n.
A treeless area between the icecap and the tree line of Arctic regions, having a permanently frozen subsoil and supporting low-growing vegetation such as lichens, mosses, and stunted shrubs.
[Russian, from Sami tūndar, flat-topped hill.]
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tundra
American Heritage Dictionary:
tun·dra |
n.
A treeless area between the icecap and the tree line of Arctic regions, having a permanently frozen subsoil and supporting low-growing vegetation such as lichens, mosses, and stunted shrubs.
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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
tundra |
For more information on tundra, visit Britannica.com.
An area supporting some vegetation beyond the northern limit of trees, between the upper limit of trees and the lower limit of perennial snow on mountains, and on the fringes of the Antarctic continent and its neighboring islands. The term is of Lapp or Russian origin, signifying treeless plains of northern regions. Biologists, and particularly plant ecologists, sometimes use the term tundra in the sense of the vegetation of the tundra landscape. Tundra has distinctive characteristics as a kind of landscape and as a biotic community, but these are expressed with great differences according to the geographic region.
Characteristically tundra has gentle topographic relief, and the cover consists of perennial plants a few inches to a few feet or a little more in height. The general appearance during the growing season is that of a grassy sward in the wetter areas, a matted spongy turf on mesic sites, and a thin or sparsely tufted lawn or lichen heath on dry sites. In winter, snow mantles most of the surface. By far, most tundra occurs where the mean annual temperature is below the freezing point of water, and perennial frost (permafrost) accumulates in the ground below the depth of annual thaw and to depths at least as great as 1600 ft (500 m). See also Permafrost.
from Sami
This word originated in Russia
Trees don't grow on the tundra of the arctic regions. But then, what tree would want to? The earth is frozen solid except in the brief summertime, when it thaws only a foot or two down from the surface. The surface, of course, is wet, since water can't sink into the soil. So when it's not frozen, it's swampy. That short summer season is a busy breeding time for billions of insects, who in turn attract millions of birds. The vegetation sustains caribou and reindeer, voles and lemmings, and those in turn sustain wolves, foxes, and birds of prey.
No wonder Stalin, starting in the 1930s, chose the tundra of Russia and Siberia as a suitably inhospitable environment to house "enemies of the people" in his prison camps, the gulags. And yet there are people who like life in the cool, wide-open tundra: the Sami, who have lived there since prehistoric times. (They are better known as Lapps, but they don't like that designation.)
The Sami were the first to inhabit the tundra of what is present-day northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. When southerners first heard of them, thousands of years ago, the Sami made their living by hunting reindeer. About five hundred years ago they began herding reindeer instead of bunting them. Despite the growing political and social pressures of European civilization, about 10 percent of the 80,000 ethnic Sami still herd reindeer today, using snowmobiles and modern telecommunications.
We know that tundra is from one of the languages spoken by the Sami. Which of the Sami languages is not certain, but since tundra came to us through Russian, it would likely be from Kildin Sami, Skolt Sami, or Ter Sami, the three Sami languages of Russia's Kola Peninsula on the Barents Sea next to Finland. Sami belongs to the Finno-Ugric branch of the Uralic language family.
The Sami languages are most widely heard in Norway, where there are about 17,000 speakers, and in Sweden, where there are nearly 10,000. Finland has about 4,000 and Russia just 2,000. Aside from tundra, no other Sami word is of general circulation in English.
Oxford Dictionary of Geography:
tundra |
The barren plains of northern Canada, Alaska, and Eurasia. Temperatures and rainfall are low so vegetation is restricted to hardy shrubs, mosses, and lichens. The lower soil is permanently frozen, so that drainage is poor. Marshes and swamps are, therefore, common in summer.
Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology:
tundra |
[Ge]
periglacial type of environment with a permanently frozen subsoil. Vegetation is restricted to mosses, small plants, shrubs, etc.
