An Overview of the Different Types of Tundra

If you were looking for a tundra, a good place to start is up north or down south, at either end of the polar caps. A tundra is one of the seven types of biomes. It is classified by its geography. Tundras do not have many trees and are very cold. There are no trees in tundra climates, but there is some plant life. You can find moss, lichen, sedges, shrubs and lichens growing. Even a rare tree can occasionally be found.

There are three main tundras on Earth. The first one is the Artic tundra. The soil there is almost always frozen. There are two seasons in this tundra, summer and winder, but the summer only get as warm as 50 degrees Fahrenheit. This is only warm enough for the top layer of permafrost to start melting. They spread across the top of Canada and Russia. The animals found in the artic tundra are polar bears and reindeers. There are also fox, owl, lemmings, and ox.

There are no reptiles because of the harsh climate. Nomads can also live in the tundra.

The second kind of tundra is the Antarctica tundra. This spreads across Antarctica as well as some islands. There is even less life here than in the Arctic tundra, because the area is frozen and dry. There are some rocky areas that have been discovered to be able to support plant life, but there are less than a thousand of each plant total. There is also almost no animals.

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The Antarctic tundra is far away from other continents, so there have not been many animals brought over. Rabbits and cats were introduced by humans and live close to the shore. Naturally present animals also live close to the shore and consist of sea birds, penguins and seals. There is also a lot of albatross around the Antarctic tundra which feeds both the seal and penguins.

The third and final type of tundra is the alpine tundra. This occurs in areas that are at extremely high altitudes. The alpine tundra can be found across mountains worldwide. This does not allow for tree growth. The alpine tundra is different from the other two types of tundra because it does not have a permafrost.