Tundra: flora and fauna

The tundra zone extends in the north of our country as a continuous strip from the Kola Peninsula to Chukotka. It occupies about 14% of the territory of Russia. The southern border of the tundra zone in the European part of the country (except for the Kola Peninsula) and in Western Siberia almost coincides with the Arctic Circle. In Eastern Siberia, it is sharply pushed to the north, and in the extreme east of the country, on the contrary, it descends far to the south, reaching the coast of the Sea of ​​Okhotsk.

The living conditions of plants in the tundra are quite harsh. Winter lasts 7 - 8 months, and summer is short and cool. The average temperature of the warmest summer month (July) usually does not exceed + 10 °С. The period of life of plants is very short - only 3-4 months. Even in the midst of summer, in July, on some days there are frosts and snow falls. Sudden returns of frost catch plants at a time when they are in a state of active growth and full flowering.

There is little precipitation in the tundra, usually no more than 250 mm per year. However, in cold climates, this relatively small amount is more than enough. Much more water comes from the atmosphere than can evaporate from the earth's surface. Tundra soils are provided with water in abundance. Most of the precipitation falls in the summer, in winter they fall very little (about 10% of the annual amount). There are no heavy showers, the rains usually only drizzle. There are especially many rainy days in autumn.

The snow cover in the tundra is very shallow - usually no more than 15-30 cm on level ground. It barely covers undersized shrubs and shrubs. Strong winds completely blow off the snow from the mounds and elevations, exposing the soil. The surface of the snow under the influence of the wind is constantly in motion. The mass of tiny ice crystals that make up snow moves at high speed in a horizontal direction, exerting a strong mechanical effect on everything that is located above the snow cover. This powerful stream of solid ice particles can not only destroy or damage plant shoots protruding above the snow - it even grinds rocks. The mechanical effect of snow driven by strong winds, the so-called snow corrazion, prevents tundra plants from growing any tall. The flow of ice crystals cuts them, as it were. Only in deep depressions, which in winter are filled to the brim with snow, can one find relatively tall shrubs (they can be as tall as a person).

The wind speed in the tundra can reach 40 m/s. Such a wind is so strong that it knocks a person down. In winter, the wind affects plants mainly mechanically (through corrosion). But in summer it has a predominantly physiological effect, increasing evaporation from the above-ground plant organs.

Almost the entire territory of the tundra zone is covered with permafrost. The soil thaws in summer to a shallow depth - no more than 1.5-2 m, and often much less. Below is a permanently frozen pound. Permafrost has a huge impact on tundra vegetation. This influence is mostly negative. The close occurrence of cold, ice-bound soil limits the growth of plant roots in depth and forces them to be located only in a thin surface layer of soil. Permafrost serves as an aquiclude, preventing moisture seepage down, and causes waterlogging of the territory. Tundra soils usually have well-pronounced signs of waterlogging: a peaty layer on the surface, under it a bluish gley horizon. The temperature of the soil in the tundra during the summer drops rapidly with depth, and this also adversely affects plant life. The surface of the vegetation cover, even much north of the Arctic Circle, can heat up to + 30 ° C and more in summer, while the soil is quite cold already at a depth of 10 cm - no more than + 10 ° C. The thawing of tundra soils at the beginning of summer is slow, because the upper horizons are usually penetrated by ice layers, which absorb a lot of heat. Consequently, tundra plants develop in summer under conditions of a very special light regime. The sun rises low, but for many days it shines around the clock. Thanks to round-the-clock illumination, even in a short growing season, plants manage to get a lot of light - not much less than in middle latitudes. The intensity of light in the Far North is relatively high due to the high transparency of the atmosphere. Tundra plants are well adapted to a long day, they develop perfectly under such a peculiar light regime. Short-day plants cannot develop normally in the tundra.

Thus, in the tundra, among the many factors unfavorable for plant life, one of the most important is the lack of heat. Summer here is too short and cold, the soil thaws to a shallow depth and does not warm up well. In the air in summer it is also often quite cold, and only on the surface of the soil, when the sun is shining, is it relatively warm. Consequently, in the tundra, only the uppermost layer of soil and the lowest layer of air adjacent to the earth's surface are most favorable for plant life. Both layers measure only a few centimeters. It is not surprising, therefore, that many tundra plants are very stunted, they are flattened on the ground, and their root systems grow mainly in a horizontal direction and almost do not go deep. In the tundra there are many plants with leaves collected in a rosette, creeping shrubs and shrubs. All these plants, due to their short stature, make the best use of the heat of the surface layer of air and protect themselves from excessive evaporation caused by strong winds.

Let's get acquainted in more detail with the flora of our tundra.

A typical tundra is a treeless expanse with a low and not always continuous vegetation cover. It is based on mosses and lichens, against which undersized flowering plants develop - shrubs, shrubs, grasses. There are no trees in the real tundra - the living conditions here are too harsh for them. During a short and cold summer, a protective layer of integumentary tissue, which is necessary for normal overwintering, does not have time to fully form on young shoots (without such a layer, young branches die in winter from water loss). The conditions for overwintering trees in the tundra are extremely unfavorable: strong drying winds, snow corrosion, which systematically "cuts" young trees and does not allow them to rise above the snow.

