The Taiga Biome (Boreal Forest)

The taiga is the largest biome. The taiga is located between 50 degrees latitude north and the Arctic circle. It extends in a broad band across North America, Europe, and Asia to the southern border of the arctic tundra. It is also found at cool, high elevations in the more temperate latitudes, for example, in much of the mountainous western region of North America. 

Compared to other biomes, the taiga has less diversity in plant life. The most common type of tree found in the taiga is the conifer. Coniferous trees have needles instead of broad leaves, and their seeds grow inside protective, woody cones. While deciduous trees of temperate forests lose their leaves in winter, conifers never lose their needles. For this reason, conifers are also called “evergreens.”Their needles contain very little sap, which helps prevent freezing. Their dark color and triangle-shaped sides help them catch and absorb as much of the sun’s light as possible. 

instead of shrubs and flowers, mosses, lichens, and mushrooms cover the floor of a taiga. These organisms can grow directly on the ground, or have very shallow roots. They can survive in the cold, and with little water or sunlight.

the soil beneath the taiga often contains a layer of permanently frozen soil called permafrost whilst in other areas, bedrock lies beneath the soil. Both the bedrock and permafrost prevents the drainage of the water coming from the top layer of soil.

The climate of taiga region is cold, bad, with little precipitation and short growing season. The long and harsh winter lasted for six months, with the average temperature below zero. Summer is short, lasting 50 to 100 days without frost. TEGA is very cold in winter. The temperature changes a lot. For example, verkhoyansk in Russia recorded extreme temperatures of - 67 ° C to 32 ° C. When the temperature rises in summer, the ice and snow melt. Summer days are much longer, with an average annual precipitation of 38 to 85 cm. Most of the precipitation occurs in summer. It's rainy, warm and humid in summer. The evaporation rate is very low, so the air in summer is usually damp

Climate change puts taigas in danger in different ways. Warming climate contributes to a partial thawing of the permafrost. Since this water has no place to drain, more area of the taiga is taken over by muskegs. Few trees take root.

warming temperatures can also change the habitat of animals. It drives out native species and attracts non-native species. Siberian tigers and other animals do not adapt to warm weather. Its fur is too heavy and stores too much fat to thrive in a mild environment. Non native insects, such as bark beetles, can invade trees, such as spruce. Millions of these insects burrow into the bark to lay their eggs. Infected trees die. Infestation by bark beetles can kill entire forests and thousands of hectares of Taiga.

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Eckenwalder, James Emory. “Conifer.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 4 May 2018, www.britannica.com/plant/conifer.

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