Columbia Encyclopedia:
tundra |
tundra (tŭn'drə), treeless plains of N North America and N Eurasia, lying principally along the Arctic Circle, on the coasts and islands of the Arctic Ocean, and to the north of the coniferous forest belt. The tundra area is widest in N Siberia on the Kara Sea and reaches as far south as 60° N at the neck of the Kamchatka peninsula. Although sometimes called the Arctic steppe and situated mainly within the Arctic Circle, it reaches southward into the Scandinavian, Timan, and Ural mts. For most of the year the mean monthly temperature is below the freezing point; winters are long and severe. The summers are short and relatively warm, but even in July the mean monthly temperature does not rise above 50°F (10°C). Although high temperatures may be reached during a summer day, the subsoil is perpetually frozen. During summer, sedges, mosses, and lichens appear in abundance, along with some flowering plants. Among the few large animal species found in the tundra are the caribou, the arctic fox, the snowshoe rabbit, and occasionally the polar bear. Precipitation is spread evenly during the year and is slight, varying from 8 to 12 in. (20-30 cm). Evaporation is low, and much of the flat ground in areas of poor drainage becomes swampy during the summer months. Because there are very few species of flora and fauna, the destruction of the tundra is a simple process. The elimination of a single species or the disruption of the permanently frozen subsoil (permafrost) may severely damage this fragile ecosystem. Russia's tundra supports a small human population mostly consisting of the Nensty (Samoyedes) and the Komi. Eskimos inhabit the North American tundra.
Bibliography
See E. Bowen, Grasslands and Tundra (1985).
Word Tutor:
tundra |
IN BRIEF: A vast treeless plain in the arctic regions between the ice cap and the tree line.
Love is like racing across the frozen tundra on a snowmobile which flips over, trapping you underneath.
— Matt Groening
LearnThatWord.com is a free vocabulary and spelling program where you only pay for results!
Dictionary of Cultural Literacy: Science:
tundra |
A land area near the North Pole where the soil is permanently frozen a few feet underground.
Random House Word Menu:
categories related to 'tundra' |
- Environment, Ecology, and Animal Behavior - tundra: arctic biome characterized by low average temperature and rainfall, permafrost, and few large plants
- Materials, Formations, and Substances - tundra: polar area soil, composed mainly of peat, whose top layer thaws each spring while base remains frozen year-round
- Earth’s Atmosphere and Topographic Features - tundra: vast, cold, nearly treeless region north of coniferous forests with permanently frozen subsoil
- Plains and Marshes - tundra: level, treeless plain in arctic region with dark wet soil on base of permanently frozen subsoil
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Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Tundra |
For other uses, see Tundra (disambiguation).
| Tundra | |
|---|---|
 Tundra in Greenland |
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 Map of arctic tundra shown in orange |
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| Geography | |
| Area | 11,563,300 km2 (4,464,600 sq mi) |
| Climate type | ET |
In physical geography, tundra is a biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons. The term tundra comes through Russian тундра from the Kildin Sami word tūndâr "uplands," "treeless mountain tract."[1] There are three types of tundra: Arctic tundra,[2] alpine tundra,[2] and Antarctic tundra.[3] In tundra, the vegetation is composed of dwarf shrubs, sedges and grasses, mosses, and lichens. Scattered trees grow in some tundra. The ecotone (or ecological boundary region) between the tundra and the forest is known as the tree line or timberline.
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Contents
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Arctic
Arctic tundra occurs in the far Northern Hemisphere, north of the taiga belt. The word "tundra" usually refers only to the areas where the subsoil is permafrost, or permanently frozen soil. (It may also refer to the treeless plain in general, so that northern Sápmi would be included.) Permafrost tundra includes vast areas of northern Russia and Canada.[2] The polar tundra is home to several peoples who are mostly nomadic reindeer herders, such as the Nganasan and Nenets in the permafrost area (and the Sami in Sápmi).
