The Tundra
| There are three types of the tundra biome: Arctic, Antarctica, and Alpine |
Arctic Tundra Antarctic Tundra Alpine Tundra
● The arctic tundra is in the ● The antarctic tundra is like the ● The places in this biome are
northern hemisphere. The arctic tundra but is in Antarctica spread around the earth.
places included in the and the Falkland Islands. Usually in mountains. Some
biome are Lapland, examples are the Rockies,
Scandinavia, Siberia, Sierra, and Cascade
Mountains in North America,
Alaska, Canada, and
Andes in South America,
Greenland.
Himalayas of Asia, Pyrenees
in Europe, and the Rift
● Latitude and longitude are Mountains of Africa.
71.2 degrees North and
156 degrees West. ● The latitude is 10 degrees
North to 57 degrees West
while the longitude is 70
degrees West to 80 degrees
East.
Abiotic factors
- Permafrost- a layer of subsoil that is permanently frozen
- Strong and Cold winds
- Small amount of precipitation- Rain, snow, sleet, and hail
- The arctic tundra receives approximately 15 to 25 cm of precipitation each year
- The alpine tundra receives approximately 30 cm of precipitation each year
- Extremely cold temperatures
- Arctic tundra - extremely cold and dry; 34 degrees Celsius in the winter and 3 - 12 degrees Celsius
in the summer. During the winter months, periods without daylight can extend for weeks. During the
summer months, the sun can shine almost around the clock
- Alpine tundra - found on the tops of the world’s highest mountains. Freezing temperatures and dry
air; typically between -12 and 10 degrees Celsius. Subject to larger concentrations of sunlight at a
time because the air and atmosphere is thinner.
- Soils in the tundra are formed with mixed rock fragments and sediments left behind by the glaciers when
they receded. Sometimes, wind blown loess accumulates at the top of the rocks and other sediments.
Abiotic Factors Cont’d
- The Tundra is typically a treeless region found in the Arctic and on the tops of
mountains. The lands are covered with snow for most of the year, however,
summer typically brings wildflowers.
- Some limiting factors of the tundra include temperature, nutrient availability,
and moisture levels.
Climate
Climate Cont’d
Although the tundra is always cold, during the summer months the temperature is
typically higher than in the winter months. In the alpine tundra, the precipitation is
typically higher during the summer months than it is in the winter months. In the
arctic tundra, however, the precipitation is typically lower in the summer months
than it is in the winter months. During the short summers, the soil occasionally
thaws just enough to let plants grow and reproduce; outside of the summer
months, it is difficult for plants to grow. The climate also impacts the animal
species in the tundra. There are only 48 species of land mammals in the tundra;
thus, there is not a lot of biodiversity. The lack of biodiversity is due to the
extremely cold temperatures and low precipitation levels.
Autotrophs Heterotrophs Decomposers and
Scavengers
● Because of the frozen permafrost, ● Primary consumers which ● Cold climate means it takes
deep roots are unable to penetrate feed on the plant life in the longer for bacteria to
the frozen soil layer. Plants tundra and also serve as a decompose dead material. No
generally have shallow roots, grow food source to predators. earthworms or millipedes, which
low, and adapted to perform are common decomposers, can
photosynthesis in low temperatures survive in the frozen soil.
with low precipitation and little light. ➢ Lemmings
➢ Arctic hares
➢ Squirrels ➢ Saprotrophic bacteria
➢ Caribou ➢ Mycelium under the soil
➢ Voles ➢ Nematodes (roundworms)
➢ Flowering Plants ➢ Ravens and gulls
➢ Lichens ➢ Wolverines
➢ Algae
➢ Mosses
➢ Sedges
➢ Shrubs
Keystone Species & Economic Value
● Arctic Fox - Endangered in parts of the ● Less biological benefits than
world due to overhunting and the increase raw resources such as oil,
of the red fox in its habitat. The melting ice natural gas, and uranium.
Diamonds, gemstones, zinc,
in the red fox’s territory has caused it to
nickel, and other precious
invade the arctic fox’s habitat and compete metals are mined.
for food, sometimes killing them in the
process. ● Industry leads to toxic
○ Arctic fox hunted by polar bears, chemical spills, thawing
wolves, and snowy owls. permafrost, and disturb plants
○ Serves as terrestrial game/hunted and lichens which are slow to
recover. They are the base of
by indigenous tribes.
the food chain and are vital to
● Lemmings - Hunted by foxes, owls the ecosystem.
● Lichens - Turn into decaying material
which serves as source of food
Environmental Status Air Pollution
Tundra biomes are among the Earth’s
coldest, harshest, biomes with barely any ● Arctic clouds are sensitive to air
trees. But now they are endangered. The pollution, which spurs cloud formation
and has a blanketing effect.
tundra biome has a problem with air
● Black carbon from diesel engines, fires,
pollution and is starting to have a problem
and other combustion can settle on
with climate change. There are five
snow, decreasing its ability to reflect
national parks in the tundra biome: Bering
sunlight and causing faster melting.
Land Bridge National Preserve, Cape ● Chemicals used in coolants and aerosol
Krusenstern National Monument, Gates sprays have driven ozone depletion at
of the Arctic National Park and the North and South poles, which can let
Preserve, Kobuk Valley National Park, in stronger ultraviolet rays.
and Noatak National Preserve.
Climate Change
Climate change makes the climate warmer in the
tundra. Warmer climate makes it warmer in the
winter than it would have been. This can cause the
permafrost soil degradation in the winter which
stimulates carbon loss. With the permafrost
thawing, it allows non-tundra plants to invade.
Thawed permafrost no longer holds soil in place, so
erosion could become a problem. In the future,
climate change could change the landscape and
what species are able to live in them. Warmer
tundras could also see an increased risk of wildfires
and drought.
Conservation Groups
● Alaska Conservation Foundation (1980)
● Polar Bears International (2002)
● World Wildlife Fund (1961)
● National Parks Reserve (1980)
Bibliography
https://beyondpenguins.ehe.osu.edu/issue/tundra-life-in-the-polar- https://polarbearsinternational.org/
extremes/life-in-the-tundra
https://www.nps.gov/lacl/learn/nature/tundra.htm
https://sciencing.com/decomposers-arctic-8864.html
https://www.soils4teachers.org/tundra
http://wwf.panda.org/our_work/wildlife/profiles/mammals/arctic_fox/
https://the-tundra.weebly.com/abiotic-factors.html
https://www.nwtspeciesatrisk.ca/content/nwt-peary-caribou
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/tundra-
https://sciencing.com/human-uses-tundra-8111821.html biome/
https://www.infoplease.com/math-science/earth-environment/arctic- https://sciencing.com/limiting-factors-tundra-7433311.html
tundra
https://www.thesustainabilitycouncil.org/tundra-biome.html
https://sites.google.com/site/fourbiomes/home/tundra/antarctic-
tundra https://www.nps.gov/articles/aps-16-1-1.htm
https://alaskaconservation.org/protecting-alaska/priorities/protecting- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/24804439/
lands-waters/arctic/
https://wwf.panda.org/?199975/Saving-the-Arctic
Bibliography Cont’d
https://education.seattlepi.com/ecological-concerns-affect-tundra-3509.html
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/tundra-threats/
