Final answer:
Biomes do not form simple latitudinal belts on Earth because their distribution is influenced by factors like elevation, latitude, wind systems, ocean currents, continental position, and mountain barriers that alter temperature, precipitation, and climate regions, thus affecting biome placement.
Step-by-step explanation:
Biomes do not encircle Earth in simple belts because the distribution of biomes is affected by a variety of factors beyond just latitude. While the latitude of a location does influence its climate due to the angle of sunlight received, there are other critical elements such as elevation, wind systems, ocean currents, the location of the landmass on a continent, and mountain barriers that also play significant roles. For instance, mountain ranges can block the movement of air and cause rain shadows, where one side is lush and the other is arid. Similarly, ocean currents can significantly warm or cool local climates, leading to the development of biomes that deviate from the expected pattern based on latitude alone.
On a global scale, factors such as the tilt of the Earth's axis affect the intensity of seasons and the distribution of sunlight. Additionally, the arrangement and size of continents and oceanic conveyors distribute heat around the planet, influencing long-term climate patterns, which in turn affects the worldwide distribution of biomes. For example, a place at a high latitude might be warmer than expected if it is near a warm ocean current, leading to different biomes than latitude alone would suggest.
Moreover, elevation can mimic the effects of higher latitudes; a hike up a mountain shows changes in vegetation and biomes similar to those found when moving from equatorial to polar regions. These factors create exceptions to the generalized latitudinal biome belts and result in the varied and complex pattern of biomes that we observe across the Earth.