Living world: Cold environments

what are cold environments?

temperature at or below 0 degrees celsuis for long periods of time

example of cold environment

antarctic

polar temp

below -50 celsius

tundra temp

below -20 celsius

polar soils

large areas permanently covered by ice, soils are permanently frozen

tundra soils

permafrost - soils are frozen but in summer it will melt closer to the surface

polar plants

mosses and lichens

tundra plants

bearberry, artic moss and tufted saxifrage

polar animals

polar bears, penguins

tundra animals

artic fox and artic hare, lots of different animals because of the less extreme climate

birds, insects, mosquitoes

interdependence in cold environments

high interdependence because

cold climate

= no plant life + little precipitation

= herbivores have no food

= carnivores limited because no food

= no reliable food source for humans ( too cold for livestock and agriculture )

= humans not adapted ( can’t build on permafrost + hard to survive )

= soils constantly frozen ( permafrost )

= plants are mainly mosses and lichen

= soils are nutrient deprived

= no plants

climate change effect on cold environments

• melting permafrost

• plants growing earlier

• species move as the climate warms

• leads to conflict

• increasing human access - threatens ecological balance in articand disrupts traditional lifestyles of indigenous peoples.

4 ways plants/animals have adapted to cope with cold environments

• plants form close to the ground - protection from wind

• flowering + seed formation happens quickly to allow for reproduction in the summer season

• small waxy leaves to reduce water loss through transpiration

• animals have thick fur to keep them warm

• animals have small ears to reduce heat loss

• wide foot pads to walk on snow

5 ways of how the polar bear adapts to the cold

1. layers of thick fat and fur as insulation to protect against the cold + store of fuel to sustain animal during hibernation

2. white translucent fur to camouflage against icy landscape + easier to catch prey

3. large, dimpled feet to grip + spread weight of animal on the ice

4. acute sense of smell to detect prey hiding under ice + at a far distance

5. oil based fur to allow water particles to bead off after swimming to reduce chances of water freezing on the animal

5 ways how the artic fox adapts to cold environments

1. thick fur for insulation

2. ears are short + forward facing - can pin down prey, lose less body heat and keep them warm + good hearing

3. fur sheds in summer to become brown to adapt to the rocks

4. feet have wide surface area and helps them walk on snow without sinking in

5. nomadic = move around to go where there is food

6. good eyesight to spot prey and squint to find them when there is glare from the sun shining on the ice/snow

why tundra plants and animals might be different to polar ones

tundra has more vegetation because its warmer

( need less adaptations, more food and sunlight and has seasonal changes to allow for summer + degrees )

what is permafrost?

top layer of the soil that is permanently frozen

reason why there is not much biodiversity in cold environments compared to tropical rainforests?

extreme weather means lack of precipitation, infertile soil, dry conditions, little sunlight, permafrost, difficult for plants to grow and for plants to survive

Lichen and saxlfrage adaptations to the cold

• grow close to the ground to reduce damage from wind + ice

• small leaves to conserve water which can be lost through the leaf surface

• grow in close proximity to each other - each plant acts as a barrier for others/for wind/ice particles

• can photosynthesize in the cold to store energy despite lack of sunlight

• shallow root system to allow plants to grow in active layer and avoid permafrost

3 potential threats to biodiversity in cold environments

1. climate change = global warming

2. wildfires become more frequent in artic due to higher temps and drier conditions

3. human activity eg/ oil exploration, tourism. fishing etc

svalbard location definition

• artic circle

• surrounded by artic ocean

• norwegian territory

• found in the north west of europe

• far northern hemisphere

polar definition

regions of the earth surrounding north and south poles dominated by ice caps

tundra definition

flat, treeless arctic regions of europe, asia and north america where the ground is permanently frozen

one fact about svalbard location

78° North

one fact about svalbard itself ( inside svalbard )

2000 permanent residents, end of oct - mid feb = sun doesnt rise at all

one fact about svalbard acccessibility

50 km of road, 4 months of light, 4 months of darkness

opportunity in svalbard - mineral extraction

coal mining - controversial

• opened in 2014

• more than 300 local people employed in this industry

• 2017 - Norwegian government ended subsidies for the mining industry on svalbard

opportunity in svalbard - energy developments

until recently, svalbard has been powered by coal

• located on constructive plate margin - earth’s crust is thin so hot rocks are close to the surface

