Tundra ecosystems are cold-climate terrestrial systems characterized by low temperatures, short growing seasons, and the presence of permafrost that constrains soil development, hydrology, and rooting depth. They exhibit low primary productivity dominated by cold-adapted vegetation such as mosses, lichens, sedges, and dwarf shrubs, with nutrient cycling strongly limited by slow decomposition rates. These ecosystems are important in Earth system science as major carbon reservoirs in frozen soils and peat deposits, and they show high sensitivity to climate warming, which alters vegetation composition, active-layer depth, greenhouse gas fluxes (CO₂, CH₄, N₂O), and biotic interactions, including herbivory and microbial community dynamics.
A study by researchers at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry indicates that if lichen continues to decline across the Arctic, caribou populations could struggle to survive the winter.
Plants & Animals
Apr 8, 2026
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The structure of the plant communities that grow on the thawing permafrost in the Arctic is changing, with grasses displacing slower-growing shrubs. Although these grasses bind more carbon dioxide than previous plant communities, ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 26, 2026
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Delegates are gathering in Campo Grande, Brazil, for the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals. The meeting aims to address growing threats to migratory ...
Ecology
Mar 24, 2026
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9
The devastating wildfires in northern Canada in recent years have climate consequences that go far beyond smoke and carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere, according to a new study co-authored by two NAU researchers. ...
Earth Sciences
Mar 3, 2026
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44
Biologists have long wondered why caribou are the only deer in the world in which females—like males—have antlers. A study of shed antlers collected from calving grounds in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge provides a new ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 24, 2026
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How will a warming Arctic affect plant growth on Svalbard? Researchers encased plant plots in a thick layer of ice during the winter and used little greenhouses to heat up those plots in the summer. The surprise? The plants ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 18, 2026
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Studying foraging behavior in marine mammals is especially difficult. Unlike terrestrial animals, which can often be directly observed, marine mammals feed underwater and across vast, remote areas, making it challenging to ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 18, 2026
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43
Standing in his boat with binoculars in hand, hunter Malik Kleist scans the horizon for seals. But this February, the sea ice in southwestern Greenland has yet to freeze, threatening traditional livelihoods like his.
Environment
Feb 10, 2026
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21
Dalhousie researchers have revealed how Arctic aquifers—permeable layers of the ground that store and transmit water to rivers, lakes and terrestrial ecosystems—behave today and how these vital resources will change with ...
Earth Sciences
Feb 2, 2026
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The life of one of the most remote grizzly bear populations in the world is being documented by the animals themselves, with collar cameras that provide a rare glimpse of how they survive on Alaska's rugged and desolate North ...
Plants & Animals
Feb 1, 2026
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