geo-, ge- +

In botany, a perennial plant that enters a resting state during periods of drought: A potato plant is a xerogeophyte in that its leaf cells take in more water from the earth to continue a stable leaf water condition and thus remain alive during a dry period or lack of rain.

A person who studies and records the geographical distribution of animals and animal communities: Mr. Thompson was fascinated by the causes and effects of the spreading or scattering of animals all over the world, so he decided to continue studying to become a zoogeogropher. A zoogeographer is entering descriptions in his book about zoogeography.

Describing the relationship between geography and animal life, especially the effect of geographical barriers: Zoogeographic environments, such as deserts, mountain ranges, or oceans, and the type of animal life in that area, determine the development in that region of a country.

1. Any of the major geographical areas into which the planet Earth is divided on the basis of distinct forms of animal life or fauna: One zoogeographical region or "zoogeographical realm" is the Australian region, which includes marsupial and monotreme forms, such as the platypus and the echidnas (spiny anteaters) that are not found elsewhere.
2. Nine such regions exist:

• Palaearctic (Northern Europe and Asia)
• Nearctic (North America, Greenland, etc.)
• Ethiopian (Africa and Arabia)
• Madagascan (east coast of Africa)
• Neotropical (Mexico, Central and South America)
• Oriental (India, Burma, and S.E. Asia west of Wallace's Line)
• Australasian (Australia, New Guinea, and islands S.E. Of Wallace's Line)
• New Zealand (including neighboring islands)
• Polynesian (numerous pacific islands of volcanic origin having no apparent connection with the continents)

The study of the geographical distribution of animals and animal communities: Zoogeography is the scientific investigation of where different faunae live and the causes and effects of such spreading, especially the dispersion on a large or global scale.