Another circumstance is also important - the low temperature of the tundra soil in summer, which does not allow the roots to make up for the large losses of water by the above-ground part of the tree during evaporation (the so-called physiological dryness of tundra soils).

Only in the very south of the tundra zone, in more favorable climatic conditions, can individual trees be found. They grow against the background of characteristic tundra vegetation and stand quite far from each other, forming the so-called forest tundra.

Mosses and lichens play a very important role in the vegetation cover of the tundra.

There are many species of them here, and they often form a continuous carpet over vast expanses. Most of the mosses and lichens found in the tundra are not associated with their distribution exclusively with the tundra zone. They can also be found in forests. Such, for example, are many green mosses (pleurotium, chylocomium, cuckoo flax) (lichens from the genus Klyadonia (this includes deer moss and other species related to it and similar to it). However, there are also specific tundra species of mosses and lichens.

Both mosses and lichens perfectly tolerate the harsh conditions of the tundra. These undersized, unpretentious plants can "winter under the protection of even a thin snow cover, and sometimes without it at all. The soil layer as a source of water and nutrients for mosses and lichens is almost not needed - they get everything they need mainly from the atmosphere. They have no real roots, and only thin filamentous processes develop, the main purpose of which is to attach plants to the soil.Finally, mosses and lichens, due to their short stature, make the best use of the surface, warmest layer of air in summer.

The bulk of the flowering plants of the tundra are shrubs, dwarf shrubs and perennial grasses. Shrubs differ from shrubs only in smaller sizes - they are almost the same height as small grasses. Nevertheless, their branches are woody, covered on the outside with a thin layer of protective cork fabric and carry wintering buds. It is enough to draw a clear line between shrubs and shrubs. difficult.

On flat expanses of the tundra, where the snow cover is shallow, both bushes and shrubs are low, they do not rise above the snow. Among these plants we find some dwarf species of willows (for example, grassy willow), rosemary, blueberry, crowberry, dwarf birch. It often happens that shrubs and shrubs are located in the thickness of a powerful moss-lichen cover, almost not rising above it. These plants seem to seek protection from mosses and lichens (in the forest, the situation is completely different). Some of the shrubs and dwarf shrubs are evergreen (crowberry, lingonberry, wild rosemary), others shed their leaves for the winter (various willows, dwarf birch, blueberries, arctous, etc.).

Almost all herbaceous plants in the tundra are perennial.

Perennial herbaceous plants of the tundra are characterized by short stature. Among them there are some grasses (squat fescue, alpine meadow grass, arctic bluegrass, alpine foxtail, etc.) and sedges (for example, hard sedge). There are also a few legumes (umbrella astragalus, obscure kopeechnik, dirty hollywort). However, most of the species belong to the so-called forbs - representatives of various families of dicotyledonous plants. From this group of plants, one can name the viviparous mountaineer, Eder's mytnik, bathing suits - European and Asian, rosea rhodiola, alpine cornflower, geraniums - forest and white-flowered. A characteristic feature of tundra herbs is large, brightly colored flowers. Their color is the most diverse - white, yellow, crimson, orange, blue, etc. When the tundra blooms, it looks like a motley colorful carpet. The tundra usually blooms immediately, suddenly - after the first warm days come. And many plants bloom at the same time.

Many representatives of the tundra flora have adaptations aimed at reducing evaporation in the summer. The leaves of tundra plants are often small, and therefore the evaporating surface is small. The underside of the leaves, where the stomata are located, is often covered with dense pubescence, which prevents too much air movement near the stomata and therefore reduces water loss.

Let us consider in more detail some of the most important plants of the tundra.

Dwarf birch, or dwarf birch (Vega papa). The dwarf birch bears little resemblance to our usual, familiar birch, although both of these plants are close relatives (different species of the same genus). The height of the dwarf birch is small - rarely more than half of human height. And it grows not as a tree, but as a branchy shrub. Its branches do not rise high, and often even spread over the surface of the earth. In a word, the birch is really dwarf. Sometimes it is so small that its creeping shoots are almost entirely hidden in the thickness of the moss-lichen carpet, and only leaves are visible on the surface. I must say that the leaves of a dwarf birch are not at all the same as those of an ordinary birch. Their shape is rounded, and the width is often greater than the length. And they are relatively small in size - like small copper coins. Small semicircular protrusions go one after another along the edge of the leaf (this edge of the leaf is called crenate in botany). The leaves are dark green above, glossy, and paler below, light green. In autumn, the leaves are beautifully painted - they turn bright red. Thickets of dwarf birch at this time of the year are unusually colorful, they always surprise with their bright crimson.

Seeing for the first time a branch of a dwarf birch with leaves, few of us will say that it is a birch. Even if we notice earrings on a branch, it will also be difficult to determine that we have a birch in front of us. Like the plant itself, these earrings are dwarf, very short - their length is no more than a fingernail. And in shape they are not at all the same as those of ordinary birch - oval or elongated ovoid. When ripe, the earrings crumble into separate parts - small three-lobed scales and tiny, fruit-nuts, equipped with a narrow membranous edge. In this respect, the dwarf birch differs little from the ordinary birch.

Dwarf birch is one of the most common tundra plants. It can be found in almost the entire tundra zone. It is especially abundant in the southern part of the tundra, where it often forms thickets. In the summer, deer feed on its leaves. And the local population collects larger specimens of the plant for fuel.

