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Though tundra covers only a minority of the Earth's surface (17-20%), the biodiversity of plant species is important to human nutrition. Of the 20 plant species that make up 80% of human food, 7 of them (35%) originated in this region. [13] Alpine flora at 11,500 feet (3500 m) on the Flat Tops plateau in the Colorado Rocky Mountains U.S.A
In physical geography, tundra ( / ˈtʌndrə, ˈtʊn -/) is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term is a Russian word adapted from Sámi languages. [ 2] There are three regions and associated types of tundra: Arctic tundra, [ 3] alpine tundra, [ 3] and Antarctic tundra.
The tundra is an extremely harsh, cold, windy, and unique ecosystem found on the extreme north and south latitudes of our Earth. The soil consists mostly of frozen permafrost, which makes it difficult for extended root systems to grow, and water to drain and support a wide variety of plant life.
The Rocky Mountains are home to over 300 species of birds. These include raptor species that migrate through the mountains, such as golden eagles, bald eagles, and ospreys. Owls, such as the great horned owl, the boreal owl, and the great grey owl make their homes in the forests. Ptarmigans are common above treeline.
Ukok Plateau, one of the last remnants of the mammoth steppe [1]. The mammoth steppe, also known as steppe-tundra, was once the Earth's most extensive biome.During glacial periods in the later Pleistocene it stretched east-to-west, from the Iberian Peninsula in the west of Europe, across Eurasia to North America, through Beringia (the region including the far northwest of Siberia and Alaska ...
The plant cover is sparse in the drier areas while the wetter areas have a fair cover of mosses, sedges, shrubs such as purple saxifrage, Arctic willow, and Arctic poppy and rushes. Fauna. This coast is a breeding area for the snow bunting and is home to polar bear, Arctic hare, Arctic fox, lemming, and caribou. Threats and preservation
Pikas are small mammals, with short limbs and rounded ears. They are about 15 to 23 cm (5.9 to 9.1 in) in body length and weigh between 120 and 350 g (4.2 and 12.3 oz), depending on species. These animals are herbivores and feed on a wide variety of plant matter, including forbs, grasses, sedges, shrub twigs, moss and lichens.
The Interior Yukon-Alaska alpine tundra ecoregion (WWF ID: NA1111) covers alpine, sub-alpine, and boreal forest areas along the cordillera (chain of mountain ranges) of Interior Alaska and south-central Yukon Territory. Geologically, they are the disjunct uplands of the Yukon-Tanana Terrane plus a southern extension of the Brooks Range.