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Taiga
By: Lauren Holden, Paige Novosel, Laila Verduin, and Jenna Johanknecht
Birds in Taiga
➢Bohemian Waxwing
○ Size: 18 cm (7 in)
○ Range: circumpolar regions of North America, Europe, and Asia
○ Both sexes look a lot alike, except the female’s plumage is duller
○ A female lays between 3 to 7 eggs and incubates them alone
➢Hawk owl
○ Size: 36 - 43 cm (14 ¼ - 17 in)
Birds in Taiga
➢Pine Grosbeak
○ Size: 20 cm (7 ¾ in)
○ Range: Northern Scandinavia, Russia, Asia; Alaska, Canada, Northern USA
○ It is a large, long-tailed finch
○ Uses its stout, heavy bill to crush stones of fruit, such as cherries
○ Males and females differ in plumage, the female being a bronzy color
○ Females usually lay 4 eggs and males take care of females while they incubate
Mammals in Taiga
➢Ermine
○ Size: body: 24 - 29 cm (9 1/2 - 11 1/2 in), tail: 8 - 12 cm (3 - 4 3/4 in)
○ Range: Europe, Asia, Northern U.S.A., Greenland; introduced in New Zealand
○ Loses all dark fur at beginning of winter and grows a pure white coat with a black tail tip
○ In April of May they produce a litter of 3 to 7 young
○ Males assist in caring and helping the young
➢Eurasian Beaver
Mammals in Taiga
➢European Red Squirrel
○ Size: body: 20 - 24 cm (7 3/4 - 9 1/2 in), tail: 15 - 20 cm (6 - 7 3/4 in)
○ Range: Europe, east to China, Korea and Japan: Hokkaido
○ Length of breeding season depends on local climate.
○ In a good year, females can produce 2 litters of about 3 young
➢Lynx
○ Size: body: 80 cm - 1.3 m (31 1/2 in - 4 1/4 ft), tail: 4 - 8 cm (1 1/2 - 3 in)
Mammals in Taiga
➢ Marten
○
Size: body: 35.5 - 43 cm (14 - 17 in), tail: 18 - 23 cm (7 - 9 in)
○ Range: Canada, Northern USA
○ Spends most of its time in trees
○ Produce litters of 2 to 4 every year, usually in April
○ The young are blind and helpless at birth
➢ Moose
○ Size: body: 2.5 - 3 m (8 1/4 - 9 3/4 ft), tail: 5 - 7.5 cm (2 - 3 in)
Mammals in Taiga
➢ Snowshoe Rabbit
○
Size: body: 36 - 52 cm (14 1/4 - 20 1/2 in), tail: 2.5 - 5.5 cm (1 - 2 1.4 in)
○ Range: Alaska, Canada, Northern USA
○ Has a dark brown coat in the summer and a white coat in the winter
○ Breeding begins in March and there may only be 2 or 3 litters of 1 to 7 young
➢ Wolverine
○
Size: body: 65 - 87 cm (25 1/2 - 34 1/4 in), tail: 17 - 26 cm (6 1/2 - 10 in)
Plant Life in Taiga
➢ Miles of the land are covered with evergreen trees.
○ Evergreen trees keep their leaves and are protected from damage by
their cone shape.
○ Most of these trees grow in dense patches of one or a few species.
➢ Many of the evergreens are conifers
○ Which means cones are produced in the early fall or late winter.
○ The cone grows bigger once it becomes fertilized.
Plant Life in Taiga
Plant Life in Taiga
➢The trees keep warm with their needles.
○ The needles of the evergreen trees are thin and wax-covered.
○ Unlike broad leaves, needles lose less water and shed snow more
easily.
○ A spruce can retain its needles for up to 15 years.
➢Spruce, Hemlock, and Fir are the primary trees of the biome.
➢Birch, Poplar, and Aspen are a few broad leaf trees that grow here.
Plant Life in Taiga
Spruce
Hemlock
Fir
Birch
Poplar
Aspen
Plant Life in Taiga
➢In the fall, the Taiga’s plant life undergoes subtle changes.
○ One of the handful of trees that drops leaves, is the Tamarack.
○ When the leaves drop, they turn brown in color.
○ Many of the shrubs leaves turn a deep red color.
○ The leaves of the Aspen and Birch turn gold.
Plant Life in Taiga
White Spruce Taiga
➢ Located in central Alaska and goes through southern/central
Canada and down to the northern United States around the Great
Lakes.
➢ Kontrashibuna Lake is located in the Alaskan taiga and
surrounded by White Spruce trees. Here, tourists can camp,
canoe or kayak, bear and bird watch, and bike the trails.
➢ Some major cities in the White Spruce Taiga are Vancouver,
Toronto, and Calgary. There is a wide range of activities for
tourists to enjoy in these cities.
Scandinavian and Russian Taiga
➢ Located in Northern Europe in Norway, Sweden, Finland and
the northern part of European Russia.
➢ In Novosibirsk, Russia, tourists can take a tour of the
Alexander Nevsky Cathedral.
➢ Tourists can also tour the beautiful Assumption Cathedral in
Omsk, Russia.
➢ Snowmobile safaris are Tengri Tours offers a five-day
snowmobile tour of the Southern Urals in Russia, where you'll
lodge in rustic wooden homes, dine on local specialties, and
Meteorology
➢Six month winter -> temperatures below
freezing
➢Average yearly precipitation = 12 - 33 inches
○ Partially snowfall, but mostly rain in humid summer
➢Winter lows ≈ -65 F ; highs ≈ 30 F
○ Long nights
➢Summer lows ≈ 20 F ; highs ≈ 70 F
Meteorology
➢The best time to visit is spring or summer!
○ Winters are freezing/below freezing
○ Flowers are blooming
○ Animals are coming out of hibernation
○ Temperatures average 50s - 60s F
Meteorology
➢What to wear?
○ If visiting in the brutal winter, bring heavy, insulating layers.
These include long pants, snow pants, heavy coats, heavy
socks, sweaters, hats, gloves, scarves, and snow boots. Be
prepared to protect yourself from extremely cold temperatures.
○ If visiting in the spring/summer, bring a mixture of warm and
cold weather clothing. Pay attention to the forecast. It is
recommended to pack a coat/jacket and also a windbreaker.
Bring long pants, sweatshirts, and comfortable, warm shoes.
Depending on when you visit, shorts may be worn.
Interesting Facts
➢The taiga biome is the largest biome in the world.
➢It stretches across a huge portion of Europe, Asia, and Canada.
➢Scientists believe that the taiga biome was completely covered by glaciers
long ago.
➢The taiga covers 11% of the world.
➢29% of the world’s forest cover is made up from the taiga.
Web links for us
http://mbgnet.mobot.org/sets/
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/
http://www.teachersfirst.com/lessons/biomes/biomes.php