Grab your backpack, binoculars, and camera, and get ready to explore Earth's different biomes on this once-in-a-lifetime world safari. You will visit the tundra, taiga, deciduous forest, grasslands, desert, and tropical rain forest. And in each biome, you'll observe the breathtaking scenery and some of the plants and animals that live there. Are you ready for your adventure? Grades 6–8. Harcourt Achieve, 2006; 40 pages; paperback; ISBN 1-4189-1071-6.

Excerpt from Chapter 5: "Desert"

Can you feel the air getting drier and drier? Now you're stepping into the desert biome. Go ahead and have a drink of water—you're going to need it!

You can find deserts on every continent in the world. All deserts are dry and most get less than 10 inches of rainfall per year. Though many deserts are hot, you might be surprised to learn that there are cold deserts, too.

Take a Closer Look
What's one of the first things you look for when you're out in the hot sun and you want to cool off? You look for some shade, of course! During the day, the sun is intense, and shade can be hard to find in the desert. The ant, like other insects in the desert, will spend the day avoiding the heat by simply changing positions on a twig. When the sun hits its back, the ant will move.

The snakes and lizards that inhabit the desert all have tough, scaly skin that prevents them from losing water. And many other desert animals simply hide during the day and only come out at night, when it is cooler.

Excerpt and images © 2006 Harcourt Achieve.

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