The tundra is a cold, treeless plain located south of the arctic desert zone. Natural conditions in the tundra are less harsh than in the Arctic deserts. Therefore, the flora and fauna here are richer.
Using the map in the textbook, color in the tundra zone on the contour map (The world around us, grade 4, pp. 36-37). To select a color, you can use, as in the last lesson, the “key” given below.
2. Do you know the living world of the tundra? Cut out the pictures from the Appendix and arrange them correctly. Test yourself with the drawing in the textbook.
Tundra
Give your desk neighbor a mini-exam. Arrange the pictures so that there are 2-3 mistakes. Let the neighbor find them and correct them (put the pictures correctly).
Ask your desk neighbor to arrange the same exam for you. When you are confident in your knowledge, paste the pictures into your notebook.
The Question Question ant dreams of eating tundra berries, but does not know what they look like. Look at the pictures. Compare by appearance cloudberries, blueberries and lingonberries. Explain to Ant how these plants can be recognized in nature.
You can find additional information about blueberries and lingonberries in the atlas-identifier “From Earth to Sky” (p. 90-91).
Draw a diagram of the food chain characteristic of the tundra. Compare it with the diagram proposed by your desk neighbor. Using these diagrams, tell about the ecological connections in the tundra zone.
Dwarf birch twigs - Lemming - White Owl
Moss - Reindeer - Wolf
Cloudberry - Ptarmigan - Gyrfalcon
Arctic willow buds - Lemming - Arctic fox - Wolf
Think what environmental problems in the tundra zone are expressed by these signs. Formulate and write down.
From all-terrain vehicles and tractors the soil surface is disturbed, plants die |
|
During oil production, the surrounding area is often heavily polluted. |
|
| In many reindeer pastures, moss disappears because reindeer are not always moved from one pasture to another in a timely manner. The most valuable pastures often perish. | |
| Illegal hunting - poaching - causes great harm to the wildlife of the tundra. |
Suggest conservation measures for class discussion that would help solve these problems.
Continue filling out the poster “Red Book of Russia”, which was drawn by Seryozha and Nadya’s dad. Find rare tundra animals on the poster and write their names.
White crane (Siberian crane), tundra swan, red-breasted goose, gyrfalcon
7. Here you can complete the drawing according to the instructions in the textbook (p. 93).
Draw how you imagine the tundra
According to the instructions in the textbook (p. 93), prepare a report about one of the plants or animals of the tundra.
Message subject: Polar mouse (Lemming) 
Important message information: Perhaps the most numerous inhabitants of the tundra are lemmings, or polar mice. In the summer they live in shallow burrows (and would be happy to hide more securely, but the permafrost does not allow them) or under lichen-covered rocks. In winter, lemmings make nests of grass and moss under a layer of snow, but do not even think about hibernating, but busily scurry back and forth through a real labyrinth of tunnels carefully laid in the snow, only occasionally crawling out to feast on buds, twigs and bark dwarf tundra plants. This is where white owls wait for them, sitting in ambush on top of the snowdrifts. Arctic foxes also do not disdain polar mice.
The most amazing thing is that during the long and cold polar night, lemmings successfully reproduce in their nests in the snow. Females can raise three to five broods. At this time, the main enemies of lemmings are not owls and arctic foxes, but nimble stoats, which easily penetrate the intricate network of passages dug by rodents and even impudently use their nests for resting and breeding.
Source(s) of information: Encyclopedia. Interesting about the unknown
Where the taiga has already ended, but the Arctic has not yet begun, the tundra zone stretches. This territory occupies more than three million square meters and is about 500 kilometers wide. What does the permafrost zone look like? There are almost no plants, very few animals. This mysterious territory holds many amazing secrets.
Tundra zone
The tundra zone stretches along the shores of the northern seas. Everywhere you look, a cold plain stretches for thousands of kilometers, completely devoid of forest. The polar night lasts two months. Summer is very short and cold. And even when it does, frosts often occur. Cold, sharp winds sweep across the tundra every year. For many days in a row in winter, a blizzard rules the plains.
The top layer of soil thaws only 50 centimeters deep during the cold, unkind summer. Below this level lies a layer of permafrost that never thaws. Neither melt nor rain water penetrates to depth. The tundra zone is a huge number of lakes and swamps, the soil is wet everywhere, because due to low temperatures water evaporates extremely slowly. The climate in the tundra is very harsh, creating almost unbearable conditions for all living things. However, life here is somewhat more diverse than in the Arctic.