• coal burned in longyearbyen power station ( supplies for all of svalbard )

• environmentalists believe station should be closed down

now: geothermal energy + carbon capture and storage

• tapping into the heat of the earth + using it to generate electricity

• capturing CO2 from burning coal and circulating this instead of water to generate electricity

opportunities in svalbard - tourism

• has grown significantly

• people seek to explore extreme natural environments

• in 2011: 70,000 people visited longyearbyen

• tourists come from Norway

• provides 300 jobs for locals

• explore natural environment eg. glaciers, wildlife, fjords, polar bears

• more popular because of activities eg. kayaking, hiking etc, northern lights tour

opportunities in svalbard - fishing

• cold waters of barents sea is one of the richest fishing grounds in the world

• 150 species of fish live here

• fishermen fish for cod, herring and haddock

• fishing is jointly controlled by Norway + Russia to ensure sustainability

scientific research in svalbard

• increasing

• 30 nations conduct research in svalbard every year

• wildlife research

• climate change research

• conduct up to date research

challenges of living in a cold environment - extreme temperatures

• temp falls below - 30c

• dangerous to work outside

• frostbite risk

• have to dress very warmly

• makes outdoor work very slow and difficult

• top layer of permafrost called active layer will thaw seasonally and can cause the ground to shift

challenges in svalbard - provision of buildings

• materials sink into permafrost

• working outdoors in extreme temps is limited because of limited daylight in winter

• 4 months of daylight, 4 months of darkness

• construction can only be carried out in summer months

• have to maintain roads

• permafrost melting can lead to unstable buildings + roads cracking/collapsing

• building+ maintaining roads is difficult due to freezing cracking

challenges in svalbard - infrastructure eg. water, electricity and sanitation

• service pipes for water and sewage needs to be kept off the ground to prevent them causing any possible thawing to the permafrost and to allow easy maintance

challenges in svalbard - inaccessibility

• can only be reached by plane/ship

• only 50 km of road in longyearbyen

• no roads serve the other outlying communnities

• one airport close to longyearbyen for international flights from norway and russia

• most people use snowmobiles

• transport costs tend to be high

• people there cannnot rely on deliveries

wilderness area definition

wild and unspoiled area unaffected by human activity

why we need to protect wilderness areas

-they are fragile + easily damaged by economic activities

-important for research + rare species need to be protected

why are cold environments fragile

can be easily damaged by human activities such as road building, mining, tourism

tundra takes a long time to be established and can be easily damaged by minor developements eg. construction of a footpath

• plants grow so slowly so recovery is slow

off road vehile damage in alaska

• it is a popular tourist activity

• takes place in the summer - warm temps means the upper surface of the soil is soggy

• vehicles can leave deep tyre tracks

• vehicles leaving area muddy = damage extending over a large area

• takes years to recover from thus damage ( that may have only taken a few days to cause )

how cold environments are harmed by economic development

oil leaked from broken pipeline = industry clear forests and trees have been killed by OIL SPILLS

• risk of fire, or lightning strike

• river has become polluted + totally lifeless

• river edge habitats polluted and destroyed - vegetation may never recover

• in order to construct electricity pylons = tree clearance = environmental damage

why cold environments should be protected

• valued ecologically + culturally

• home to thousands of species ( plants + animals )

• survival or indigenous people depends on healthy natural environment

• unpolluted environments important for research ( eg. into climate change )

• provide opportunities for economic activities eg. tourism

managing cold environments using technology

Trans Alaska Pipeline

= transports oil, but the pipeline is raised and insulated to protect from permafrost and is beneath rivers to minize impact on landscape,

flow of oil immediately stop if there is a leak

managing cold environments using governments in alaska

• since oil was discovered there in 1960s

• national environment policy act ( protect environment when extracting oil )

• western artic reserve ( 9 million hectares of protected wilderness with thousands of caribou )

• NOAA ( protects marine habitats )

managing cold environments using international agreements

regulates use of antartica for peaceful and scientific purposes

• 12 countries signed ‘antarctic treaty’

• antartica only used for peaceful processes + controls tourism

managing cold environments using conservation groups

WWF to protect artic environments in canada, provides info + research

• manage ecosystems

• support scientific research

• protects endangered species

• work on climate change

• plan sustainable future