The Tundra

The Tundra

What is it?• The tundra is the coldest and the youngest of all

biomes. It was formed 10,000 years ago.• It’s a vast and treeless land. It’s usually very cold. • The ground is permanently frozen 10in-3ft down. This

means that trees cannot plant their roots in the ground.

• The bare and sometimes rocky ground can only support low growing plant such as mosses, heaths and lichen. And willows which only grow 8cm tall.

• In the winter, it’s cold and dark, in the summer, the snow and top layer of permafrost melt.

• It’s also very dry throughout the year.

Where is it?• Nearly all of the tundra is found in the Northern

Hemisphere. From latitudes 55° to 70° North.• There are small tundra like areas in the southern

hemisphere but because it’s much colder the ground is always covered in snow and ice.

• Russian and Canadian plains above the arctic circle are examples of this. As well as Greenland

Who lives there?• There are several types of fauna which live here

but not all year around. In the summer when it is much warmer many types of bird migrate to them and also many types of insect such as mosquitos and midges.

• In some tundras there are reindeer and also some types of fish such as, cod and salmon. This then attracts some people to hunt and fish

Why is it there?• The Tundra forms because the area takes in more

carbon dioxide than it gives out.

When will it die out?• We don’t know when it will die out, however it

could die out due to • Because more of the permafrost would begin to

melt more often meaning that the trees would start being able to plant their roots and grow. This could lead to more flora and fauna but could ruin its main function as a carbon dioxide sink.

Whom values it? • The Tundra biome is useful to humans as it is a

Carbon Dioxide sink.