Vegetable world
What does the tundra look like? Its surface for the most part consists of very large bumps. Their size reaches a height of up to 14 meters and a width of up to 15 meters. The sides are steep, they consist of peat, the inside is almost always frozen. Between the hillocks, at intervals of up to 2.5 meters, there are swamps, the so-called Samoyed ersei. The sides of the mounds are covered with mosses and lichens; cloudberries are often found immediately. Their body is formed by mosses and tundra shrubs.
Closer to the rivers, to the south, where tundra forests can be observed, the hummocky zone turns into sphagnum peat bogs. Cloudberry, bagoong, cranberry, gonobol, and birch dwarf grow here. extend deep into the forest zone. To the east of the Taman Ridge, mounds are found very rarely, only in low-lying, swampy places.
Tundra subzones
The flat regions of Siberia are occupied by peaty tundra. Mosses and tundra shrubs stretch in a continuous film over the surface of the earth. Mostly moss covers the ground, but cloudberry clearings can also be found. This type of tundra is especially common between Pechora and Timan.
In high places, where water does not stagnate, but the wind blows freely, there is fissured tundra. The dry, cracked soil is broken up into small areas with nothing but frozen ground. Grains, shrubs and saxifrage can hide in cracks.
For those who are interested in what the tundra looks like, it will be useful to know that there is also fertile soil here. The herbaceous-shrub tundra is rich in shrubs; mosses and lichens are almost absent.
The most characteristic species of this natural area are moss moss and lichen, thanks to which the tundra is colored light gray. In addition, standing out as spots against the background of reindeer moss, small shrubs huddle close to the ground. The southern regions boast small islands of forest. Dwarf species of willows and birch dwarf are quite common.
Animal world
The way the tundra looks does not in any way affect the number of animals permanently living in this region. One of the common inhabitants of the tundra, the rough-legged bird nests directly on the ground or rocks. The white-tailed eagle, an indigenous inhabitant of the tundra, lives on the seashore. Found in the northernmost areas of the region, the gyrfalcon is the most common bird in the region. All birds hunt partridges and small rodents.
In this natural area live not only birds, but also furry ones, and different sizes. So, of the largest, it is the species most adapted to climate conditions. In Europe it is almost extinct, with representatives remaining only in Norway. Deer are also rare on the Kola Peninsula. They were replaced by domestic reindeer.
In addition to humans, deer also have a natural enemy - the wolf. These predators have a much thicker undercoat than their forest counterparts. In addition to these animals, polar bears, musk oxen, arctic foxes, Parry's ground squirrels, lemmings, white hares and wolverines are found in the tundra.
Climate
The climate of the tundra is very harsh. The temperature in short summers does not rise above 10 degrees, the average temperature in winter is no higher than minus 50. A thick layer of snow falls by September, only increasing the layers every month.
Despite the fact that the sun barely appears above the horizon throughout the long winter night, there is no impenetrable darkness reigning here. What does the tundra look like on a polar night? Even during moonless periods there is enough light. After all, there is dazzling white snow all around, perfectly reflecting the light of distant stars. In addition, the northern lights provide excellent lighting, painting the sky with different colors. At some hours, thanks to him, it becomes as bright as day.
What does the tundra look like in summer and winter?
In general, summer can hardly be called warm, because the average temperature does not rise above 10 degrees. In such months, the sun does not leave the sky at all, trying to have time to warm the frozen earth at least a little. But what does the tundra look like in summer?
In the relatively warm months, the tundra is covered with water, turning vast areas into huge swamps. The natural tundra zone is covered in lush color at the very beginning of summer. Considering that it is very short, all plants strive to complete the development cycle as soon as possible.
In winter there is a very thick layer of snow on the ground. Since almost the entire territory lies beyond the Arctic Circle, natural area The tundra is deprived of sunlight for most of the year. Winter lasts a long time, much longer than in other areas globe. There are no adjacent seasons in this territory, that is, neither spring nor autumn.
