1. The Tundra

2. Tundra
Located north of the Arctic Circle

3. Tundra Frigid temperatures in the winter - with little or no sunlight.
Temperatures range from 0 to 10 C year round!
Precipitation less than 100 mm (10 cm) per year
The frozen desert!

4. Summer in the tundra A few weeks above freezing – short summers!
24 hours of daylight/day
Plants must act fast!

5. Tundra - conditions Only the top few centimeters of soil thaw
Underneath = permafrost, a layer of soil that is permanently frozen
Trees cannot grow here

6. Tundra
Dominated by tough grasses, shrubs, lichens and herbs.

7. Tundra Dotted with bogs and swamps during summer
Wet areas = breeding grounds for swarming insects such as……..

8. Mosquitoes

9. Blackflies

10. And the birds that eat them

11. And the birds that eat other things

12. Vegetation of the Tundra
Mosses and lichens
Grow without soil

13. Vegetation - adaptations
Plants– very shallow roots
Help anchor them against the icy winds

14. Vegetation of the Tundra
Examples: Campion and gentian

15. Vegetation of the Tundra
Grow close to the ground
Absorb heat from the soil
Keeps out of the wind

16. Woody plants and perennials
Willow and juniper – but in dwarf forms
Grow flat or along the ground

17. Animals of the Tundra Abundant food – especially insects
NO reptiles or amphibians!

18. Animal adaptations Burrow underground Camouflage Well insulated!
Avoid bad conditions by
Migration
Hibernation

19. The tundra swan

20. The tundra swan
Migrates : Breeds in the tundra during the summer

21. Animals of the Tundra Caribou
Migrate throughout the tundra in search of food and water

22. Animals of the Tundra
Hunters - wolves, ermine, fox, owl – camouflage!

23. Musk ox

24. Musk ox Grows two layers of fur – one short and one long
Air gets trapped in the short layer of fur and is warmed by the body
The trapped air acts as insulation
The long fur protects against wind and water

25. Musk ox
Layer of fat
Hooves that are large and hard to break through ice.

26. The Musk Ox – leftover from the ice age

27. The Musk Ox (from Planet Earth)

28. lemmings Small rodents Can give birth every 5 weeks!
Live in burrows under or in the snow in winter

29. lemmings Food for plenty of predators! ……..like the ermine
But – don’t always believe what you hear!

30. lemmings

31. Threats to the Tundra One of the most fragile biomes
Relatively simple food chains – easy to disrupt
Land is easily damaged and slow to recover

32. Oil – Prudhoe Bay in northern Alaska

33. Oil exploration
Transportation damages the permafrost

34. Pollution
Caused by spills, leaks of oil or other toxic materials