The Tundra
By: Victoria and Casey
E Block
Climate and Temperature
Throughout The Year
~ A bleak and treeless place.
~ Cold through all months.
~ Summer is a brief period of
mild climates, the sun shines
24 hours of the day.
~ It has been called "the land
of the midnight sun".
~ Summer lasts 6- 10 weeks,
never gets warmer than 45°
F or 50° F.
~ Warmer weather causes a
layer of permafrost; ice that
never goes away in the
ground, to melt, creating bogs
and shallow lakes that don't
drain.
~ Summer lasts 6- 10 weeks,
never gets warmer than 45°
F or 50° F.
~ Warmer weather causes a
layer of permafrost; ice that
never goes away in the
ground, to melt, creating
bogs and shallow lakes that
don't drain.
Soil Conditions
~ The soil in the tundra
contains a very thin plantgrowing zone.
~ Made up of gravel and finer
inorganic materials. Plants
use the nutrients and energy
left by the dead organic
matter from previous
growing seasons.
Typical Seasons Seen
Throughout The Year
~ There are two seasons:
winter, and summer.
~ Summer: sun is shining the
whole day and warms the
tundra up to a range of 3C to
12C.
~ Average temperature: -28C.
~ Winter: opposite light
conditions are present. There
are several weeks where the
sun never rises, and this
causes the temperature to
drop to extremely cold levels
like -70C.
Precipitation Levels
~ Precipitation levels in the
tundra are from 6 to 10
inches, most of this fall is
snow. The tundra is like a
cold desert, lacking
precipitation. It barely gets
precipitation at all.
Dominant Plants
~ There are around 1,7000
species of plants that live in
the tundra.
~ The plants consist of
mosses, grasses, lichens,
sedges, and shrubs. About
400 types of flowers bloom in
the growing season, which
only lasts for 50-60 days.
~ There are no trees in the
tundra, but tundra willows do
grow only up to 8 centimeters
or 3 inches high.
Dominant Wildlife
~ Low biodiversity.
~ Mountain goats, sheep,
marmots, and birds live in
the tundra, and feed on the
low-lying plants and insects.
~ There are almost no
reptiles or amphibians; only
48 land mammals that live
there.
~ Many animals migrate to
the tundra in the summer
months to take advantage of
the lack of predators,
abundant plants, insects, and
fish.
Geographic Distribution
~ Tundras are often found
near permanent ice sheets
where, during the summer,
the ice and snow recede to
expose the ground and allow
vegetation to grow.
~ Found mostly in the
Northern Hemisphere. In the
Southern Hemisphere, the
tundra is found on isolated
islands off the coast of
Antarctica, as well as the
Antarctic peninsula.
Bibliography
~Strahler, Arthur N., and Strahler, Arthur H. Elements of
Physical Geography. John Wiley & Sons, 1984.
~"The Tundra", http:// www.ml.runet.edu~swoodwar
/classes/geog235/biome/tundra/tundra , (Nov 2000)
~"Cold Climate", http://www.curriculumvisions.com, (Nov
2000).
~"Tundra Climate", http://ths.sps.lane.
edu/biomes/tundra4/tundra4c.html, (July 2000).
~"What's It Like Where You Live?", http://mbgnet.mobot.
org/sets/tundra/links.htm, (July 2000).~Strahler, Arthur N., and Strahler, Arthur H. Elements of
Physical Geography. John Wiley & Sons, 1984.
~http://www.buzzle.com/articles/tundra-biome-tundraplants-and-animals.html
~http://www.thewildclassroom.com/biomes/arctictundra.html
~http://environment.nationalgeographic.
com/environment/habitats/tundra-profile/