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A Semi-arid climate or steppe climate generally describes climatic
Climate

Climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity, atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to current activity of these same elements....
 regions that receive low annual rain
Rain

Rain is liquid precipitation . On Earth, it is the condensation of atmospheric water vapor into droplet heavy enough to fall, often making it to the surface....
fall (250-500 mm or 10-20 in). A more precise definition is given by the Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification

The K?ppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classifications. It was developed by Wladimir K?ppen, a Russian climatologist, around 1900 ....
 that treats steppe
Steppe

In physical geography, a steppe , pronounced , is a grassland plain without trees . The prairie can be considered a steppe. It may be semi-desert, or covered with Poaceae or shrubs or both, depending on the season and latitude....
 climates (BS) as intermediates between the desert climates (BW) and humid climates in ecological characteristics and agricultural potential. The Köppen climate classification allows adjustments for temperature and for excluding forested regions (such as those in most of Canada and Siberia).

Examples of types of semi-arid biome
Biome

Biomes are Climateally and geographically defined areas of ecologically similar climatic conditions such as Community of plants, animals, and Soil biology, and are often referred to as ecosystems....
s are:






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A Semi-arid climate or steppe climate generally describes climatic
Climate

Climate encompasses the temperatures, humidity, atmospheric pressure, winds, rainfall, atmospheric particle count and numerous other Meteorology elements in a given region over long periods of time, as opposed to the term weather, which refers to current activity of these same elements....
 regions that receive low annual rain
Rain

Rain is liquid precipitation . On Earth, it is the condensation of atmospheric water vapor into droplet heavy enough to fall, often making it to the surface....
fall (250-500 mm or 10-20 in). A more precise definition is given by the Köppen climate classification
Köppen climate classification

The K?ppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classifications. It was developed by Wladimir K?ppen, a Russian climatologist, around 1900 ....
 that treats steppe
Steppe

In physical geography, a steppe , pronounced , is a grassland plain without trees . The prairie can be considered a steppe. It may be semi-desert, or covered with Poaceae or shrubs or both, depending on the season and latitude....
 climates (BS) as intermediates between the desert climates (BW) and humid climates in ecological characteristics and agricultural potential. The Köppen climate classification allows adjustments for temperature and for excluding forested regions (such as those in most of Canada and Siberia).

Examples of types of semi-arid biome
Biome

Biomes are Climateally and geographically defined areas of ecologically similar climatic conditions such as Community of plants, animals, and Soil biology, and are often referred to as ecosystems....
s are:
  • Australia
    Australia

    Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the Australia of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania, and numerous list of islands of Australia in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans....
    : a large portion of the Outback
    Outback

    The Outback refers to remote arid areas of Australia, although the term colloquially can refer to any lands outside of the main urban areas....
    , surrounding the central desert regions, including the following areas:
    • MacDonnell Ranges
      MacDonnell Ranges

      The MacDonnell Ranges of the Northern Territory, are a 644 km long series of mountain ranges located in the centre of Australia , and consist of parallel ridges running to the east and west of Alice Springs....
      , including Alice Springs
      Alice Springs, Northern Territory

      Alice Springs is the second largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Popularly known as "the Alice" or simply "Alice",Alice Springs is situated in geographic centre of Australia....
      . (The ranges are surrounded by arid desert regions.)
    • Southern Kimberley, including Broome
      Broome, Western Australia

      Broome is a pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, 2200 km north of Perth, Western Australia. The year round population is approximately 14,436, growing to more than 45,000 per month during the tourist season....
    • Central part of the WA Goldfields, including Kalgoorlie
    • Western Pilbara, including Karratha
      Karratha, Western Australia

      Karratha is a town adjoining the port of Dampier in the Pilbara region of Western Australia which was developed from the 1960s to accommodate the processing and exportation workforce of the Hamersley Iron iron ore company and, in the 1980s, the petroleum and liquefied natural gas operations of the North West Shelf Venture....
    • Eastern Riverland
      Riverland

      The Riverland, also known as Big River Country, is a region of South Australia. It covers the area near the River Murray from where it flows into South Australia downstream to Blanchetown, South Australia....
      , northern Victorian Mallee
      The Mallee

      The Australian Standard Geographic Classification region of victoria,s Mallee covers Rural City of Mildura, Rural City of Swan Hill, the Shire of Gannawarra and the Shire of Buloke....
       and Sunraysia
      Sunraysia

      Sunraysia is an area of northwestern Victoria and southwestern New South Wales in Australia, known for its sunshine, grapes and oranges. Its main centre is Mildura, Victoria....
      , including Mildura
    • Central North West Queensland
      Regions of Queensland

      The Regions of Queensland refers to the geographic areas of the Australian state of Queensland. Due to its large size and decentralised population, the state is often divided into regions for statistical and administrative purposes....
      , including Mount Isa
      Mount Isa, Queensland