In the North, dwarf birch is often called dwarf birch. This name comes from the Nenets word "era", which means "shrub".

Blueberry, or gonobobel (Vasstsht and Ngtosht). This is the name of one of the low tundra shrubs (its height rarely exceeds 0.5 m). A distinctive feature of this plant is the bluish tint of the foliage. In shape and size, the leaves are almost the same as those of lingonberries, but relatively thin, delicate. They appear in spring and fall off in autumn. Blueberries, unlike lingonberries, are deciduous shrubs.

Blueberry flowers are inconspicuous, dull, whitish, sometimes with a pink tinge. They are no larger than a pea, their rim is almost spherical, resembling a very wide jug in shape. The flowers are located on the branches so that the corolla opening is directed downwards. There are 4-5 small teeth along the edge of the hole. The denticles represent the ends of the petals (the rest of the petals are fused into one whole).

Blueberry fruits are bluish, rounded berries with a bluish bloom. They resemble blueberries, but are larger than them. The pulp of the fruit is not watery, as a result of which this plant is sometimes called crowberry.

Cloudberry (Rubus clataetorus) is the closest relative of the raspberry (another species of the same genus). However, it is not a shrub, but a perennial herbaceous plant. Every spring, from a thin rhizome in the soil, a low, erect stem with several leaves and only one flower grows. By winter, the entire above-ground part of the plant dies, and in the spring another shoot grows again. Cloudberries are very different from raspberries. Its stems are devoid of thorns, the leaves are rounded-angular (shallowly 5-bladed). The flowers are much larger than those of raspberries, with five white petals pointing in different directions. Cloudberries are unlike raspberries in another respect: they are dioecious. Some of its specimens always bear only male, barren flowers, others only female ones, from which fruits are subsequently formed. Interestingly, male flowers are larger than female ones, they are up to 3 cm in diameter.

Cloudberry fruits in their structure are similar to raspberry fruits: each of them consists of several small juicy fruitlets, fused together into one. A separate fruit is somewhat similar to a tiny cherry: the pulp is outside, and the stone is inside. Botanists call such a simple fruit a drupe, and the entire cloudberry complex fruit is a complex drupe. Exactly the same type of fruit and raspberries.

However, in appearance, the cloudberry fruit bears little resemblance to the raspberry fruit. The individual particles that make it up are much larger than those of raspberries, and the color of the fruit is completely different. At the beginning of ripening, the fruits are red, in full maturity they are orange, like wax. Ripe cloudberries have a pleasant taste and are highly valued by the locals, who collect them in large quantities in the tundra. Fruits contain from 3 to 6% sugar, citric and malic acids. They are eaten mainly in steamed and soaked form, they are also used to make jam.

Moss moss lichen, or deer moss This is one of our largest lichens, its height reaches 10-15 cm. A separate reindeer moss plant resembles some kind of fancy tree in miniature - it has a thicker “trunk” rising from the ground, and thinner winding “branches”. And the trunk and branches towards the ends gradually become thinner and thinner. Their tips almost completely disappear - they are no thicker than a hair. If you put several of these plants side by side on black paper, you get a beautiful white lace.

Yagel has a whitish color. It is due to the fact that the bulk of the lichen is made up of the thinnest colorless tubes - the hyphae of the fungus. But if we look at the cross section of the main "stem" of reindeer moss under a microscope, we will see not only fungal hyphae. Near the surface of the "stem" a thin layer of the smallest emerald green balls stands out - microscopic cells, algae. Yagel, like other lichens, consists of fungal hyphae and algae cells.

When wet, reindeer moss is soft and elastic. But after drying, it hardens and becomes very brittle, crumbles easily. The slightest touch is enough to break off pieces of lichen. These tiny fragments are easily carried by the wind and are able to give rise to new plants. It is with the help of such random fragments that the reindeer moss mainly breeds.

Yagel, like other lichens, grows slowly. It increases in height by only a few millimeters per year, although its dimensions are quite large. Due to the slow growth of moss reindeer moss, the same tundra pasture cannot be used for several years in a row; one has to move to new areas all the time. If deer in the tundra eat reindeer moss, it takes quite a long time (10-15 years) to restore the lichen cover.

Yagel is of great economic importance. It is known to serve as one of the most important fodder plants for deer in the tundra. It is interesting that deer unmistakably find it by smell even in winter under a layer of snow.

Animal world of the tundra

The fauna in the tundra is very peculiar and differs in some features from the animals of the Far North. They are not picky about food. Animals have thick fur, and birds have fluffy plumage. Animals change color: in summer they are light brown to match the vegetation, and in winter they are white or light gray to match the color of snow.

Typical animals of the tundra are arctic fox, lemming, reindeer, white partridge, snowy wolf and snowy owl.

The arctic fox preys on lemmings and polar partridges. He has very valuable fur. The reindeer is not afraid of frost and snowstorms. Wide hooves allow him to run without falling through the snow and rake the snow in search of food.

In summer, countless mosquitoes, midges, and gadflies appear in the tundra. There are so many of them that without mosquito nets it is impossible to work in the tundra, they bite, climb into the eyes, nose, mouth.

At this time, many birds fly here for nesting: geese, swans, ducks, waders. Many of them eat insects.

