Taiga

Question 1

location?

Answer 1

northern hemisphere (more land masses) , top parts of North America Europe and Asia

Question 2

climate?

Answer 2

extreme subarctic climate, very seasonal, short wet summers, long cold dry winters, low precipitation

Question 3

nutrients?

Answer 3

slow, stores are smaller, precipitation and fallout feed litter, litter has most nutrients as pine needles decay slowly, biomass store is small as trees grow for a few months

Question 4

tree adaptations?

Answer 4

cone shape helps shed water, leaves are protected with a waxy layer to limit water loss, seeds protected by woody cones, flexible branches to shed snow, roots are shallow but wide,

Question 5

biodiversity?

Answer 5

low, biotic only survive if specifically adapted, growing season is 4-5 months,

Question 6

animal adaptations?

Answer 6

thick oily fur (black brown grizzly bears, wolves, moose, lynx) to help retain body heat and waterproof, hibernate and 270 species of birds migrate as food supply is low

Question 7

direct threats (Canadian Tar Sands)?

Answer 7

deforest the Canadian forest and turn the landscape into a gaping black pit, destroys habitats and drives animals to extinction, produces a lot of carbon, toxic sludge fills the water and poisons the landscape and water supplies

Question 8

indirect threats?

Answer 8

fires can start from hot dry summers, thick layer of pine is perfect, fires allow the ecosystem to regenerate itself, pine cones open releasing seeds when burnt, too many fires cause long term reductions in biodiversity, tolerant species begin to dominate

Question 9

Wood Buffalo National Park, Canada

Answer 9

world’s second largest national park, created 1922 to protect mountain bison, UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983, threatened by Tar Sands polluting the park’s Athabasca river and reduce it’s flow when water is taken for mining use