Arctic Tundra Biome!

Strohly :)

Map of Location of Arctic Tundra Biome

Locations of Tundra Biomes in the World

• Antartica • North Pole

 • Northern Regions in Canada

 • Northern Regions in Alaska

 • Northern Regions in Greenland

 • Northern Regiongs in the United States

Climate Decription of the Artic Tundra Biome

Precipitation levels in the tundra are from 6 to 10 inches a year. Most of this falls as snow. In many ways this biome is a cold desert, lacking significant precipitation.

In the arctic tundra there are two seasons: winter and summer. In the summer, the sun is present almost 24 hours a day and the temperature is in a range of about 3°C to 12°C. In the winter there are several weeks where the sun never rises. This causes the temperatures to drop to extremely cold levels. The average temperature of the tundra is around -28°C while extremes can dip to -70°C.

Precipitation: Temperature:

Plants in the Artic Tundra BiomePerennial Forbs

  Dwarfed Shrubs

Sedges

Heaths

Lichens

Animals in the Arctic Tundra Biome

Pikas

Polar bears

Penguins

Sandpipers

Gulls

Snowy Owl 

Artic Tundra Biome Food Web

Symbiotic Relationships in the Artic Tundra Biome

An example of mutualism in the tundra is when the caribou eats lichens and then spreads it through feces.

An example of parasitism in the tundra is a tape worm in caribou. The tape worm takes in the nutrients in the caribou. Soon the caribou dies and the tape worm gets its food.

An example of commensalism is when the artic fox follows the caribou who removes the snow to get at lichens under the soil, then the fox hunts the mammals that have been disturbed by the caribou.

Coevolution in the Arctic Tundra Biome

The arctic hares have changed their fur color to white to blend in with the snow. This makes it harder for their prey, the arctic wolves to catch them. The arctic wolves then improved their senses and fur color to white to catch and be hidden from the rabbits more easily.

Natural Resources and Products from the Arctic

Tundra Biome• uranium• carbon dioxide• nickel• zinc• aluminum• gold• oil

Threats to the Arctic Tundra Biome

• One of the biggest threats come from airborne pollutants, which have brought measurable levels of pollutants such as DDT and PCB's to even remote areas.

• Another big threat is from oil and gas development and the result of global warming.

As the planet warms the permafrost melts and tundra ecosystems collapse. 

The permafrost contains a significant amount of dead plant material; as the permafrost warms, this material begins to decay, releasing even more CO2 into the atmosphere and accelerating global warming.

Resources http://www.marietta.edu/~biol/biomes/tundra.htm  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tundra  http://www.thewildclassroom.com/biomes/arctictundra.html http://www.answers.com/ http://connect.in.com/tundra-region/images-map-of-arctic-tundra-region-1-479266936799.html