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Tundra
What Is the Tundra?

Plants in the Tundra

The tundra is one of the
harshest biomes and it is
There are thousands of species
definitely the coldest!
of plants in the Arctic tundra.
Temperatures in the tundra
The plants tend to be small and
can reach as low as minus 25
close to the ground. This
degrees Fahrenheit! Beneath
protects them from strong
the tundra is permafrost.
winds and cold temperatures.
Permafrost is a permanently
Some plants that grow in the
frozen sublayer of soil. There
tundra include lichen, short
is very little rain or snow in the
shrubs, sedges, grasses,
tundra, usually less than 15
flowers, birch trees and willow
inches a year.
trees. Cushion plants, which,
also grow in the tundra, are
types of plants that grow low
to the ground in tight places.
They are called cushion plants
because they are soft and
cushiony.

There are two types of tundra, Living in the Tundra

the arcticand
the alpinetundra. The arctic
tundra is the land around the
North Pole. The alpine tundra
is found above the tree line of
tall, cold mountains. Tundra
covers one fifth of the Earth's
surface. Tundra comes from
the Finnish word tunturia and
means barren or treeless land.

Defrosting the Tundra

Animals that live on the tundra

must be able to adapt to very
cold temperatures. They must
also be able to raise their
The growing season in the young during the very short
tundra is very short, usually summer months.
only 6 to 10 weeks. In the
summer, the top layer of soil
may thaw out. When the ice
melts, it can't drain into the
soil because of the permafrost,
so water collects
in bogs and ponds. This makes
up for the low rain and
snowfall! As the top layer of
soil thaws out, plants and
microorganisms have a chance
to grow. The sun is then out
for most of the the day and
Animals found in the tundra
night, so the plants have extra
include the musk ox, the Arctic
sunlight and can grow faster.
hare, the polar bear, the Arctic
fox, the caribou, and the snowy
owl. Many animals that live in
the tundra, like the caribou and
the semipalmated
plover, migrate to warmer
climates during the winter.
Others, like the arctic ground
squirrel, hibernate during the
winter months. There are very
few reptiles
and amphibians found in the

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