Wonders of the Tundra
The most famous miracle is, of course, the northern lights. On a dark January night, stripes of bright colors suddenly light up against the black background of the velvet sky. Green and blue columns, interspersed with pink and red, glide across the sky. The dance of radiance is similar to the flashes of a giant fire reaching the sky. People who saw the northern lights for the first time will never again be able to forget this stunning spectacle, which has captivated the minds of people for thousands of years.
Our ancestors believed that lights in the sky brought happiness as they were a manifestation of the celebration of the gods. And if the gods have a holiday, gifts will certainly go to people. Others thought that the radiance was the wrath of the god of fire, angry at the human race, so they expected only troubles and even misfortunes from the multi-colored heavenly spray.
Whatever your opinion, it is worth seeing the Northern Lights. If such an opportunity ever arises, it is better to be in the tundra in January, when the northern lights flare up in the sky especially often.
The tundra zone is a unique part of Russian territory in its own way. Its existence is due to climatic changes observed when moving from any point on the globe to the north or south. Landscapes and the composition of flora and fauna take on a different appearance: closer to the north there are fewer trees and more lichens, and arctic foxes, reindeer and other animals not found in other regions live there.
In contact with
The concept of a natural geographical zone
Natural (otherwise, physical-geographical) zone This is an area in the geographic envelope of the Earth that is characterized by a complex of climatic, geological and geochemical conditions unique to it. In addition, the characteristics and composition of the soil, relief, and what types of plants and animals are characteristic of a particular area are taken into account. But still, highest value When identifying and describing the location of a natural zone, it is the climatic conditions that have a bearing.
Zonal changes in climate and landscape can practically be observed every degree along the meridian or every 120-140 kilometers. If you move from the equator to one of the Earth’s poles, you can arrange the physiographic belts in this way:
Each natural zone corresponds to a specific climate zone. For example, mixed forests are located in the temperate zone, and permanently humid forests are located in the equatorial zone.
The presence of this natural area typical for the Northern Hemisphere, on the map it stretches across two continents, North America and Eurasia, occupying a significant part of the area of Russia. The location of the tundra is determined by its neighboring location with arctic deserts and taiga.
The wealth of natural resources of the tundra entails a serious interest in its features already from school. Common topics are " Vegetable world"or "Birds of the Tundra" for reports in 4th grade, various tables are compiled, schoolchildren prepare reports about the local population or even write interesting stories based on information received from lessons according to a certain plan.
The tundra is located in the subarctic (or subantarctic) belt between temperate and arctic. This determines the rather harsh living conditions in this area. There is a very long winter here, the duration of which reaches seven months, and in the short summer period snow often falls and frosts occur. The upper temperature limit is 10 degrees above zero. Due to low temperatures, a small amount of water evaporates from the surface of the earth, so the soils in the tundra are very wet. For the same reason, there are practically no relatively heavy rains.
Another important characteristic in describing the climate of the tundra is a very strong wind. It prevents deep snow from forming and the ground often remains open. Therefore, the entire living world of the tundra is forced to survive in permafrost conditions: closer to the north, the ground freezes to a depth of 500 meters. The short summer period does not contribute to thawing of the soil: on average, about 40 centimeters of land are freed from the ice shell. The absorption of moisture in such conditions is difficult, so a significant part of the territory becomes swampy.
Animals and plants of the tundra are very peculiar, since the local nature is determined by harsh climatic conditions, the polar night, which lasts throughout the winter, and the short summer day.
Vegetable world
The main feature of tundra vegetation is that trees cannot grow here: frozen soils do not allow the root system to develop, and strong winds simply blow away tall plants. Therefore, low-growing species are especially common here: various shrubs and shrubs, grasses, mosses and lichens. Closer to the south, where the tundra turns into forest-tundra, some trees may grow, but this is not observed in the rest of the natural zone. This fact influenced the name of this area: translated from Finnish, tunturia means “land without forest.”
Mosses and lichens
Perhaps the most important in the tundra ecosystem are numerous species of mosses and lichens: cuckoo flax, moss or reindeer moss, pleurocium and many others. They are an important part of the diet of herbivores and survive in such harsh conditions due to the following factors:
The largest of the tundra lichens: moss. Its height ranges from 9 to 15 cm. This is a real tree in miniature. In the largest specimens, one can notice a striking resemblance to the branches and leaves of a real tree.
