Tundra
the relationship between the climate and the flora and fauna of a given region;
the relationship between latitude, solar illumination and climate;
how the vegetation and the animal world change in the landscape zones situated closer to the equator.
to describe the climatic conditions that give rise to tundra;
to demonstrate the relationship between the climate and the landscape of tundra;
to show on the map of the world where tundra occurs;
to talk about how tundra inhabitants adapt to its climate.
The climate and landscape of tundra
The landscape zone called tundratundra stretches north of the taiga belt. The climate of tundra is even more severe than that of taiga. Most tundra areas are situated north of the Arctic Circle, which means that for a few days or even for many weeks, a phenomenon of the polar nightpolar night occurs there, during which the Sun does not appear above the horizon even for a moment. Winters are very frosty and long. In summer, the midnight sun occurs the phenomenon of the polar daypolar day, but even then the sun is low above the horizon and provides little warmth. Summers are short (lasting about 6 – 8 weeks), cloudy and cold – the air temperature does not exceed 15 ° C. The wind blows all year round at a speed of 30 m/s or more.
The climatic conditions are too harsh even for cold‑resistant coniferous trees. So far to the north, there are trees which shed their leaves, but they are completely different from our trees. The highest layer of plants consists of dwarf birch and willow trees, whose height does not exceed 30 cm. Their branches grow horizontally and can be several meters long. This enables them to withstand the wind. In winter, they are covered by a layer of snow, which protects them from frost. In all tundra regions, one can find mosses, lichens and very few flowering plants. In areas closer to the poles, these are the only plants growing there. All tundra regions are covered by permafrost: the soil is frozen from the surface to the depth of up to hundreds of meters. During the short summer, which lasts 2–3 months, only the top layer of the soil melts to a depth of no more than 1 meter. Dwarf trees, prostrate shrubs and flowering plants bloom in order to produce fruit and disperse their seeds before winter. The areas covered with tundra lie so close to the pole that in the winter you can see the unusual phenomenon of polar lights (aurora). Auroras are produced when electrically charged particles from the Sun reach the Earth’s atmosphere.
Tundra has its equivalent in sections of the mountains – the dwarf pine level and alpina tundra (mountain meadows). The dwarf pine level corresponds to tundra areas overgrown by low trees, whereas alpine tundra resembles tundra areas further to the north. This is because the vegetation conditions in the upper sections of the mountains are similar to those existing in the tundra: the temperatures are low and the wind is strong.
Inhabitants of tundra
Tundras are inhabited by very few people. Apart from herding, any agricultural activity is impossible here – the soils are too poor, the temperatures are too low and the wind – too strong. The local population makes a living from activities such as fishing and hunting other sea animals (including seals and whales), as well as animals on land.
The tundras in North America were initially inhabited by the Inuit (also called Eskimos). The northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and the European part of Russia are inhabited by Sami people. Apart from hunting and fishing, they mainly raise raindeer. There are also many other small nations inhabiting the vast areas of the Siberian tundra, e.g. Chukchi people, who engage in similar activities.
In tundra areas, there are numerous raw materials, e.g. deposits of precious stones in Siberia or oil in Alaska. Employees of industrial plants there include Russians, Norwegians, Americans, Canadians and people of other nationalities. Some inhabitants of tundra regions live there permanently while others only come for a certain period of time.
Due to the technological and civilization progress, fewer and fewer groups of people from the indigenous nations living in tundra engage in traditional activities or maintain their traditional lifestyle. Their native languages disappear too.
Choose adjectives that describe the winter in the tundra
- warm
- long
- summer-like
- mild
- hot
- frosty
Choose adjectives that describe the summer in the tundra..
- cloudy
- cool
- short
- scorching hot
- sunny
- long
Decide if the following statement is true or false.
| True | False | |
| Tundra occurs in the northern and southern hemispheres. | □ | □ |
| In the summer, wetlands prevail in many areas of the tundra. | □ | □ |
| During the polar night, the phenomenon of polar lights (aurora) can be observed. | □ | □ |
Summary
In the tundra you can observe the phenomenon of the polar day and of the polar night.
Summers in the tundra are short, cold and cloudy, while winters are long, windy and frosty.
The tundra vegetation mainly consists of mosses, lichens and very few herbaceous plants, as well as dwarf trees.
Traditionally, tundra inhabitants engage in fishing, hunt for sea mammals and raise reindeer.
Keywords
tundra, polar night, polar day, wetlands, Inuit, Sami people
Glossary
noc polarna – zjawisko utrzymywania się Słońca przez przynajmniej całą dobę poniżej linii horyzontu
dzień polarny zjawisko utrzymywania się Słońca przez przynajmniej całą dobę powyżej linii horyzontu
tundra – występują w niej jedynie mchy i porosty, nieliczne trawy, karłowate drzewa, niewielkie krzewy i krzewinki