The characteristic and variant topography, geology, and climatic conditions of these arid lands set the stage for one of the most fascinating of ecological studies: the survival and adaptation of animal and plant life in the severe, often extreme desert climate and terrain.
(The characteristic and variant topography, geology, and climatic conditions of these arid lands; set; the stage; for one of the most fascinating of ecological studies)
The characteristic and variant topography, geology, and climatic conditions of these arid lands
set
the stage for one of the most fascinating of ecological studies