Arctic tundra contains areas of stark landscape and is frozen for much of the year. The soil there is frozen from 25–90 cm (9.8–35.4 inches) down, and it is impossible for trees to grow. Instead, bare and sometimes rocky land can only support low growing plants such as moss, heath (Ericaceae varieties such as crowberry and black bearberry), and lichen. There are two main seasons, winter and summer, in the polar tundra areas. During the winter it is very cold and dark, with the average temperature around −28 °C (−18 °F), sometimes dipping as low as −50 °C (−58 °F). However, extreme cold temperatures on the tundra do not drop as low as those experienced in taiga areas further south (for example, Russia's and Canada's lowest temperatures were recorded in locations south of the tree line). During the summer, temperatures rise somewhat, and the top layer of the permafrost melts, leaving the ground very soggy. The tundra is covered in marshes, lakes, bogs and streams during the warm months. Generally daytime temperatures during the summer rise to about 12 °C (54 °F) but can often drop to 3 °C (37 °F) or even below freezing. Arctic tundras are sometimes the subject of habitat conservation programs. In Canada and Russia, many of these areas are protected through a national Biodiversity Action Plan.
The tundra is a very windy area, with winds often blowing upwards of 48–97 km/h (30–60 miles an hour). However, in terms of precipitation, it is desert-like, with only about 15–25 cm (6–10 inches) falling per year (the summer is typically the season of maximum precipitation). Although precipitation is light, evaporation is also relatively minimal. During the summer, the permafrost thaws just enough to let plants grow and reproduce, but because the ground below this is frozen, the water cannot sink any lower, and so the water forms the lakes and marshes found during the summer months. There is a natural pattern of accumulation of fuel and wildfire which varies depending on the nature of vegetation and terrain. Research in Alaska has shown fire-event return intervals, (FRIs) that typically vary from 150 to 200 years with dryer lowland areas burning more frequently than wetter highland areas.[4]
The biodiversity of the tundras is low: 1,700 species of vascular plants and only 48 land mammals can be found, although millions of birds migrate there each year for the marshes.[5] There are also a few fish species such as the flatfish. There are few species with large populations. Notable animals in the Arctic tundra include caribou (reindeer), musk ox, arctic hare, arctic fox, snowy owl, lemmings, and polar bears (only the extreme north).[6] Tundra is largely devoid of poikilotherms such as frogs or lizards.
Due to the harsh climate of the Arctic tundra, regions of this kind have seen little human activity, even though they are sometimes rich in natural resources such as oil and uranium. In recent times this has begun to change in Alaska, Russia, and some other parts of the world.
Relationship with global warming
A severe threat to the tundras, specifically to the permafrost, is global warming. The melting of the permafrost in a given area on human time scales (decades or centuries) could radically change which species can survive there.[7]
Another concern is that about one third of the world's soil-bound carbon is in taiga and tundra areas. When the permafrost melts, it releases carbon in the form of carbon dioxide and methane,[8] both of which are greenhouse gases. The effect has been observed in Alaska. In the 1970s the tundra was a carbon sink, but today, it is a carbon source.[9] Methane is produced when vegetation decays in lakes and wetlands.[10]
The amount of greenhouse gases which will be released under projected scenarios for global warming have not been reliably quantified by scientific studies, although a few studies were reported to be underway in 2011. It is uncertain whether the impact of increased greenhouse gases from this source will be minimal or massive.[10]
In locations where dead vegetation and peat has accumulated there is a risk of wildfire such as the 1,039 square kilometres (401 sq mi) of tundra which burned in 2007 on the north slope of the Brooks range.[10] Such events may both result from and contribute to global warming.[11]
Antarctic
Antarctic tundra occurs on Antarctica and on several Antarctic and subantarctic islands, including South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and the Kerguelen Islands. Most of Antarctica is too cold and dry to support vegetation, and most of the continent is covered by ice fields. However, some portions of the continent, particularly the Antarctic Peninsula, have areas of rocky soil that support plant life. The flora presently consists of around 300–400 lichens, 100 mosses, 25 liverworts, and around 700 terrestrial and aquatic algae species, which live on the areas of exposed rock and soil around the shore of the continent. Antarctica's two flowering plant species, the Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia antarctica) and Antarctic pearlwort (Colobanthus quitensis), are found on the northern and western parts of the Antarctic Peninsula.[12]