Shrubs and herbs
In addition to mosses and lichens, there is a variety of shrubs and shrubs. These are dwarf willows and birches, wild rosemary, blueberries, and crowberries. Perennial grasses are widespread: alpine meadow, fescue, Arctic bluegrass, sedge, Rhodiola rosea and cloudberry. Shrubs do not exceed one meter in height. Their branches do not point upward, but, on the contrary, spread along the ground. The small size of the leaves reduces the amount of evaporated moisture, and the back side of the leaf is pubescent.
In the summer, the leaves of the trees and grass are bright green, and closer to autumn, crimson shades appear in their color more and more. Many species are flowering, so yellow, white and reddish flowers on a bright green background make these places especially beautiful in the summer, allowing you to fully enjoy what the tundra looks like.
Fauna of the tundra
Tundra fauna are distinguished by significant diversity, despite the harsh conditions for survival in this natural area. Only lizards and other reptiles cannot be found here: the lack of a long warm season does not allow cold-blooded species to live here.
Terrestrial mammals
Animals in the harsh subarctic climate are forced to adapt to the conditions: they have thick and dense fur, and birds acquire lush feathers. Among herbivores the most famous reindeer. Their wide and powerful hooves make long journeys through the snow easier (the length of deer’s migration routes is up to 500 km), and special depressions allow them to rake the snow and find moss or other plants that they feed on.
Powerful antlers allow the deer to successfully defend itself from predators. But in particularly harsh and hungry years, they weaken and often become victims of tundra wolves. They live in large flocks with a pronounced hunting specialization: there are beaters and attackers. This is a very hardy animal, capable of going without food for a week. But if you manage to catch someone, then a feast begins: wolves sometimes eat the victim with skin and bones.
Another dangerous predator of the tundra is wolverine. Outwardly, she resembles a bear and seems very clumsy. But that's not true. The wolverine's body is very flexible, strong legs allow you to develop high speed. At the same time, the wolverine is distinguished by its endurance: if the victim cannot be caught, then the predator starves it out, chasing it until it collapses from fatigue.
A frequent victim of wolverines, and sometimes wolves, are lemmings: small and fertile rodents. They do not hibernate and are constantly in search of food. Food may include deer antlers, bark, and buds of bushes. Since lemmings reproduce quickly, their usual habitats become overpopulated, and the animals are forced to migrate. Following them, predators also migrate: owls, arctic foxes and others.
The Arctic fox is known for its fur: it is fluffy and long (up to 30 cm). They usually hunt lemmings and migrate after them, but sometimes they do not disdain carrion. Arctic fox burrows dug in the hills are used by several generations of predators: making new holes in permafrost conditions is a difficult task. They live in small flocks, helping each other, including caring for cubs whose parents have died.
Bird species
Along with mammals, it lives in the tundra significant number of bird species. This is determined by two interrelated factors:
- an abundance of wetlands, rivers and lakes;
- the presence of significant numbers of insects in these areas, especially in summer.
Many birds adapt to seasonality and do not migrate, for example, the ptarmigan. In winter, its color allows it to camouflage itself in the snow from large predators, and in summer its feathers become variegated. At the same time, the partridge relatively rarely rises into the air and lives in burrows that it digs in the snow.
Lives near the swamps white crane or Siberian crane. This is an endemic species and is on the verge of extinction, therefore it is listed in the Red Book. The Siberian Crane is a fairly large bird; its body height reaches half a meter. Living conditions determined the body structure of the white crane: it has the longest beak in comparison with other representatives of the genus, and long legs allow it to move on a viscous surface. The Siberian Crane is omnivorous: it can eat eggs of other birds and fish, as well as various berries and certain parts of plants.
The white, or polar, owl is a serious danger to small mammals and other birds. She has excellent eyesight, so from a small height (most often she inspects the area from high hummocks or stones) she detects a possible victim. After a successful hunt, it does not eat the whole prey, leaving everything that is not consumed for food to various scavengers. At the same time, an owl can go without food for a long time, but this significantly affects the appearance of offspring.
The abundance of rivers and direct access to the seas and oceans are the reason that the tundra is home to many waterfowl. Among them, a special place occupies tundra swan- another rare animal that is in danger of extinction. Tundra swans feed on algae, plants growing near water, and also catch fish. The short duration of the summer period forces animals to raise young animals in a short time: on average, this happens in 40 days.