It is difficult to imagine the existence of living organisms in conditions when an icy wind blows all year round and frost cracks. In the tundra, representatives of the fauna have adapted to the conditions of eternal winter. When the ground thaws for a short time, plants begin their growing season. It lasts two months.

How to survive in the harsh conditions of the North

Nature has provided measures to protect against the harsh climate. But how do tundra plants protect themselves from the winter cold?

• To beat the wind, you need to grow fast.
• To defeat the cold, you need to develop rapidly.
• To defeat ice in the soil, you need to have shallow roots.

Only 2 months a year are given to plants in order to release shoots, drive out leaves and stems, bloom flowers (and they also bloom in the tundra!) and allow fruits to ripen.

Amazing representatives of the tundra flora

Translated from Finnish, the word "tundra" means treeless lands. In the imagination, dull landscapes, devoid of colors and life, immediately emerge. But it's not.
Among the flora of the tundra there are very bright and amazing specimens that amaze with their colors and diversity.
Bearberry (bearberry) surprises with bright red colors of berries that attract not only clubfoot, but also birds.
Ledum is a magnificent flowering shrub exuding a sharp smell of essential oils.
Pulsatilla delights with the tenderness of lavender petals. But the appearance of a beautiful flower does not harmonize with the harsh climate at all.

Arctic moss impresses with its ability to grow even on water. In addition, moss is the main food for other living organisms of the tundra.

Cloudberries, unlike our raspberries, initially have a pink-red color, but as they ripen, they become orange-yellow.
Mushroom boletus is worthy of a separate story. At the end of summer, countless mushrooms appear in the tundra. Under the small tops of tiny birches, hundreds of little brothers with brown hats crawl out of the ground.
Dwarf birch is one of the few representatives of the tree family in the tundra. For an adult, this tree barely reaches the knees.

The natural zone of the tundra is located mainly beyond the Arctic Circle and is bounded from the north by arctic (polar) deserts, and from 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 in summer are blocked by mountains - these are the valleys of the Yana, Kolyma, Yukon rivers - taiga rises into the subarctic. It is necessary to distinguish separately the 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 the territories adjacent to it. Its area is about 1/8 of the entire area of ​​Russia. In Canada, the tundra natural zone belongs to a significant part of the northern territories, which are practically uninhabited. In the United States, the tundra occupies most of the state of Alaska.

a brief description of

• The natural zone tundra 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 severe, accompanied by strong winds and snowstorms;
• Cold winds blow throughout the year: in summer - from the Arctic Ocean, and in winter - from the chilled continental part of Eurasia;
• The tundra is characterized by permafrost, that is, the upper level of the earth frozen through, part of which thaws only a few tens of centimeters in summer.
• Very little precipitation falls in the tundra zone - only 200-300 mm per year. However, the soils in the tundra are waterlogged everywhere due to impermeable permafrost at a shallow depth of surface cover and low evaporation due to low temperatures even with strong winds;
• Soils in the tundra are usually infertile (due to humus being blown out by the winds) and heavily swamped due to freezing in harsh winters and only partial warming in the warm season.

Tundra is a natural zone of Russia

As everyone knows from school lessons, the nature and climate on the territory of Russia has a clearly defined zonality of processes and phenomena. This is due to the fact that the territory of the country has a large extent from north to south, and it is dominated by a flat relief. Each natural zone is characterized by a certain ratio of heat and moisture. Natural areas are sometimes called landscape or geographic areas.

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 presented on the plains of Russia natural areas, starting from the north:

• Arctic deserts;
• Forest-steppe
• steppes
• semi-deserts
• desert
• 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 mainly behind polar circle. Let's list the facts about the tundra:

• The tundra natural zone is located to the north of the taiga zone;
• In the mountains of Scandinavia, the Urals, Siberia, Alaska and Northern Canada, mountain tundras are found;
• 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 severe and is characterized by long winters with polar nights (when the sun practically does not rise above the horizon) and short summers. A particularly harsh climate is observed in the continental regions of the tundra;
• 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 in the tundra lies from October to June, its height in the European part is 50-70 centimeters, and in Eastern Siberia and Canada 20-40 cm. Snowstorms are frequent in the tundra in winter;
• Summer in the tundra is short, with a long polar day;
• August in the tundra is considered the warmest month of the year: there are positive average daily temperatures up to + 10-15 degrees, but frosts are possible on any day of the summer;
• Summer is characterized by high air humidity, frequent fogs and drizzling rains;
• The 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 herding;
• Fishing;
• Hunting for fur and sea animals.

The population of the tundra is limited in its choice of occupations due to the peculiarities of natural conditions and relative isolation from large cities, as well as the population on, isolated on small islands in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

In the Northern Hemisphere, the following types of tundra are distinguished, which have characteristic vegetation:

• arctic tundra(marshy soils and moss-lichen plants predominate);
• subarctic tundra or typical middle tundra(moss, lichen and shrub plants, berries);
• or the southern tundra (shrub plants - dwarf birch, bushy alder, various types of willows, as well as berries and mushrooms).

arctic tundra

In the Arctic, on the northern edge of the European and Asian parts of Russia, as well as in the far north of North America, there is an arctic tundra. It occupies the coastal territory of the northern seas and is a flat swampy area. Summer brings only a short thaw there, and plants are not found due to the too cold climate. Permafrost is covered with melted lakes of melted snow and ice. Perennial plants in such conditions are able to grow only for a short time - at the end of July and August, grouping in places that are lowered and protected from the winds, and annual plants do not take root here, because due to harsh natural conditions there is a very short 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 in summer gives way to the warmer air of the temperate zone for a short time. The day there is long, and under the influence of the penetration of a warmer climate, tundra plants have time to develop. Basically, these are dwarf plants that nestle against the earth that radiates a little heat. So they hide from the winds and from freezing, trying to spend the winter under the snow cover as if in a fur coat.

