Rachel Lynette - Who Lives on the Cold, Icy Tundra?

To Dewayne, who will see the penguins someday, maybe even with me Published in 2011 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. 29 East 21st Street, New York, NY 10010 Copyright 2011 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer. First Edition Editor: Joanne Randolph Book Design: Greg Tucker Photo Researcher: Jessica Gerweck Photo Credits: Cover, pp. 4 www.iStockphoto.com/Ryerson Clark; p. 6 Mark Lewis/Getty Images; p. 9 Paul McCormick/Getty Images; p. 12 Eastcott Momatiuk/Getty Images; p. 17 Darrell Gulin/Getty Images; p. 19 www.iStockphoto.com/Richard Sidey. 19 www.iStockphoto.com/Richard Sidey.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Lynette, Rachel. Who lives on the cold, icy tundra / Rachel Lynette. 1st ed.
p. cm. (Exploring habitats) Includes index. ISBN 978-1-4488-0675-1 (library binding) ISBN 978-1-4488-1279-0 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-1-4488-1280-6 (6-pack) 1.

Tundra animalsArctic regionsJuvenile literature. I. Title. QL105.L97 2011 591.7586dc22 2009054351 Manufactured in the United States of America CPSIA Compliance Information: Batch #WS10PK: For Further Information contact Rosen Publishing, New York, New York at 1-800-237-9932 Contents What Is the Tundra? Unless you live very far south, very far north, or high on a mountain, you have likely never been to the tundra. Very few people live on the tundra because it is a harsh, cold environment. There are two kinds of tundra.

One kind is called alpine tundra. Alpine tundra is the land above the tree line on mountains. This land is at high altitudes , where the air is cold and trees cannot grow. Another kind of tundra is the Arctic tundra. The Arctic tundra runs from the North Pole through parts of Alaska, northern Canada, and Russia. Baffin Island is part of icy Nunavut.

This islands land is Arctic tundra. Both kinds of tundra have some things in common. Some of these common features are low temperatures, no trees, poor nutrients, short growing seasons, and fewer kinds of plants and animals than warmer places. Tundra is not always covered in snow. However, there is always a layer of permafrost, or frozen ground, beneath the top of the soil. Seasons on the Tundra It is so cold on the tundra that much of the ground stays frozen all year long.

The average temperature in the Arctic tundra is -18 F (-28 C) but it can get as cold as -94 F (-70 C). In the summer it gets warm enough for the top of the soil to melt. However, because of the permafrost beneath this soil, trees cannot grow. Only low-growing plants with short roots, such as bushes, wild owers, grasses, mosses, and lichens, can grow on the tundra. Here it is summer on the Alaskan tundra. Rivers and pools of water form as ice and snow melt.

When the top part of the soil melts, the ground can be very wet. Marshes, lakes, bogs, and streams can cover the landscape. This brings lots of bugs and birds to the Arctic tundra during the summer months. Winter on the tundra is very cold. Polar bears are well suited to living in this climate, though. Arctic Animals Even though it is very cold and windy on the tundra, some animals can live there.

However, most of these animals do not stay on the tundra all year. Instead, they migrate to places where it is warmer during the coldest winter months. Here a snowy owl rests on the snow-covered tundra. Snowy owls, ptarmigan, and snow geese have layers of feathers to keep them warm. Animals that live in the Arctic have adapted to the harsh weather. Mammals have thick layers of fur to keep them warm.

Caribou have hollow hair that holds warm air near their bodies. Musk oxen have soft, woolly fur underneath their heavy, outside coats. Small mammals like Arctic hares, lemmings, and voles burrow under the snow to stay warm. Many Arctic animals, such as grizzly bears and polar bears, have a thick layer of fat under their skin that helps keep them warm. The Arctic Fox Arctic foxes have thick coats that have two jobs. Their coats keep them warm in temperatures as low as -58 F (-50 C).

They even have fur on the bottoms of their paws to keep their feet warm. An arctic fox in its white winter coat moves along the tundra. It hunts for small animals using its sharp eyes and sense of smell. Their coats also help them blend in. The coat is white in winter to blend in with the snow. In summer, the coat becomes gray or brown to match the landscape.

Arctic foxes eat lemmings, hares, voles, and other small animals. Arctic foxes will also follow a polar bear and eat what the polar bear leaves behind. However, the foxes must be careful or they will become the polar bears food, too! This baby arctic fox, called a kit, comes out of its den in the summer. Do you see how its darker fur helps it blend with the rocks? Antarctic Animals Antarctica is even colder than the Arctic. Almost all of it is covered in ice. No land mammals live in Antarctica.

However, six species of seals live in the sea around Antarctica. Although they spend most of their time in the water, seals must come on land to breed, or make babies. Seals have a thick layer of fat to help them stay warm in the icy waters and on land. Migrating birds, such as this giant petrel, come to Antarcticas shores. They come to eat penguin babies and eggs, among other animals. When most people think of Antarctic animals, they likely think of penguins.

There are 17 species of penguins, but only 4 kinds breed on Antarctica. These are the Adlie, the emperor, the chinstrap, and the gentoo penguins. Crabeater, leopard, Ross, and elephant seals are some of the seals that live around Antarctica. Some seals form huge colonies at breeding time, but not all of them do. Powerful Swimming Penguins Penguins live in large groups, called rookeries. On land, penguins often huddle together to stay warm.

Penguins spend most of their time in the water. Some kinds spend as much as 75 percent of their life at sea! The biggest penguins in Antarctica are emperor penguins. They are about 45 inches (114 cm) tall. Powerful and fast in the water, they can dive down more than 1,800 feet (550 m). They can also hold their breath for over 20 minutes.