      Mount Isa is a city in North-West Queensland, Australia. It came into existence because of the vast mineral deposits found in the area. Mount Isa Mines is one of the most productive single mines in world history?based on combined production of lead, silver, copper and zinc....
    • Coastal part of the Far North
      Far North, South Australia

      The Far North is the region of South Australia that is close to the border with the Northern Territory. Colloquial usage in South Australia tends to use the term "Far North" as referring to that part of South Australia north of a line roughly from Ceduna, South Australia through Port Augusta, South Australia to Broken Hill, New South Wales....
       region of South Australia, including Port Augusta
  • Brazil
    Brazil

    Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the List of countries and outlying territories by total area country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the List of countries by population country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world....
    : the North-eastern Sertão
    Sertão

    In Brazil, the sert?o once referred to the vast hinterland of Brazil away from the Atlantic coastal regions where the Portuguese first settled in South America....
     or Caatinga
    Caatinga

    Caatinga is a type of vegetation, and an ecoregion characterized by this vegetation in the northeastern part of Brazil. The name "Caatinga" is a Tupi word meaning "white forest" or "white vegetation" ....
  • Caribbean
    Caribbean

    The Caribbean is a region consisting of the Caribbean Sea, its islands , and the surrounding coasts. The region is located southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and Northern America, east of Central America, and to the north of South America....
    : the Leeward Antilles
    Leeward Antilles

    The Leeward Antilles are a chain of islands in the Caribbean ? specifically, the southerly islands of the Lesser Antilles along the southeastern fringe of the Caribbean Sea, just north of the Venezuelan coast of the South American mainland....
    .
  • Canada
    Canada

    Canada is a country occupying most of northern North America, extending from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west and northward into the Arctic Ocean....
    :
    • The southern Prairie Provinces, including southern Alberta
      Alberta

      Alberta is one of Canada Canadian Prairies Provinces and territories of Canada. It became a province on September 1, 1905.Alberta is located in western Canada, bounded by the provinces of British Columbia to the west and Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Territories to the north, and the U.S....
      , southern Saskatchewan
      Saskatchewan

      Saskatchewan is a prairie provinces in Canada, which has an area of 588,276.09 square kilometres and a population of 1,015,895 , mostly living in the southern half of the province....
       and extreme southwestern Manitoba
      Manitoba

      Manitoba is a prairie provinces in Canada, which has an area of 647,797 square kilometres and a population of 1,207,959 , with more than half located within the Winnipeg Capital Region ....
      ;
    • Parts of the British Columbia
      British Columbia

      British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's Provinces and territories of Canada and is famed for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu ....
       interior including the Cariboo
      Cariboo

      The Cariboo is an intermontane region of British Columbia along a plateau stretching from the Fraser Canyon to the Cariboo Mountains. The name is a reference to the woodland caribou that were once abundant in the region....
       plateau and the Okanagan Valley
  • Kazakhstan
    Kazakhstan

    Kazakhstan, also Kazakstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a large Eurasian country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the List of countries by area as well as the world's largest landlocked country, it has a territory of 2,727,300 km? ....
    : the Steppe
    Steppe

    In physical geography, a steppe , pronounced , is a grassland plain without trees . The prairie can be considered a steppe. It may be semi-desert, or covered with Poaceae or shrubs or both, depending on the season and latitude....
  • North Africa
    North Africa

    North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa.Geopolitically, the United Nations subregion of Northern Africa includes the following seven countries or territories:...
    : The region between the Tell Atlas
    Tell Atlas

    The Tell Atlas is a mountain chain over 1,500 kilometers in length, belonging to the Atlas Mountains ranges in North Africa, stretching from Morocco, through Algeria to Tunisia....
     and the Saharan Atlas
    Saharan Atlas

    The Saharan Atlas of Algeria is the eastern portion of the Atlas Mountains. Not as tall as the Grand Atlas of Morocco they are far more imposing than the Tell Atlas range that runs closer to the coast....
    ; and the Sahel
    Sahel

    File:Sahel Map-Africa rough.pngFile:AT0713 map.pngThe Sahel or Sahel Belt is a semi-arid tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands ecoregion in Africa, which forms the transition between the Sahara to the north and the slightly less arid savanna belt to the south, known as the Sudan ....
     on the southern edge of the Sahara
    Sahara

    The Sahara is the world's largest hot desert. At over 9,000,000 square kilometers , it covers most of Northern Africa, making it almost as large as the United States or the continent of Europe....
  • Most of Pakistan
    Pakistan

    Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia and borders Central Asia and the Middle East. It has a 1,046 kilometre coastline along the Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman in the south, and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and People's Republic of China in th...
  • Southern Africa
    Southern Africa

    Southern Africa is the southernmost region of the African continent, variably defined by geography or geopolitics, consisting of numerous territories....
    : the Karoo
    Karoo

    The Karoo is a semi-desert region of South Africa. It has two main sub-regions - the Great Karoo in the north and the Little Karoo in the south....
     and Kalahari regions in the western interior of South Africa
    South Africa

