{"thcode":3,"term":{"code":112,"name":"biogeographic regions","parent":928,"scope":"Geographic regions characterized chiefly by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate. [Adapted from American Heritage Dic. of the English Language, 4th ed.]"},"uf":[{"name":"biomes","usewith":false},{"name":"ecoregions","usewith":false},{"name":"vegetation","usewith":false}],"bt":[{"code":928,"name":"regions","parent":1,"scope":"(a) Large, indefinite portions of the earth's surface. (b) Specified districts or territories. (c) Areas of interest or activity; spheres. (d) Ecology. Parts of the earth characterized by distinctive animal or plant life. [Adapted from American Heritage Dic. of the English Language, 4th ed.]"},{"code":1,"name":"Categories","parent":null,"scope":null}],"nt":[{"code":89,"name":"barren lands","parent":112,"scope":"Places composed of bare rock, sand, gravel, or other earthen material with little or no vegetation and having limited ability to support life. [USGS Circ 1048]"},{"code":311,"name":"deserts","parent":112,"scope":"Regions rendered barren or partially barren by environmental extremes, especially by low rainfall. [USGS Circ 1048]"},{"code":413,"name":"forests","parent":112,"scope":"Dense growths of trees, plants, and underbrush covering a large area. [American Heritage Dic. of the English Language, 4th ed.]"},{"code":460,"name":"grasslands","parent":112,"scope":"Extensive noncultivated areas where vegetation is dominated by grasses or grass-like plants. [USGS Circ 1048]"},{"code":479,"name":"habitats","parent":112,"scope":"Particular environments or places where an organism or species tends to live. [Glossary of Geology, 4th ed.]"},{"code":582,"name":"jungles","parent":112,"scope":"Tropical regions of wild, tangled, dense vegetation. [Glossary of Geology, 4th ed.]"},{"code":747,"name":"oases","parent":112,"scope":"Fertile, vegetated areas in the midst of a desert, where the water table has come close enough to the surface for wells and springs or seepages to exist, thus making them suitable for human habitation. [Glossary of Geology, 4th ed.]"},{"code":1038,"name":"shrublands","parent":112,"scope":"Areas covered with low-growing or stunted perennial vegetation and usually not mixed with trees. [USGS Circ 1048]"},{"code":1056,"name":"snow regions","parent":112,"scope":"(a) Broad expanses of terrain covered with snow, relatively smooth and uniform in appearance, occurring usually at high latitudes or in mountainous regions above the snowline, and persisting throughout the year. (b) Regions of permanent snow cover, as at the heads of glaciers. [Glossary of Geology, 4th ed.]"},{"code":1184,"name":"tundras","parent":112,"scope":"Treeless, level, or gently rolling plains characteristic of arctic or subarctic regions, having a permanently frozen subsoil, and usually supporting low growing vegetation such as lichens, mosses, and stunted shrubs. [USGS Circ 1048]"},{"code":1236,"name":"wetlands","parent":112,"scope":"Vegetated areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water for a significant part of the year. The vegetation is adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. [USGS Circ 1048]"}],"rt":[{"code":816,"name":"physiographic features","parent":1,"scope":null}]}