Taiga

The taiga is a broad band of coniferous forests that lies across Europe, Asia and North America.

It lies south of the arctic tundra.

The southern part of the taiga is often called the Boreal forest.

The taiga receives more energy from the sun than the tundra.

Snowfall is heavier in the taiga than in the tundra.

The taiga is full of ponds and lakes that were formed by glaciers during the last ice age.

Most of the trees in the taiga forest are evergreen.

These trees block sunlight from reaching the ground all year round, so there is little vegetation near the ground.

Food production mostly takes places in the top parts of trees.

Young trees only have an opportunity to grow when the old forest is destroyed by fires or windstorms, allowing light to penetrate to the ground below.

When this happens, deciduous trees, which lose their leaves seasonally, such as birches and aspens, grow for a few years.

Then new conifers begin to grow underneath them.

Summer days are shorter in the taiga than in the tundra. However, in the taiga, it becomes warm enough during summer for the ground to thaw completely

During the summer, many insects attack the conifers, and in turn, many small birds eat the insects.

Some birds harvest conifers seeds.

A few mammals eat the needles and twigs of conifers.

Deer, elk and beaver live mostly live on the vegetation in ponds and along streams and riverbanks.

In the winter, a heavy blanket of snow protects plants that are low to the ground.

Conifer needles are protected with a waxy coating that reduces water loss when the ground is frozen and no liquid water is available.

Squirrels and bears sleep for long periods.

Insects hibernate, while the birds that eat them migrate southward.

Reindeer, or caribou, which live in the tundra during the arctic summer, live in the taiga during the winter.

Lynxes, wolves and wolverines are active throughout the year. They prey on hares.