AT middle tundra there are mosses, lichens and small shrubs. Small rodents are found here - lemmings (pied), which feed on arctic foxes and polar owls. Most animals in the tundra are covered with snow-white fur or plumage in winter, and turn brown or gray in summer. Of the large animals in the middle tundra, reindeer (wild and domestic), wolves, and tundra partridge live. Due to the abundance of swamps in the tundra, there is simply a gigantic amount of all kinds of midges, which attract wild geese, ducks, swans, waders and loons in the summer to breed chicks in the tundra.

Agriculture in the subarctic tundra is impossible in any form due to the low temperature of the soil and its poverty in 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 is located forest-tundra. It is much warmer in it than in 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 much more than the evaporated moisture. Therefore, the soils of the forest-tundra, as well as the subarctic tundra, are strongly waterlogged and waterlogged.

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. Usually the trees are far apart from each other, since their root system is located in the upper part of the soil, above the permafrost. There are both tundra and forest plant species.

In the eastern part of the forest-tundra are tundra forest characterized by thickets of stunted trees. In the subarctic mountainous regions, mountain tundra and barren rocky surfaces dominate, on which only mosses, lichens, and small rock flowers grow. The moss reindeer in the forest-tundra grows much faster than in the subarctic tundra, so there is expanse for deer here. In addition to deer, moose, brown bears, arctic foxes, white hares, capercaillie and hazel grouse live in the forest-tundra.

Agriculture in the tundra

In the forest tundra it is possible vegetable growing in the open field, here you can grow potatoes, cabbage, turnips, radishes, lettuce, green onions. And also developed methods for creating high-yielding meadows on the territory of the forest-tundra.

And do you know what…

In Iceland, which is located entirely in the natural zone of the tundra, potatoes were bred in the past and even barley was cultivated. It turned out a good harvest, because the Icelanders are a stubborn and hardworking people. But now, open farming has been replaced by a more profitable occupation - growing plants in greenhouses heated by the heat of hot springs. And today, various tropical crops grow beautifully in the tundra of Iceland, especially bananas. Iceland even exports them to Europe.

There are also mountain tundras, which form an altitudinal zone in the mountains of the temperate and subarctic belt. 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 belts in the mountain tundra:

• shrub belt- formed on stony soils, like the flat tundra.
• Moss-lichen belt located above the shrub, its characteristic vegetation is represented by semi-shrubs and some herbs.
• Upper belt mountain tundra is the poorest in vegetation. Here, among the stony soils and on the rocky formations, only lichens and mosses grow, as well as squat shrubs.

Mountain tundra (highlighted in purple)

Antarctic tundra

On the Antarctic Peninsula and islands in the high latitudes of the southern hemisphere there is a natural zone similar to the tundra. It is called the Antarctic Tundra.

Tundra in Canada and the USA

In the northern part of Canada and in the US state of Alaska, very significant areas are located in the tundra natural 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 Saint Elias Mountains (USA and Canada)
• Coastal tundra of Baffin Island
• Tundra of the Brooks and British Mountains
• Davis Strait Tundra
• Tundra of the Torngat Mountains
• High mountain tundra of the hinterland
• Ogilvy and Mackenzie high tundra
• polar 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 territory of the 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 stones.

Plants in the tundra have characteristic forms and properties that reflect their adaptation to harsh continental climate. There are many mosses and lichens in the tundra. Due to the short and cold summers and long winters, most of the tundra plants 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 ("deer 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, princesses and blueberries, as well as thickets of bushy willow. And in wetlands, sedges and grasses predominate, some of which have evergreen leaves covered with a bluish wax coating, giving dull colors.

1	Blueberry
2	Cowberry
3	Crowberry black
4	Cloudberry
5	Loydia late
6	Onion skoroda
7	princess
8	Cotton grass vaginal
9	sword sedge
10	dwarf birch
11	wedge-leaved willow

A distinctive feature of the tundra is a large number, but a small species composition of animals. This is also due to the fact that the tundra is located literally on 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, hare, wolf, musk ox.

In summer, a mass of migratory birds appears in the tundra, attracted by a variety of insects that are found in abundance in the swampy area and are especially active in summer. They breed and feed their chicks here to soon fly to warmer climes.

Numerous rivers and lakes of the tundra are rich in various fish. Omul, vendace, whitefish and white salmon are found here. But cold-blooded reptiles and amphibians are practically not found in the tundra because of the low temperatures that limit their vital activity.

