What is Tundra?
The word tundra comes from a Finnish word tunturia, which means treeless plain. This describes tundra; it's a treeless plain. Out of all the biomes in the world, the tundra is the coldest. The tundra is well-known for its frost-molded landscapes, extremely low temperatures, little precipitation, poor nutrients, and short growing seasons. The subsoil stays frozen all the time. This layer of soil is called permafrost. (The soil only unfreezes during the short summers)
The characteristics of all tundra are...
There are two types of tundra: arctic tundra and alpine tundra. (see the page What are the Two Types of Tundra? for more details)
The characteristics of all tundra are...
- extremely cold climate
- low biotic diversity
- simple vegetation structure
- limitation of drainage
- short season of growth and reproduction
- energy and nutrients in the form of dead organic material
- large population oscillations
There are two types of tundra: arctic tundra and alpine tundra. (see the page What are the Two Types of Tundra? for more details)