Another representative of waterfowl - loon. On land it is a clumsy bird, an easy prey for predators, but on water it is almost impossible to catch it: thanks to its streamlined body shape and sharp beak, the loon is an excellent diver. This skill allows you not only to catch fish for food, but also to avoid many dangers.
Water mammals
Many mammals also live in water. A thick layer saves them from low temperatures subcutaneous fat. Some also have thick fur, for example, the sea lion. This protection allows it to dive to depths of up to 400 meters. During the warm season, sea lions often come ashore to bask in the sun. In this case, they move on four limbs.
Seals have become a kind of symbol of the tundra. They live in coastal areas, which is due to their mode of life. They get food in the water and reproduce on land. The seal's nose and ears are built so that they close tightly when diving. An interesting fact is that this animal is able to hold its breath for up to one hour, and this allows it to escape from terrestrial predators.
Another characteristic of tundra regions animal - walrus. Its weight ranges from one ton to one and a half, and its body dimensions reach up to five meters. Walruses are known for their large and powerful tusks. Their direct purpose may seem surprising: walruses use their tusks to dig up the bottom in search of shellfish, which make up the bulk of their diet. But if his life is in danger, the walrus uses its tusks as a formidable weapon. In addition, it is a matter of status: the longer the tusk, the more authority the walrus enjoys in its group.
The natural tundra zone is located mainly beyond the Arctic Circle and is limited to the north by arctic (polar) deserts and to the south by forests. It is located in the subarctic zone between 68 and 55 degrees north latitude. In those small areas where cold air masses from the Arctic Ocean are blocked by mountains in the summer—these are the valleys of the Yana, Kolyma, and Yukon rivers—the taiga rises into the subarctic. One should separately distinguish between mountain tundra, which is characterized by a change in nature with the height of the mountains.
The word "tundra" comes from the Finnish tunturi, which means "treeless, bare upland." In Russia, the tundra occupies the coast of the seas of the Arctic Ocean and adjacent territories. Its area is about 1/8 of the entire area of Russia. In Canada, the tundra natural zone includes a significant part of the northern territories, which are practically uninhabited. In the United States, tundra occupies most of the state of Alaska.
a brief description of
- The natural tundra zone occupies about 8-10% of the entire territory of Russia;
- The tundra has a very short summer with an average temperature in the warmest month, July, from +4 degrees in the north to +11 degrees in the south;
- Winter in the tundra is long and very harsh, accompanied by strong winds and snowstorms;
- Cold winds blow throughout the year: in summer - from the Arctic Ocean, and in winter - from the cooled mainland of Eurasia;
- The tundra is characterized by permafrost, that is, the upper level of the ground frozen through, part of which thaws in the summer by only a few tens of centimeters.
- In the tundra zone there is very little precipitation - only 200-300 mm per year. However, soils in the tundra are widely waterlogged due to impermeable permafrost at shallow surface depths and poor evaporation due to low temperatures even with strong winds;
- The soils in the tundra are usually infertile (due to humus being blown away by the winds) and are very swampy due to freezing in the harsh winter and only partial warming up in the warm season.
Tundra is a natural area of Russia
As everyone knows from school lessons, nature and climate on the territory of Russia have a clearly defined zonation of processes and phenomena. This is due to the fact that the country's territory extends from north to south and is mainly dominated by flat terrain. Each natural zone is characterized by a certain ratio of heat and moisture. Natural areas are sometimes called landscape or geographic.
The tundra occupies the territory adjacent to the coast of the Arctic Ocean and is the most severe inhabited natural zone in Russia. To the north of the natural tundra zone there are only arctic deserts, and to the south the forest zone begins.
The following are represented on the plains of Russia: natural areas, starting from the north:
- Arctic deserts;
- Forest-steppe
- Steppes
- Semi-deserts
- Deserts
- Subtropics.
And in the mountainous regions of Russia, altitudinal zonation is clearly expressed.
