/science/photos/2012/11/21/3636626.htm
 http://www.abc.net.au/science/photos/2012/11/21/3636626.htm
The Great Victoria Desert boasts a large diversity in animals, housing over 100 different reptilian species, one being the rare great desert skink.  Due to the diversity of regions in the Australian Outback, the Great Victoria Desert animals have evolved in isolation, allowing more variation in the reptilian species.  Up to nine different gecko species can be found in overlapping regions, indicative of the diversity in the region. 
-http://www.eoearth.org/article/Great_Victoria_desert?topic=74361
-http://www.environment.gov.au/land/publications/acris/pubs/bioregion-great-victoria-desert.pdf
 

 

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