    The Republic of South Africa, also known by Official names of South Africa, is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa....
     and Botswana
    Botswana

    The Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Citizens of Botswana are called "Batswana" , regardless of ethnicity. Formerly a British protectorate of Bechuanaland Protectorate, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth of Nations on 30 September 1966....
    , also borders the Namib Desert
    Namib Desert

    The Namib Desert is a desert in Namibia and southwest Angola which forms part of the Namib-Naukluft National Park. The name "Namib" is of Nama language origin....
     to the north and west.
  • Spain
    Spain

    Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
    : most of Canary Islands and the south-east peninsular zone: province of Alicante
    Alicante (province)

    Alicante in Spanish language or Alacant is a Provinces of Spain of eastern Spain, in the southern part of the Valencian Community. It is bordered by the provinces of Region of Murcia on the southwest, Albacete on the west, Valencia on the north, and the Mediterranean Sea on the east....
    , province of Almeria
    Almería (province)

    Almer?a is a Provinces of Spain of southern Spain. It is bordered by the provinces of Granada , Region of Murcia, and the Mediterranean Sea. Its capital is Almer?a....
     and Region of Murcia
    Region of Murcia

    The Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia is one of Spain's seventeen Autonomous communities of Spain. It is located in the southeast of the country, between Andalusia and Valencia , on the Mediterranean Sea coast....
    . This climate is called arid mediterranean.
  • United States
    United States

    The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
    : the western interior, including the following states (except above the tree line in the mountain states and in some localized areas):
    • Western parts of the Dakotas
    • Western Nebraska
      Nebraska

      Nebraska is a U.S. state located on the Great Plains of the Midwestern United States and Western United States.Nebraska probably gets its name from the archaic Chiwere language words ?? Br?sge or the Omaha-Ponca language N? Bth?ska meaning "flat water," after the Platte River that flows through the state....
    • Western Kansas
      Kansas

      The State of Kansas is a Midwestern U.S. state in the Central United States of the United States of America, an area often referred to as the United States "Heartland"....
    • Far Western Oklahoma
      Oklahoma

      Oklahoma is a U.S. state and a sovereignty located in the South Central United States and Southern United States of the United States of America ....
    • Central and West Texas
      Texas

      Texas is a U.S. state located in the South Central United States, nicknamed the Lone Star State. Texas is the second largest U.S. state in both area and population, spanning , and with a growing population of 24.3 million residents....
    • Most of New Mexico
      New Mexico

      New Mexico is a U. S. State located in the Southwestern United States of the United States. Inhabited by Native Americans in the United States populations for many centuries, it has also has been part of the Spanish Empire viceroyalty of New Spain, part of Mexico, and a U.S....
    • Colorado
      Colorado

      The State of Colorado is a U.S. state located in the Mountain States of the United States of America. Colorado may also be considered to be a part of the Western United States and Southwestern United States regions of the United States....
    • Montana
      Montana

      Montana is a U.S. state in the Western United States. The western third of the state contains numerous mountain ranges; other 'island' ranges are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains....
    • Wyoming
      Wyoming

      The State of Wyoming is a sparsely populated U.S. state in the Northwestern United States of the United States. The majority of the state is dominated by the mountain ranges and rangelands of the Rocky Mountains, while the easternmost section of the state is a high altitude prairie region known as the High Plains ....
    • Most of Utah
      Utah

      The State of Utah is a western United States U.S. state of the United States. It was the List of U.S. states by date of statehood admitted to the United States on January 4, 1896....
    • Northeastern Arizona
      Arizona

      The State of Arizona is a U.S. state located in the Southwestern United States of the United States. The capital and largest city is Phoenix, Arizona....
    • Northern Nevada
      Nevada

      Nevada is a U.S. state located in the Western United States of the United States of America. The capital is Carson City and the largest city is Las Vegas, Nevada....
    • Most of Idaho
      Idaho

      The State of Idaho is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States of America. The state's largest city and Capital is Boise, Idaho....
    • Northeastern California
      California

      California is a U.S. state on the West Coast of the United States of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Oregon to the north, Nevada to the east, Arizona to the southeast, and to the south the Mexico state of Baja California....
    • Eastern Oregon
      Oregon

      Oregon is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The area was inhabited by many indigenous tribes before the arrival of traders, explorers and settlers....
    • Eastern Washington
      Washington

      Washington is a U.S. state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. Washington was carved out of the western part of Washington Territory which had been ceded by Britain in 1846 by the Oregon Treaty as settlement of the Oregon Boundary Dispute....
  • Venezuela
    Venezuela

    Venezuela , officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a country on the northern coast of South America.The country comprises a continental mainland and numerous islands located off the Venezuelan coastline in the Caribbean Sea....
    : the upper north-west zone Zulia and Falcón.

Examples


Northern hemisphere


Southern hemisphere