Natural areas of Russia on the map
The tundra is characterized by harsh climatic conditions, relatively low rainfall and the fact that its territory is located primarily in Arctic Circle. Let's list the facts about the tundra:
- The natural tundra zone is located north of the taiga zone;
- Mountain tundras are found in the mountains of Scandinavia, the Urals, Siberia, Alaska and Northern Canada;
- Tundra zones stretch in a strip 300-500 km wide along the northern coasts of Eurasia and North America;
- The climate of the tundra is subarctic, it is quite harsh and is characterized by long winters with polar nights (when the sun practically does not appear above the horizon) and short summers. A particularly harsh climate is observed in the continental tundra regions;
- Winter in the tundra lasts 6-9 months a year, it is accompanied by strong winds and low air temperatures;
- Frosts in the tundra sometimes reach minus 50 degrees Celsius;
- The polar night in the tundra lasts 60-80 days;
- Snow lies in the tundra from October to June, its height in the European part is 50-70 centimeters, and in Eastern Siberia and Canada 20-40 cm. In winter, snowstorms are frequent in the tundra;
- Summer in the tundra is short, with a long polar day;
- August in the tundra is considered the warmest month of the year: positive average daily temperatures of up to +10-15 degrees are noted, but frosts are possible on any day of summer;
- Summer is characterized by high air humidity, frequent fogs and drizzling rains;
- Tundra vegetation includes 200-300 species of flowering plants and about 800 species of mosses and lichens.
The main occupations of the population in the tundra:
- Reindeer husbandry;
- Fishing;
- Hunting for fur and sea animals.
The population of the tundra is limited in their choice of activities due to the peculiarities of natural conditions and relative isolation from large cities, just like the population of the tundra, isolated on small islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean.
In the Northern Hemisphere, the following types of tundra with characteristic vegetation are distinguished:
- arctic tundra(marsh soils and moss-lichen plants dominate);
- Subarctic tundra or typical middle tundra(moss, lichen and shrub plants, berries);
- or southern tundra (shrub plants - dwarf birch, bushy alder, different kind willows, as well as berries and mushrooms).
arctic tundra
In the Arctic, on the northern edge of European and Asian Russia, as well as in the far north of North America, there is the Arctic tundra. It occupies the coastal territory of the northern seas and is a flat marshy area. Summer there brings only a brief thaw, and plants are not found due to the too cold climate. Permafrost is covered with melt lakes of melted snow and ice. Perennial plants in such conditions are able to grow only for a short period of time - at the end of July and August, grouping in low places and protected from the winds, and annual plants do not take root here, since due to the harsh natural conditions they have a very short period of time. growing season. The predominant species are mosses and lichens, and shrubs do not grow at all in the Arctic tundra.
More southern types of tundra up to the forest-tundra zone are called Subarctic. Here, the cold Arctic air briefly gives way to warmer temperate air in the summer. The days there are long, and under the influence of the penetration of a warmer climate, tundra plants have time to develop. These are mostly dwarf plants that cling to the ground, which radiates a little heat. This is how they hide from the winds and from freezing, trying to spend the winter under the snow cover as if in a fur coat.
IN middle tundra There are mosses, lichens and small shrubs. Small rodents are found here - lemmings (pieds), which feed on arctic foxes and polar owls. Most animals in the tundra are covered in snowy white fur or plumage in winter, but turn brown or gray in summer. Large animals in the middle tundra include reindeer (wild and domestic), wolves, and tundra partridge. Due to the abundance of swamps, the tundra is home to a gigantic amount of all kinds of midges, which in the summer attracts wild geese, ducks, swans, waders and loons to breed their chicks in the tundra.
Farming in the subarctic tundra is impossible in any form due to the low temperature of the soil and its poverty of nutrients. The territory of the middle tundra is used by reindeer herders as summer reindeer pastures.
On the border of the tundra and forest zones there is forest-tundra. It is much warmer than the tundra: in some areas the average daily temperature exceeds +15 degrees for 20 days a year. During the year, up to 400 mm of precipitation falls in the forest-tundra, and this is significantly more evaporated moisture. Therefore, the soils of the forest-tundra, as well as the subarctic tundra, are heavily waterlogged and swampy.
In the forest-tundra there are rare trees growing in sparse groves or singly. The forests consist of low-growing curved birches, spruces and larches. Typically, trees are far apart from each other, since their root system is located in the upper part of the soil, above permafrost. There are both tundra and forest plant species.
In the eastern part of the forest-tundra there are tundra forests, characterized by thickets of low-growing trees. Subarctic mountain regions are dominated by mountain tundra and barren rocky surfaces, on which only mosses, lichens, and small rock flowers grow. Resin moss grows much faster in the forest-tundra than in the subarctic tundra, so there is freedom for deer here. In addition to deer, the forest-tundra is home to moose, brown bears, arctic foxes, white hares, wood grouse and hazel grouse.
