PROTECTING EARTH

PROTECTING THE EARTH

Approximately half the Earth’s ice-free land is without significant human influence, according to a study published in Global Change Biology

Among these are boreal forests, tundra and vast deserts

Taiga generally referred to in North America as boreal forest or snow forest, while "taiga" is used to describe the more barren areas of the northernmost part of the biome approaching the tree line and the tundra biome

Taiga or boreal forest: World's largest land biome

The largest areas are located in Russia and Canada

Taiga or boreal forest has a subarctic climate with very large temperature range between seasons, but the long and cold winter is the dominant feature

Taiga soil tends to be young and poor in nutrients

Taiga is dominated by coniferous forests, some broadleaf trees also occur

Two major types of taiga: The southern part is the closed canopy forest, consisting of many closely spaced trees with mossy ground cover. The other type is the lichen woodland or sparse taiga, with trees that are farther-spaced and lichen ground cover; the latter is common in the northernmost taiga.\

Boreal forest, or taiga, supports a relatively small range of animals due to the harshness of the climate. 

Tundra: Type of biome where the tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons.

Scattered trees grow in some tundra regions

Ecotone between the tundra and the forest is known as the tree line or timberline

The tundra soil is rich in nitrogen and phosphorus

There are three regions and associated types of tundra: Arctic tundra, alpine tundra, and Antarctic tundra

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

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

Antarctic tundra occurs on Antarctica and on several Antarctic and subantarctic islands

Most of Antarctica is too cold and dry to support vegetation, and most of the continent is covered by ice fields but some portions of the continent have areas of rocky soil that support plant life.