1	white-billed loon	29	arctic fox
2	small swan	30	Belyak Hare
3	goose bean goose	31	Varakusha
4	white-fronted goose	32	Lapland plantain
5	Canadian goose	33	Bunting
6	black goose	34	red-throated pipit
7	red-throated 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	ungulate lemming
12	white goose	40	norwegian lemming
13	blue goose	41	Middendorf's vole
14	small white goose	42	Siberian Crane
15	Moryanka	43
16	spectacled eider	44	ptarmigan
17	eider comb	45	Kulik turukhtan
18	Crested Duck, male and female	46	sandpiper
19	Merlin	47	golden plover
20	peregrine falcon	48	sandpiper dunlin
21	Rough-footed buzzard	49	phalarope
22	weasel	50	Little Godwit
23	Ermine	51	snipe godwit
24	shrew	52	snow sheep
25	Wolf	53	salamander
26	White Owl	54	Malma
27	musk ox	55	arctic char
28	Reindeer	56	Dalliya

The tundra partridge is one of the most famous birds of the tundra.

Watch an interesting video about the tundra natural zone:

What is the tundra in the minds of people? Imagination begins to draw a snowy deserted desert, or rather, the steppe, only the northern one. Permafrost or, as they say now, perennial, does not bring the desire to visit these places. But people live here too, some lead a settled life, some - nomadic. And our story is about tundra plants.

Geographical location and climatic conditions of the tundra

It should be noted that the tundra is not monotonous, it can be of different types:

1. Arctic.
2. Typical.
3. Forest-tundra.
4. Mountain.

The Arctic tundra is located in North America. It is characterized by strong gale-force winds, air temperature down to -60 ° C. Summer is short, only a few weeks with temperatures up to +5 ° C. Permafrost does not allow melted moisture to go deep into the ground, and the tundra takes the form of a swamp with plants in the form of mosses and lichens .

A typical tundra is located south of the Arctic not only in America, but also in Russia, the climate here is somewhat milder. Winter temperature - up to -50 o C. The warm period lasts from May to October, the average temperature is +5-10 o C. The temperature can stay up to +25 o C for several days. The earth warms up deeper, but even here there is swampiness, the presence of small streams and lakes. Shrubs appear among mosses and lichens.

The forest tundra, respectively, is located south of the typical tundra and is represented by a vast territory on two continents. Characterized by the appearance of small trees. The temperature ranges from -40 o C to +15 o C. There are many lakes here.

Climatic conditions depend not only on how many degrees north of the equator this or that territory is located, they also vary depending on the height above sea level. In other words, in mountain systems. The higher in the mountains, the closer the climate is to the Arctic (strong wind, low precipitation, low temperatures, except that there are not so many swamps and lakes).

What plant grows in the tundra?

Plants here are forced to adapt to harsh conditions, and they do it very successfully. The flora of the tundra has a number of distinctive characteristics:

So what plant grows in the tundra? One that meets the above features that ensure its survival in adverse climatic conditions.

plant names

What plants are found in the tundra? The main representatives of the plant world are mosses and lichens. According to official data, about 200 species of lichens have been identified in Yamal. Mosses and lichens are closely intertwined, forming "carpets", as a rule, of the same species. The most common include: green and peat moss, reindeer moss (reindeer moss), cladonia lichen, arctic red bearberry. The tundra plants shown above in the photo look like a colorful carpet.

Such plant species as cloudberry, blueberry, lingonberry, black crowberry, late lloydia, koroda onion, princewort, vaginal cottongrass, swordskin sedge, dwarf birch, wedge-leaved willow and others are also widespread.

Why are plants in the tundra undersized?

The reason is corrosion. The word is similar to "corrosion" not only visually, but also in its essence - the desire to destroy. Strong hurricane winds in winter move blocks of ice, rock fragments, various boulders, and sand. This mass moves along the tundra at different speeds, turning and polishing all hard objects in its path. What plants in the tundra can resist it? There is no such! Everything above the dense cover of snow is cut off and carried away.

Another argument in favor of dwarf plant species is the fact that the surface of the earth thaws no deeper than 50 cm, and then permafrost extends for 500 m. To combat wind and frost, a strong branched root system is needed, and 50 cm does not allow this.

Yagel or reindeer moss

Yagel is one of the most useful lichens in the tundra (and not only). It is a symbiosis of marsupials, green algae and bacteria. It is a very strong natural antibiotic. Not picky about climate and soil. It does not tolerate pollution, therefore it does not grow near large cities. This perennial plant develops slowly and can be up to 500 years old. Moss is loved by deer, but people often use it as a medicinal plant. If reindeer pastures have been in the same place for several years, then it may take up to 15 years to grow a new reindeer moss.

Cloudberry

Even if you are not familiar with many tundra plants, cloudberries are most likely an exception. It is a perennial herb with a bony fruit that looks like an orange raspberry. It is considered a valuable commercial plant. They can harvest both its leaves and flowers, fruits. Like many tundra plants, cloudberries are a vivid example of the northern flora: they ripen in a short period, and the fruits are just a pantry of vitamins and minerals. It contains cobalt, potassium, iron, chromium, phosphorus, sodium, copper. The content of vitamin A is higher than in the recognized leader - carrots, and more vitamin C than in an orange.

Cowberry

A small shrub plant up to 30 cm high. The berries are tart and bitter, so they are frozen and soaked, then they become sweet. Lingonberries are used as a medicinal plant. Many are familiar with the diuretic properties of the leaves, in addition, lingonberries have anti-inflammatory, tonic, wound healing, antipyretic, antiscorbutic, anthelmintic properties. And that's not all. Therefore, it is harvested from May to October itself.