Agriculture in the tundra
In the forest-tundra it is possible vegetable growing in open ground , here you can grow potatoes, cabbage, turnips, radishes, lettuce, and green onions. Techniques have also been developed for creating high-yielding meadows in the forest-tundra territory.
Did you know that...
In Iceland, which is entirely located in the natural tundra zone, potatoes were grown in the past and even barley was cultivated. It turned out to be a good harvest, because Icelanders are stubborn and hardworking people. But now open-air farming has been replaced by a more profitable activity - growing plants in greenhouses heated by the heat of hot springs. And today, various tropical crops, especially bananas, grow beautifully in the Icelandic tundra. Iceland even exports them to Europe.
There are also mountain tundras, which form a high-altitude zone in the mountains of the temperate and subarctic zones. They are located above the border of mountain forests and are characterized by the dominance of lichens, mosses and some cold-resistant grasses, shrubs and shrubs. There are three zones in the mountain tundra:
- Shrub belt- forms on rocky soils, like lowland tundra.
- Moss-lichen belt is located above the shrubby one, its characteristic vegetation is represented by subshrubs and some herbs.
- Upper belt mountain tundras are the poorest in vegetation. Here, among the stony soils and rocky formations, only lichens and mosses grow, as well as squat shrubs.
Mountain tundra (in purple)
Antarctic tundra
The Antarctic Peninsula and islands in the high latitudes of the southern hemisphere have a natural zone similar to the tundra. It was called the Antarctic tundra.
Tundra in Canada and the USA
In the northern part of Canada and the US state of Alaska, very large areas are located in the natural tundra zone. It is located in the Arctic in the northern regions of the Western Cordillera. There are 12 types of tundra in Canada and the USA:
- Tundra of the Alaska Range and St. Elias Mountains (USA and Canada)
- Coastal tundra of Baffin Island
- Tundra of the Brooks Range and British Mountains
- Davis Strait upland tundra
- Tundra of the Torngat Mountains
- Alpine tundra of the interior
- Alpine tundra Ogilvy and Mackenzie
- Arctic tundra
- Subpolar tundra
- polar tundra
- Tundra and ice fields of the mountains of the Pacific coast
- arctic tundra
Flora and fauna of the tundra
Since the entire tundra is characterized by permafrost and strong winds, plants and animals have to adapt to life in difficult cold conditions, clinging to the ground or rocks.
Plants in the tundra have characteristic shapes and properties that reflect their adaptation to harsh continental climate. There are many mosses and lichens found in the tundra. Due to the short and cold summers and long winters, most of the plants in the tundra are perennials and evergreens. Lingonberries and cranberries are examples of such perennials. shrub plants. They begin their growth as soon as the snow melts (often only in early July).
But the bushy lichen moss (“reindeer moss”) grows very slowly, only 3-5 mm per year. It becomes clear why reindeer herders constantly wander from one pasture to another. They are forced to do this not at all because of a good life, but because the restoration of reindeer pastures is very slow, it takes 15-20 years. Among the plants in the tundra there are also many blueberries, cloudberries, princelings and blueberries, and there are also thickets of bushy willow. And in the wetlands, sedges and grasses predominate, some of which have evergreen leaves covered with a bluish, waxy coating that gives dull colors.
| 1 | Blueberry |
| 2 | Cowberry |
| 3 | Black crowberry |
| 4 | Cloudberry |
| 5 | Loidia late |
| 6 | Bow of speed |
| 7 | Prince |
| 8 | Cotton grass vaginalis |
| 9 | Sedge swordfolia |
| 10 | Dwarf birch |
| 11 | Willow cuneifolia |
A distinctive feature of the tundra is its large population, but small species composition of animals. This is also due to the fact that the tundra is located literally at the very edge of the earth, where very few people live. Only a few species have adapted to the harsh conditions of the tundra, such as lemmings, arctic fox, reindeer, ptarmigan, snowy owl, mountain hare, wolf, and musk ox.
In summer, a mass of migratory birds appear in the tundra, attracted by the variety of insects that are found in abundance in swampy areas and are especially active in summer. They hatch and feed their chicks here, so that they can soon fly to warmer climes.
