The biodiversity of the Tropical Rainforests. The great tree studded grasslands of the African Savannah. The summer-parched Scrublands of the Mediterranean. The endless deserts of the Sahara and Gobi. The vast expanse of Steppe and Prairie of the Northern Continents. The beautiful colours of the Temperate Forests. The endless expanse of the Canadian Boreal Forest and Russian Taiga. The empty Arctic Tundra and Antarctic Ice. The myriad of Wetlands and Highlands found across the globe.
Biome
Highlands – Montane Forests, Alpine Meadows, Tropical Moorlands
What happens when you take one of the many sea-level biomes that we’ve looked at in this series, and climb into the mountains? How does cooling temperatures affect the type of plants that can grow. The answer varies depending upon whether you’re in the tropics, or temperate regions, whether the conditions are wet or dry. Join me as I explore the most spectacular scenery on our planet – the Highlands of Earth.
Wetlands – Mangroves, Marshes and Bogs
The world’s wetlands are aquatic biomes that are among the most complex and biodiverse on our planet. They can occur anywhere on Earth where shallow water exists, from the saltwater mangroves of the tropics, to the bogs and fens of the arctic. Join me as I take a tour of wetlands on every continent and explain the differences in each of their varied types.
The Tundra Biome and Ice Biome
The Tundra Biome and Ice Biome
The tundra and ice biomes represent two of the most extreme environments on Earth. While both are defined by freezing temperatures and harsh climates, they also showcase nature’s remarkable ability to adapt and survive. In this article, we’ll explore the unique characteristics, life forms, and environmental importance of these frigid ecosystems.
The Tundra Biome: A Cold, Treeless Landscape
Climate and Location
The tundra biome is mainly found in Arctic regions, such as northern Canada, Alaska, Russia, and Scandinavia. Unlike other biomes, it has very little seasonal change. Winters are long, dark, and bitterly cold, while summers are short and cool. As a result, the ground remains frozen for most of the year due to a thick layer of permafrost.
Vegetation and Adaptations
Despite these extreme conditions, plant life manages to survive. For example, mosses, lichens, and dwarf shrubs grow close to the ground to avoid icy winds. Moreover, they bloom quickly during the short summer to complete their life cycle. Thanks to their small size and shallow roots, they thrive in nutrient-poor soil and permafrost conditions.
Wildlife in the Tundra
In addition to hardy vegetation, the tundra supports a range of cold-adapted animals. Species like the Arctic fox, reindeer, snowy owl, and lemmings have thick fur or feathers for insulation. Some animals, like caribou, migrate seasonally in search of food. Others, like the Arctic ground squirrel, hibernate to survive the brutal winter.
The Ice Biome: A Frozen Desert
Characteristics of the Ice Biome
Moving even farther into the cold, we reach the ice biome—found in Antarctica, Greenland, and at the poles. Here, temperatures remain below freezing year-round. Interestingly, despite the abundance of ice, these regions are technically deserts due to their extremely low precipitation.
Lack of Vegetation
Unlike the tundra, the ice biome lacks vegetation altogether. There is no soil, and the temperatures are simply too cold to support plant life. Consequently, any life that exists must rely on other ecosystems, particularly the nearby oceans.
Adapted Fauna
Even in this frozen landscape, some animals have evolved to survive. Marine mammals such as seals, whales, and walruses rely on thick blubber to stay warm. On land and ice, polar bears and penguins have also adapted well. Their behaviors, diets, and body structures are all tailored to life in extreme cold.
Environmental Importance
Although they appear desolate, both biomes play a vital role in Earth’s climate system.
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The tundra, for instance, acts as a carbon sink, storing massive amounts of carbon in its permafrost.
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However, as global temperatures rise, melting permafrost may release this carbon, accelerating climate change.
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Likewise, the ice biome reflects solar radiation back into space. As a result, it helps cool the planet.
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Unfortunately, melting glaciers and ice sheets reduce this reflective effect and contribute to rising sea levels.
Therefore, protecting these biomes is not just an environmental concern—it’s a global priority.
In conclusion, the tundra and ice biomes are essential to Earth’s balance. Although they seem remote and lifeless, they house unique ecosystems and play a crucial role in climate regulation. By learning more about them, we gain a deeper appreciation for the planet’s diversity and the importance of preserving even its coldest corners.
The biodiversity of the Tropical Rainforests. The great tree studded grasslands of the African Savannah. The summer-parched Scrublands of the Mediterranean. The endless deserts of the Sahara and Gobi...
What happens when you take one of the many sea-level biomes that we’ve looked at in this series, and climb into the mountains? How does cooling temperatures affect the type of plants that can...
The world’s wetlands are aquatic biomes that are among the most complex and biodiverse on our planet. They can occur anywhere on Earth where shallow water exists, from the saltwater mangroves of...
The Taiga Biome (Boreal Forest)
The Boreal Forest Biome, often referred by its original Russian name as simply the Taiga. It is a sea of coniferous trees, stretching unbroken from coast to coast in the far north of our world. In this video on biogeography, we explore the taiga, what it is exactly, reveal the climate influences that make it this way, and where in the world it is found.
The Temperate Forest Biome
The Temperate Forest Biome, a mix of deciduous and coniferous trees found in the temperate regions of Earth. We will cover why these trees grow in these regions, how climate influences this biome, how historical deforestation has decimated these areas, what tree species grow here, and which countries have these forests. It is a video on biogeography in that it covers how species are influenced by climate and topography.
The Grassland Biome
Grass. If there is one plant that has come to dominate our world, it’s this. Occupying every biome on earth except the icesheets, grasses have colonised every patch of soil, from tropical to temperate forests, savannah to steppe, scrubland to desert. Humans have taken these grasses and shaped them over generations into crops that feed the world today. Their homelands are the seas of grass we call Meadow, Prairie, Pampas, Veldt and Steppe – the world’s Grasslands.
The Desert Biome
The Desert Biome. In this biogeography video we look at the world’s deserts, explain why they are that way, and what types of vegetation we can find there. One of the most extreme biomes on our world, from the Sahara to the Sonora, the Gibson to the Gobi, these are the deserts of planet Earth.
The Scrub Biome or Shrubland Biome
Often overlooked, the relatively arid regions of earth that are the Shrublands (also known as Scrub or Scrubland) take second or third place to forests or grasslands when it comes to beauty contests.
The Savannah Biome
The Savannah (Savanna) is the vast open country of the tropics composed of a patchwork of trees and shrubs on a bed of grass. It is a result of the tropical wet and dry seasons that cycle through the tropics year after year – the Tropical Savannah Climate.