Blueberry

It is a low shrub. Blueberries are another spectacular northern berry. It is a close relative of blueberries and lingonberries. It is possible to describe its useful properties for a very long time. Most often, blueberries are used for eye, cardiovascular, gastric and intestinal diseases, as well as for diabetes. It may be easier to tell what this plant does not have, and what diseases it does not treat.

By the way, blueberries are very fond of gardeners living in a warmer climate for their taste and medicinal qualities.

Crowberry black

Crowberry, a small creeping shrub, got its name because of the color of the berries: black, raven. Another name is crowberry, since its berries are watery and sour. The branches look like Christmas trees because of the frequent elongated leaves. The leaves and berries are used as a remedy for headaches and scurvy.

Lloydia late

Perennial plant up to 15 cm high, moisture-loving. Another name is alpine lloydia. Blossoms in June, tolerates frost well down to -30 o C. Decorates the tundra with its flowers.

Onion skoroda

Bulbous perennial grass, grows in the tundra on swampy and moist poor soils. The onion feather is used as a seasoning for food, including meat dishes. Contains vitamin C, carotene, essential oil, organic acids.

princess

This tundra plant has other names. For example, raspberry, meadow, mamura, drupe, khokhlushka, noon. In all these cases, we are talking about the princess. It is a herbaceous perennial shrub with many-boney fruits. Delicious and fragrant berries are consumed fresh, as well as in confectionery. They contain glucose, fructose, citric and malic acids, vitamin C. Therefore, berries are used for the prevention and treatment of scurvy and beriberi.

Cotton grass

A perennial grass that grows in the tundra in swamps and along the edge of water bodies. Participates in the formation of peat. Blooms in early spring. Decoctions are used to treat gastrointestinal diseases, pain in rheumatism, and also as an anticonvulsant and sedative.

dwarf birch

It is also called yernik. The dwarf birch bears little resemblance to its relative, the common birch. This is no longer a tree, but a shrub with several branches. The plant is found in the tundra in the form of overgrown islands. The leaves are similar to the leaves of an ordinary birch, but smaller. By winter, the branches fall to the ground. Birch reproduces vegetatively, taking root in the territory freed from moss. As a rule, these are places plucked by birds or broken by deer hooves. She also has earrings, but, ripening by August, they remain on the branches to "set off" in the spring.

wedge-leaved willow

Willow wedge-leaved - not the only one in the harsh terrain. There are also such willows: arctic, creeping, Nakamura willow. All of them are small shrubs (60-100 cm) with creeping branches.

Red Book of the Tundra

Like all places on the planet, there is also the Red Book of the tundra. The plants brought into it are represented by arctic sunflower, Lapland poppy, purple core, Senyavinskaya wormwood, Beringian primrose. What unites them? That they are rare, but not endangered. Brought to the north by some unusual event (for example, during natural disasters), they took root here, hardened.

So, at the sunflower of the Arctic, the center of distribution is the Mediterranean Sea, Crimea. It is assumed that he came to the north during the interglacial warming. Grows on the peninsula Turii Cape, on the seashore 4 km long.

Lapland poppy - found on the Kola Peninsula and in Norway, endemic. What plant in the tundra can be compared in beauty with the Lapland poppy? Therefore, its numbers are rapidly declining due to people plucking the flower into bouquets.

Purple core - lives on the islands of St. Lawrence and Nunivak in the Bering Strait, as well as in Alaska. It can reduce its numbers due to human disturbance of natural habitat conditions.

Senyavinskaya wormwood - a representative of Chukotka, endemic, is considered an ancient migrant from the American side.

The Beringian primrose is another Chukchi representative that may be reduced in numbers due to human presence.

Why does human intervention negatively affect representatives of the Red Book? Among other things, the absence of roads implies the use of all-terrain vehicles, whose tracks permanently violate habitats and are visible even after several years.

Tundra soil

A story about tundra plants would be incomplete without a story about soil. It is represented by widespread gley soils consisting of clay, loam and sand. Peat marshy soils are often found on the plains. The humus layer is small, only a few centimeters, because due to the short summer, the processes of decomposition of organic matter are slow. Often, mosses and lichens grow on rocky rocks and their weathering products. Humus on such soils is practically absent. The soil of the tundra is very poor and oversaturated with moisture; it is characterized by an indefinite soil horizon due to swelling and outpouring of soils.

As a result of climatic and soil characteristics, tundra plants have developed high viability. Some of them have acquired the ability to live birth, receiving bulbs or small nodules instead of flowers, ready for further germination. There are predatory plants that prey on insects. All tricks are used to complete the entire life cycle in full and in a short time, and then crouch as close to the ground as possible, cover yourself with a snow blanket and fall asleep until next summer.

Since there is little warm and sunny time, the flowering time for most plants falls on the same period. At this time, the tundra is incredibly transformed, it becomes like a bright canvas with green, brown, yellow and red spots. At this time, the tundra no longer seems cold and unfriendly. And it is not clear how you can not love her for such beauty!

Sapsa Yana

The presentation "Flora and Fauna of the Tundra" introduces students to the peculiarities of the flora and fauna of the tundra.

