Starfield biomes and the Biome complete message explained

Starfield biomes are areas on the surface of planets that feature a variety of flora and fauna you can can scan, however you might get confused during your surveying if you see the 'biome complete' message. This is particular true if your list has some missing entries as this completion message can then be somewhat misleading, and the whole process isn't explained that well by the game.

This can leave you stuck if you don't know what's happening, and that all-important 100% complete planet survey will remain just out of reach. I've surveyed a ton of planets and the biomes within to try it myself, so with that in mind here's how planet biomes in Starfield work and how to find all of the flora and fauna to complete your surveys.

What are Starfield biomes?

Every Starfield planet is made up of biomes, or different environments. Things like savannah, wetlands, coniferous forest, deciduous forest, and so on. Most planets have at least three different biomes to be explored and surveyed, which can be seen from the planet view when you click anywhere on the surface in Starfield. 

So, in the shot above you can see the destination is a wetlands biome that's 0% complete, referring to how much has been surveyed. As you explore and scan plants and animals you'll increase that percentage and eventually 100% that biome, but not necessarily the whole planet if it has multiple biomes.

What does biome complete mean in Starfield?

When you get the message 'biome complete' in Starfield, it means that you have found all the plants or animals in that area. So, in the shot above, you can see it says 'biome complete' for the flora but there's still one plant to find. That means the final plant is in a different biome. To scan it, you'll need to fly to different parts of the planet and different biomes. As you look for biomes from the planet view, the percentage completion rating displayed will help you locate areas with something left to find and, when you land, if there's no 'biome complete' message then there's still something new to scan.

These biomes are not to be confused with Starfield planet traits, which are features a planet has that must be uncovered by exploring and scanning unusual places. Scanning everything within these biomes and traits is essential to completing planet surveys, then you'll need to visit the Eye to sell Starfield survey data for some credits.

All biomes complete but not a 100% survey?

Sometimes you can seemingly have 'biome complete' in all planet areas but still not have all the flora or fauna. If that happens to you, then there's basically a biome you haven't found yet. It'll probably be a coastal area as they can be quite hard to find when you click around a planet – Akila, for example, has a tiny coastal savanna area that is very hard to locate. There's a single species of fish there you need to scan to 100% the planet survey.

So, if you're getting biome complete everywhere but not hitting 100% on a survey then click around all the coastal areas and the planet generally, to make sure you've found absolutely everywhere there is to explore.

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