ANIMALS
- Mammals
- polar bear
- toothed whales
- toothed seals
- wolf
- Arctic fox
- snowshoe hare
- caribou
- lemmings
- musk ox
- Birds
- willow grouse
- Arctic tern
- eagles
- falcons
- merlin
- penguin
- Permanent Residents
- rock ptarmigan
- snowy owl
- springtails
- beetles
- spiders
- blowflies
- blackflies
- mosquitoes
Short summers and long, dark winters characterize the far north and south of the planet. Because of the high latitudes, the sun never rises far above the horizon. Beyond the ice-covered Arctic is the tundra, which has a surprising amount of animal and plant life. Still, harsh winter winds blast any vegetation projected far above the ground so that no trees other than dwarf willows grow in the region. Small, perennial plants like saxifrages and campions along with shrubs like bilberries and blueberries carpets the land, only being revealed as the snow melts in the summer.
Animals:
Each summer, the new growth lures many migratory birds and animals into the tundra. The permanent residents of the tundra have adapted to the cold and wind. Most have compact bodies with short limbs, bills, and wings to converve heat. Thick deposits of fat or blubber, or dense layers of feathers or fur further insulate the animals. Another good insulator is the earth itself. Animals burrow into the snow to avoid the winds. Species such as empire penguins huddle together in groups of several thousand to keep each other warm. The penguins take turns moving and rotating to the edges of the group before returning to the warm interior. Around Antarctica, some creatures have developed an "anti-freeze," a protein compound which allows them to survive extreme temperatures.
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