Numerous rivers and lakes of the tundra are rich in various fish. Here you can find omul, vendace, broad white salmon and nelma. But cold-blooded reptiles and amphibians are practically not found in the tundra due to low temperatures, limiting their life activity.
| 1 | White-billed loon | 29 | Arctic fox |
| 2 | little swan | 30 | White Hare |
| 3 | Bean goose | 31 | Varakusha |
| 4 | White-fronted goose | 32 | Lapland plantain |
| 5 | Canada goose | 33 | Bunochka |
| 6 | Brent goose | 34 | Red-breasted Pipit |
| 7 | Red-breasted Goose | 35 | Horned lark |
| 8 | Pink seagull | 36 | Long-tailed ground squirrel |
| 9 | Long-tailed skua | 37 | Black-capped marmot |
| 10 | Fork-tailed gull | 38 | Siberian lemming |
| 11 | American swan | 39 | Hoofed lemming |
| 12 | White goose | 40 | Norwegian Lemming |
| 13 | Blue goose | 41 | Middendorff's vole |
| 14 | Lesser white goose | 42 | Siberian Crane |
| 15 | Sailor | 43 | |
| 16 | Spectacled eider | 44 | Ptarmigan |
| 17 | Eider comb | 45 | Kulik Turukhtan |
| 18 | Tufted duck, male and female | 46 | Sandpiper Sandpiper |
| 19 | Merlin | 47 | Golden Plover |
| 20 | Peregrine Falcon | 48 | Dunlin Sandpiper |
| 21 | Rough-footed Buzzard | 49 | Flat-nosed phalarope |
| 22 | Weasel | 50 | Godwit |
| 23 | Ermine | 51 | Godwit |
| 24 | Shrew | 52 | bighorn sheep |
| 25 | Wolf | 53 | Salamander |
| 26 | White Owl | 54 | Malma |
| 27 | Muskox | 55 | Arctic char |
| 28 | Reindeer | 56 | Dallia |
Tundra partridge is one of the most famous birds of the tundra
Watch an interesting video about the tundra natural area:
Winter is so difficult that all living things tend to leave it at this time of year: reindeer migrate south to the “edge of the forest”; wolves follow the deer; Snow buntings descend even further and are common winter guests of our central zone, where they like to stay in flocks along the roads, pecking out grains from horse manure, and White Owl in winter it is found not only in the steppes of Europe, but also Central Asia. Even arctic foxes, these indigenous inhabitants of the tundra, in the fall begin to “flow” to the south, into the taiga, penetrating far into its depths, and partly migrate north to the shore open sea, where surf emissions are collected.
But there is no rule without exception. This exception is made up of pieds, otherwise arctic fox mice, widely known in the literature under the Norwegian name lemmings. They not only continue to make their snow passages with snow, but, as we recently found out, they even continue to reproduce in winter. The reason for such prosperity of variegates is that in the tundra there are relatively many evergreen plants that overwinter under the snow in a preserved state, having fully developed leaves and buds, and fruits and seeds at varying degrees of ripening. This phenomenon is a remarkable adaptation to the short summer, during which many plants do not have time to complete their life cycle. Thanks to this, pieds have adequate food all year round. Under the dense snow, where they flock for the winter, they are not afraid of either frost or blizzards.
On the contrary, only due to the fact that the snow cover of the tundra in winter is shallow and large accumulations of it, the so-called faces, are formed only in depressions, mainly along ravines, in the tundra reindeer, white hares, snow and Lapland plantains, tundra and white partridges. Thus, snow, on the one hand, prevents partridges from getting food, and on the other hand, it gives them shelter from winter blizzards. But for a number of animals, snow cover is favorable in all cases: only thanks to it can lemmings, voles and shrews, numerous in the tundra and taiga, live without hibernating, and lemmings and voles even reproduce in winter. This is explained by the fact that the air under the snow is warmer than on the surface. Experience shows that the animals listed above, released on a frosty day, quickly freeze. In turn, thanks to the presence of these animals, a certain number of predators still remain in the tundra for the winter: wolves, arctic foxes, snowy owls, buzzards, or ruffed buzzards. Gyrfalcons also remain, continuing to kill in flight their favorite prey - white partridges. Finally, the omnivorous raven remains - this truly omnipresent bird.