In contrast with the Arctic tundra, the Antarctic tundra lacks a large mammal fauna, mostly due to its physical isolation from the other continents. Sea mammals and sea birds, including seals and penguins, inhabit areas near the shore, and some small mammals, like rabbits and cats, have been introduced by humans to some of the subantarctic islands. The Antipodes Subantarctic Islands tundra ecoregion includes the Bounty Islands, Auckland Islands, Antipodes Islands, the Campbell Island group, and Macquarie Island.[13] Species endemic to this ecoregion include Nematoceras dienemum and Nematoceras sulcatum, the only Subantarctic orchids; the royal penguin; and the Antipodean albatross.[13]
The flora and fauna of Antarctica and the Antarctic Islands (south of 60° south latitude) are protected by the Antarctic Treaty.[14]
Alpine
Main article: Alpine tundra
Alpine tundra does not contain trees because it is at high altitude. Alpine tundra is distinguished from arctic tundra in that alpine tundra typically does not have permafrost, and alpine soils are generally better drained than arctic soils. Alpine tundra transitions to subalpine forests below the tree line; stunted forests occurring at the forest-tundra ecotone are known as Krummholz.
Alpine tundra occurs in mountains worldwide. The flora of the alpine tundra is characterized by dwarf shrubs close to the ground. The cold climate of the alpine tundra is caused by the low air pressure, and is similar to polar climate.
Climatic classification
See also: Polar and alpine climate
Tundra climates ordinarily fit the Köppen climate classification ET, signifying a local climate in which at least one month has an average temperature high enough to melt snow (0°C or 32°F), but no month with an average temperature in excess of (10°C/50°F). The cold limit generally meets the EF climates of permanent ice and snows; the warm-summer limit generally corresponds with the poleward or altitudinal limit of trees, where they grade into the subarctic climates designated Dfd and Dwd (extreme winters as in parts of Siberia), Dfc typical in Alaska, Canada, European Russia, and Western Siberia (cold winters with months of freezing), or even Cfc (no month colder than -3°C as in parts of Iceland and southernmost South America). Tundra climates as a rule are hostile to woody vegetation even where the winters are comparatively mild by polar standards, as in Iceland.
Despite the potential diversity of climates in the ET category involving precipitation, extreme temperatures, and relative wet and dry seasons, this category is rarely subdivided. Rainfall and snowfall are generally slight due to the low vapor pressure of water in the chilly atmosphere, but as a rule potential evapotranspiration is extremely low, allowing soggy terrain of swamps and bogs even in places that get precipitation typical of deserts of lower and middle latitudes. The amount of native tundra biomass depends more on the local temperature than the amount of precipitation.
Economy
Human economic activity has been scarce on tundras. Hunting, trapping and reindeer have provided food and hides to the local population. Occasional mineral resources, such as fossil fuel and ores occasionally appear in tundras. Difficultues of prospecting, mining and transportation have held back exploitation of these resources until modern times.
See also
References
- ^ Aapala, Kirsti. "Tunturista jängälle". Kieli-ikkunat. Archived from the original on 2006-10-01. http://web.archive.org/web/20061001211854/http://www.kotus.fi/julkaisut/ikkunat/1999/kielii1999_19.shtml. Retrieved 2009-01-19.
- ^ a b c "The Tundra Biome". The World's Biomes. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/tundra.html. Retrieved 2006-03-05.
- ^ "Terrestrial Ecoregions: Antarctica". Wild World. National Geographic. Archived from the original on 2011-10-21. http://www.webcitation.org/62am1PNdU. Retrieved 2009-11-02.
- ^ "Variability of tundra fire regimes in Arctic Alaska: millennial-scale patterns and ecological implications". Ecological Applications 21 (8): 3211–3226. December 2011. doi:10.1890/11-0387.1. ISSN 1051-0761. http://www.esajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1890/11-0387.1.
- ^ "Great Plain of the Koukdjuak". Ibacanada.com. http://www.ibacanada.com/site.jsp?siteID=NU078&seedet=N. Retrieved 2011-02-16.
