CONIFEROUS FOREST BIOME
By Collin Matthews
What is the taiga?
The biome that exists above the taiga is the tundra. The tundra differs from the taiga because the taiga has more precipitation and more plant growth, as well as warmer temperatures. The biome below the taiga are grasslands. Grasslands are different because they have warmer temperatures and less precipitation. Temperate forests are different from coniferous forests because coniferous forests have much colder weather and receive less precipitation.
Abiotic Factors
It rarely rains in the taiga; sometimes it will rain during warm summer days, but most precipitation in the taiga is snow. Winters can experience massive amounts of snow in certain areas. Certain parts of the taiga in Canada receive upwards of 400 inches of snow per year. The taiga is still suspect to warm weather; Canada will sometimes receive extreme heat waves that feature weather that is extremely unusual for the area. This usually can occur in the Yukon province of Canada, the northwest most area directly to the right of the United States state of Alaska. During the summer, the weather can sometimes become extremely hot. The taiga can experience temperatures in excess of 80 degrees on occasion during the summer, even though there are extremely cold temperatures in the winter.
Biotic Factors
Some animals found in the taiga include: american black bears, bald eagles, bobcats, gray wolves, grizzly bears, red foxes, and wolverines. There is low biodiversity in animals in the boreal forests, because most animals could not survive in the extreme cold. The cold makes it hard for animals to eat plants, so most of the animals here of carnivores. These animals are well adapted to live in these areas because they have lived here for a long time and have passed on traits to each generation, and natural selection has led only the best adapted animals to survive in this area.
The population of humans that live permanently in boreal forests is low. Some more temperate areas of the boreal forest, like the city of Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada are home to larger amounts of people; but, for the most part, the climate of this area is unsuitable for most people to live in and undesirable for most people.
Community Interactions
Why is this biome important?
Human Impacts
The best way to turn around the damage that is occurring in the taiga is to practice selective logging techniques so that massive tree loss does not occur. Another thing to do is to prevent disposal of waste in the forests. People need to be careful when clearing land and refrain from damaging animal habitats.
Sources Cited
30 fascinating facts about the boreal forest. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from http://www.treehugger.com/natural-sciences/30-fascinating-facts-about-the-boreal-forest.html
Taiga Plants. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/taiga_plant_page.htm
TAIGA - Forest Fair. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from http://www.peda.net/verkkolehti/jkl/cygnaeuslukio/comenius?m=content
Community Interactions. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from http://boandseth.weebly.com/community-interactions.html
Biodiversity in the Boreal Forest: Trees. (n.d.). Retrieved February 12, 2016, from http://www.ramp-alberta.org/river/boreal/alberta/trees.aspx
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Pictures and videos:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qZsAJdQ43c
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Taiga_ecoregion.png
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwjX7IzLyPzKAhUD0iYKHSV5BCcQjhwIBQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fborealbiome.weebly.com%2Fplants-and-animals.html&bvm=bv.114195076,d.eWE&psig=AFQjCNF__59ZimPjziIbX_iQ312rnhMH2g&ust=1455721762750295