Arctic Tundra: The Frozen Desert Stick Reves® Travel Agency Joey Chin, Liem Tu, Andrew Weiss, Rachel Gallagher Period 7

Arctic Tundra

Biome Features Flat Ground is permanently frozen No trees Some permafrost melts in summer

Climate Winter: cold and dark Average temperature: -18 F Avg. summer temp.: 12 F Can reach up to 54 degrees Fahrenheit Water forms lakes and marshes during summer Winds can reach 30 mph Yearly precipitation 14-25 cm (6-10in.)

Plants Over 1700 species of plants Examples: arctic willow, pasque flower, bearberry, purple saxifrage, arctic poppy, cottongrass Shallow root systems prevents large plants

Animals Arctic Fox has short ears and with thick coat to keep warm Low amounts of biodiversity in tundra Snowy owls Mining and drilling threaten animals

Seasonal Information Visit in summer – 53 days of 24/7 sunshine Don’t come in Winter – temperatures can reach -50F

Unique features of the Biome During summer there is daylight 24 hours Largest biome

Adaptations Animals, such as arctic foxes, breed and raise young quickly in the summer as an adaption to the long, cold winters. Most animals also are insulated with more fat. Arctic moss plants store nutrients when not growing so that new leaves can be made quickly in the Spring.

Tourism Polar bear swim (use extreme caution) Building igloos Observing wildlife

Joey Chin, Liem Tu, Andrew Weiss, Rachel Gallagher

Sources “Biomes.” coft. Earth floor. N.d. web. 15 Dec. 2013 http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/tundra.html “Tundra Animals.” Tundra Animals. N.d. web. 15 Dec. 2013. http://www.tundraanimals.net/ “Arctic Moss.” Tundra Plants. N.d. web. 15. Dec. 2013 http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/tundra_plant_page.htm