Semi-arid climate

There are different kinds of semi-arid climates, depending on variables such as temperature, and they give rise to different biomes.

[citation needed] Hot semi-arid climates are most commonly found in Africa, Australia, and South Asia.

[3][clarification needed] In South Asia, both India and parts of Pakistan experience the seasonal effects of monsoons and feature short but well-defined wet seasons, but are not sufficiently wet overall to qualify as either a tropical savanna or a humid subtropical climate.

[citation needed] Hot semi-arid climates can be also found in parts of North America, such as most of northern Mexico, the ABC Islands, the rain shadows of Hispaniola's mountain ranges in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, parts of the Southwestern United States including California's Central Valley, and sections of South America such as the sertão, the Gran Chaco, and the poleward side of the arid deserts, where they typically feature a Mediterranean precipitation pattern, with generally rainless summers and wetter winters.

[citation needed] Areas featuring cold semi-arid climates tend to have higher elevations than areas with hot semi-arid climates, and tend to feature major temperature swings between day and night, sometimes by as much as 20 °C (36 °F) or more.