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These plants are adapted to short, cold growing seasons. [1] They have the ability to withstand extremely cold temperatures in the winter (winter hardiness), and grow and reproduce in summer conditions that are quite limiting. As of 2005, arctic vegetation covered approximately 5 × 10 ^ 6 km 2 (1.9 × 10 ^ 6 sq mi) of land. [2]
Papaver radicatum (arctic poppy), a flowering plant of the Arctic tundra follows the sun around the sky during the 24-hour daylight of summer north of the Arctic Circle. Changing climate conditions are amplified in polar regions and northern high-latitude areas are projected to warm at twice the rate of the global average. [1]
Arctic ecology is the scientific study of the relationships between biotic and abiotic factors in the arctic, the region north of the Arctic Circle (66° 33’N). [1] This region is characterized by two biomes: taiga (or boreal forest ) and tundra . [ 2 ]
Instead, bare and sometimes rocky land can only support certain kinds of Arctic vegetation, low-growing plants such as moss, heath (Ericaceae varieties such as crowberry and black bearberry), and lichen. [6] [7] There are two main seasons, winter and summer, in the polar tundra areas.
With wildfires and increased warming, scientists say the Arctic’s tundra is now a carbon source. The region had been a carbon sink for thousands of years (NOAA Climate.gov; Arctic Report)
Some parts of the Arctic are covered by ice (sea ice, glacial ice, or snow) year-round, especially at the most poleward parts; and nearly all parts of the Arctic experience long periods with some form of ice or snow on the surface. Average January temperatures range from about −40 to 0 °C (−40 to 32 °F), and winter temperatures can drop ...
The tropics have a summer/winter cycle every day, whereas the higher latitudes stay cold both day and night. In the northern latitudes, the main factor to overcome is the cold. Frost action processes have a strong effect on the soil and vegetation of arctic-alpine regions. [5]
The area has tundra, Arctic vegetation, [3] glaciers, and, for most of the year, is covered in thick blankets of snow and ice. [5] It is home to various species of plants, and land, air and marine animals. [6] Due to the severe weather conditions, the region's flora and fauna has had to adapt to survive. [6]