Canadian Biomes

• Canada has 4 major biomes:

1) Tundra

• northernmost biome
• cold desert (therefore it supports only a small number of organisms)
• receives very little precipitation (10-12 cm per year)
• extremely short growing season
  • plants must be able to grow quickly, flower and seed all before winter returns
  • must deal with PERMAFROST, a layer of soil that never thaws
  • just above the permafrost layer is another layer of soil called the ACTIVE LAYER, which thaws in summer to permit uptake of water and nutrients by plant roots
  • large trees cannot grow on the tundra
  • in the northernmost parts (where the active layer is VERY thin), lichens and moss dominate

2) Northern Coniferous Forest

• aka "Boreal Forest" or "Taiga"
• makes up 80% of all forested areas in Canada, and is found in every province
• dominated by CONIFERS (evergreens)
  • trees with needle shaped leaves
  • well adapted, because:
    • needle-like leaves have small surface area and therefore lose little moisture in winter
    • waxy cuticle covers needles further reducing water loss and protecting against frost
    • pyramid shape and flexibility of branches will hold the crushing weight of snowfall
    • they lose needles slowly throughout the year, when the growing season begins they are ready to photosynthesize
• the climate is harsh with rapid temperature changes
  • this means there is more precipitation (50 cm per year)
• the soil thaws every summer which means theer is no permafrost layer in the soil (plants with deeper root systems are able to grow)
• higher temperatures mean plant and animal matter decomposes much faster! (This makes the soil more rich for growing plants!)
• soil is also more acidic because the conifer needles also decay and they produce acids (Only some plants can thrive in acidic soil!)

3) Temperate Deciduous Forest

• this biome is dominated by HARDWOOD TREES (ex: oak, maple)
• the broad leaves allow maximum light exposure, for photosynthesis
• the average tree can have more than 100,000 leaves, wich have enough area to cover a tennis court!
• higher temperatures allow faster decomposition (soil is very rich!)
• more light reaches forest floor = more plants!
• more plants = more abundant and diverse animals!
• there is a lot of rainfall (up to 100 cm per year!)

4) Grasslands

• annual rainfall is between 25 and 75 cm per year
  • not enough rain for large trees to grow!
• has the most fertile soil in the world!
• much of the grassland biome is devoted to growing grains like wheat, corn and barley
• longer growing season than any of Canada's other biomes!
• grasses once supported herds of migrating bison

Wednesday, April 11th, 2012 On either the computer or by hand, create a 1 page poster comparing and contrasting Canada's 4 biomes. You should have at least 5 pieces of information about each (1 of which is something Ms. Harris didn't tell you!). You may include LOTS of pictures (from internet or hand-drawn) and LOTS of colour!