- ^ "Tundra". Blue Planet Biomes. http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/tundra.htm. Retrieved 2006-03-05.
- ^ "Tundra Threats". National Geographic. http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/tundra-threats.html. Retrieved 2008-04-03.
- ^ "Global Warming: Methane Could Be Far Worse Than Carbon Dioxide". Sepp Hasslberger. 2005-02-01. http://www.newmediaexplorer.org/sepp/2005/02/01/global_warming_methane_could_be_far_worse_than_carbon_dioxide.htm.
- ^ Oechel, Walter C.; et al. (1993). "Recent change of Arctic tundra ecosystems from a net carbon dioxide sink to a source". Nature 361 (6412): 520–523. doi:10.1038/361520a0.
- ^ a b c Justin Gillis (December 16, 2011). "As Permafrost Thaws, Scientists Study the Risks". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/17/science/earth/warming-arctic-permafrost-fuels-climate-change-worries.html. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
- ^ "Carbon loss from an unprecedented Arctic tundra wildfire". Nature 475 (28 July 2011): 489–492. July 28, 2011. doi:10.1038/nature10283. http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v475/n7357ve/full/nature10283.html. Retrieved December 17, 2011.
- ^ "Terrestrial Plants". British Antarctic Survey: About Antarctica. http://www.antarctica.ac.uk//about_antarctica/wildlife/plants/. Retrieved 2006-03-05.
- ^ a b "Antipodes Subantarctic Islands tundra". Wild World Full Report. World Wildlife Fund. http://www.worldwildlife.org/wildworld/profiles/terrestrial/aa/aa1101_full.html. Retrieved 2009-11-02.
- ^ "Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty". British Antarctic Survey: About Antarctica. http://www.antarctica.ac.uk//about_antarctica/geopolitical/treaty/. Retrieved 2006-03-05.
Further reading
- Allaby, Michael; Peter D Moore; Trevor Day; Richard Garratt (2008). Tundra. Facts On File. ISBN 0816059349. http://books.google.ca/books?id=VdA8qT5KZvkC&lpg=PP1&dq=Tundra&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true
- Bliss, L. C; O. W. Heal, J. J. Moore (1981). Tundra Ecosystems: A Comparative Analysis. International Biological Programme Synthesis Series (No. 25). ISBN 9780521227766. http://books.google.ca/books?id=mK48AAAAIAAJ&lpg=PP1&dq=Tundra&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true
- Warhol, Tom (2007). Tundra. Marshall Cavendish Benchmark. ISBN 9780761421931. http://books.google.ca/books?id=oYUc7o43cuAC&lpg=PP1&dq=Tundra&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true
- Yu I, Chernov (1998). The Living Tundra;Studies in Polar Research. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521357548. http://books.google.ca/books?id=agc5AAAAIAAJ&lpg=PP1&dq=Tundra&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=true
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Tundra |
- WWF Tundra Ecoregions
- The Arctic biome at Classroom of the Future
- Arctic Feedbacks to Global Warming: Tundra Degradation in the Russian Arctic
- British Antarctica Survey
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This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Translations:
Tundra |
Nederlands (Dutch)
toendra, mossteppe
Français (French)
n. - toundra
Deutsch (German)
n. - Tundra, Kältesteppe
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (γεωγρ.) τούντρα
Português (Portuguese)
n. - tundra (f), planície sem árvores (f)
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
苔原, 冻土地带
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 苔原, 凍土地帶
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) سهل اجرد في المنطقه الشماليه, ألتندرة
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - טונדרה, ערבה ארקטית
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 | Barren Lands |
| taiga |
| tree line |
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 | American Heritage Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more |
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- Why can the vegetation in tundra can live in tundra?
- Do tundra wolves get their name from the tundra?
- What is a tundra?
- Where is the tundra?
- Is the alpine tundra a population of the tundra?
- Is the fall tundra alpine tundra or artic tundra?
- What can you do in the tundra?
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