Taiga Boreal Forest Biome Project

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Taiga / Boreal ForestBiome Project

• John Ortiz
• Tae Han Yeo
• Jeff Wong

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Characteristics

• Taiga/boreal forests also called evergreen
  coniferous forests
• Cold climate forests
• Winter
• Sunlight 6-8 hours a day
• Long, dry, extremely cold
• Summer
• Short, mild-warm temperatures
• Sunlight sometimes 19 hours a day

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Characteristics (continued)

• Aside from tundra and permanent ice caps
• Coldest biome in world
• Two types of taiga
• Closed forest
• Closely-spaced trees
• mossy groundcover
• Lichen woodland (more common)
• Farther-spaced trees
• Lichen ground cover

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Characteristics (continued)
Coniferous pine cone

• Trees
• Mostly a few species of coniferous (cone-bearing)
  evergreen trees
• Spruce, fir, cedar, hemlock, pine
• Keep needles all year long
• Reduces need to grow new needles in brief
  summers
• Low plant diversity
• Few species can survive winters without soil
  moisture (frozen)

Frozen soil
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Characteristics (continued)

• Leaf litter
• Below stands of trees
• Deep layer
• Decompose very slowly
• Low temperatures
• Waxy coating on conifer needles
• High soil acidity
• Soil acidity
• As needles decompose, make the thin,
  nutrient-poor soil acidic
• Prevents most plants from growing on floor

Waxy coating
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Characteristics (continued)

• Muskegs
• Occur in the brief summer
• Soil becomes waterlogged
• Forms acidic bogs (muskegs)
• Warblers and other insect-eating birds
• Eat the large amounts of flies, mosquitoes,
  caterpillars that are attracted to the muskegs

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Location

• Found just South of arctic tundra
• Northern regions across
• North America
• Asia
• Europe

Boreal forests on a world map
Boreal forests in North America (indicated by red
circle)
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Human Impacts on the Taiga

• Deforestation is the biggest problem in the taiga
  forests.
• By 1993, Russia's forests were logged at thirty
  million acres a year.
• Logging so much forest land caused an increase in
  global warming.

Damaged Trees from acid rain
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Human Impacts on the Taiga (contd)

• Russia's industrial activities result in acid
  rain, destroys trees.
• While mining resources in the forests, they
  destroy forests.
• Over 50 coastal boreal forests have been logged.
  
• Deforestation takes away animals' shelters and
  food sources.

Caused by acid rain
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Endangered Species (causes)

• Habitats destroyed
• Poaching for specific parts
• Loss of prey
• Ex. Siberian Tigers (only 500 left)
• Reasons
• Tiger bone used in common Chinese medicinal cures
• Fur used for clothing, ect.
• Pets
• High value around 10,000 black market price

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Endangered Species

• Commonly known
• Wood Bison
• Bald Eagle
• Peregrine Falcon
• Golden eagle
• Siberian Tiger

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References

• www.michigan.gov
• rst.gsfc.nasa.gov/Sect3/Sect3_5a.html
• Miller, Living in the Environment, p123
• http//student.britannica.com/eb/art-108037
• www.discoverlife.org
• www.pbase.com
• http//www.wrm.org.uy/deforestation/NAmerica/Alask
  a.html