ABSTRACT
Two processes have been traditionally assumed to drive the global patterns of biomes. First, that the environment 'filters' out organisms not suited to the climate and soils of an area, and second, that over evolutionary time, optimal resource-use strategies of plants and animals are selected for, resulting in convergent evolution. The Albany Subtropical Thicket biome supports a dense, woody thicket vegetation that grows to about 2–3 m in height and is semi-succulent and thorny. The southern African desert biome occurs along the hyper-arid western south Atlantic seaboard, and largely coincides with the ancient Namib Desert of Namibia. The Grassland biome forms part of the extensive global Temperate Grassland biome, and is situated primarily on the high central plateau of South Africa, and the inland areas of KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. The Nama-Karoo biome comprises an extensive semi-arid rangeland, situated on the central plateau to the west of southern Africa.
