How do I create Biomes for my World?

[waldronate]

As I posted in a different thread, an ideal flat continent looks roughly like this:


Note the ocean currents, as they are the major heat transport mechanism and are one of the main reasons for the asymmetry across the latitudes (the biomes are tilted like that rather than going straight across). Also note that altitude has the effect of forcing the biome as if the spot were farther north because the altitude reduces the temperature. If there are other continents around, they will have the potential to strongly influence ocean currents. I recommend at least roughing-in the rest of the continents to see how they would block currents (both air and water). Air currents carry moisture for rainfall. Evaporation is strongest at the equator, with the moist air rising and raining out there; there is a descending limb of that same cell at around 35 degrees latitude that causes the deserts at around those latitudes (see Hadley cells at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hadley_cell for more info).

Take a peek at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biome for some good examples of how the biomes on earth look.

For your continent (especially with those mountain ranges at top and bottom), you'll have a huge interior desert, as you noted. The latitude variations will probably only show along the left and right edges of the continent. The top-left edge of the continent should be a fair bit warmer than expected due to the ability of warm currents to push into the arctic. The seaward sides of both mountain ranges should have major rainfall because the rising hot air in the interior will pull huge amounts of moist oceanic air toward the center.