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Flora and Fauna of the Tundra

The tundra stretches in a wide strip for many kilometers along the entire coast of the Arctic Ocean. Snow lies here for more than half a year, and frosts fall below -50. Cold winds blow, and summers are short, cool, on the hottest days the soil thaws by no more than 1 meter, so the icy desert is called permafrost. Under such conditions, animals living in the tundra are forced to adapt.

Vegetation The typical tundra is a treeless expanse with a low and not always continuous vegetation cover. It is based on mosses and lichens, against which undersized flowering plants develop - shrubs, shrubs, grasses. The roots of grasses, trunks of shrubs are hidden in moss and lichen turf. The bulk of the flowering plants of the tundra are shrubs, dwarf shrubs and perennial grasses. Shrubs differ from shrubs only in smaller sizes - they are almost the same height as small grasses. But nevertheless, their branches become woody, covered on the outside with a thin layer of protective cork tissue and carry wintering buds.

There are no trees in the real tundra - the living conditions here are too harsh for them. During a short and cold summer, the protective layer of the integumentary tissue necessary for normal overwintering does not have time to fully form on young shoots (without such a layer, young branches die in winter from water loss). , which systematically “cuts” young trees and prevents them from rising above the snow. Only in the very south of the tundra zone, in more favorable climatic conditions, can individual trees be found. They grow against the background of characteristic tundra vegetation and stand quite far from each other, forming the so-called forest tundra.

Mosses and lichens play a very important role in the vegetation cover of the tundra. There are many types of them here, and they often form a continuous carpet over vast spaces. Most of the mosses and lichens found in the tundra are not associated in their distribution exclusively with the tundra zone. They can also be found in forests. Such, for example, are many green mosses (pleurotium, hylocomium cuckoo flax), lichens from the genus Klyadonia (this includes deer moss and other species related to it and similar to it). However, there are also specific tundra species of mosses and lichens. Both mosses and lichens perfectly tolerate the harsh conditions of the tundra. These undersized unpretentious plants can winter under the protection of even a thin snow cover, and sometimes without it at all. The soil layer as a source of water and nutrients for mosses and lichens is almost not needed - they get everything they need mainly from the atmosphere. They do not have true roots, but develop only thin filamentous processes, the main purpose of which is to attach plants to the soil. Finally, mosses and lichens, due to their short stature, make the best use of the surface, warmest layer of air in summer.

A person who first came to the tundra is especially surprised by dwarf willows. Some of them are extremely small, have creeping shoots spread among the moss carpet, and are very reminiscent of some small herbaceous plants. Only after looking closely, you notice real willow earrings in such “herbs”, though very small and short. The leaves of dwarf willows are also unusually small, unusual for us. Almost all herbaceous plants in the tundra are perennial. There are very few annual herbs. This is explained by the fact that summers are too short and cold in the tundra. In a few cool summer weeks, it is difficult to go through the full life cycle - from seed germination to the formation of new seeds. This requires very rapid rates of development under conditions of low temperature.

Many representatives of the tundra flora have adaptations aimed at reducing evaporation in the summer. The leaves of tundra plants are often small, and therefore the evaporating surface is small. The underside of the leaves, where the stomata are located, is often covered with dense pubescence, which prevents too much air movement near the stomata and, therefore, reduces water loss. In some plants, the edges of the leaves are wrapped down and the leaf itself looks like an incompletely closed tube. The stomata located on the underside of such a leaf are inside the tube, which also leads to a decrease in evaporation. Adaptations to reduce water loss are essential for tundra plants. In summer, the cold soil of the tundra makes it very difficult for the roots of plants to absorb water, while the above-ground organs, located in the warm surface layer of air, have all the conditions for vigorous evaporation.

Animal world. The soil of the tundra thaws only 35-40 cm in summer, and permafrost tens of meters below. In the tundra, summers are short and cold, winters are long and harsh, with strong winds, and little snow falls. In winter, the polar night lasts for a long time, and in summer the sun does not set for almost two months. All this creates special conditions for animals living in the tundra.

Reindeer Wild reindeer is probably one of the most beautiful ungulates living in our country! This graceful, strong animal is admirable! It is impossible to imagine the life of the peoples of the North of Russia without a deer. Reindeer team, on which the group "Gems" wanted to take their fans "into the snowy dawn"; the tent, in which the northern peoples live, is made of deer skins; deer meat is the main food in the north; and reindeer milk is the most nutritious and healthy milk in the world!

Arctic fox Arctic foxes are commercial fur-bearing animals, which are sometimes called polar foxes. In size, they are slightly smaller than real foxes. Arctic foxes are distributed throughout the tundra: to the north - to the coast of the ocean and to the south - to the northern border of the forest. Arctic foxes come in two colors: white and blue (more precisely, dark). The white fox becomes pure white only in winter, and by summer, cross-shaped dark stripes appear on its back and shoulder blades, for which it received the name "cross". The blue fox is completely dark in both winter and summer. The white hair inside contains air and provides good insulation in winter, keeping you warm, much like the air between two frames in a house keeps a living space cool. The blue fox's dark hair does not have this advantage, but it does have a thicker undercoat. That is why blue foxes are valued higher in the fur trade, not only because of the beauty of the fur, but also because of its density. This is especially true for blue foxes from the Commander Islands.

Birds The polar owl constantly lives in the Tundra. Great Razor White Partridge lives in the Tundra all year round Pink Gull Tundra Swan Kulik