Land Environments

Polar3.6

What are three things that make an environment different?

ClimateAnimals that live therePlants that grow there

What are four examples of dry-land environments?

Deserts Rain forests Forests Grasslands

The Polar region is a wet and dry land environment. Polar regions are cold and have almost no plant life. Polar

animals survive by eating sea animals.

The arctic is made up the ice-covered Arctic Ocean and the tundra on the north edges of North America, Asia, and Europe.

A polar climate is usually very dry.

In the Arctic, the sun shines only from March to September.

Tundra regions are similar to polar regions, but they have a short summer season in which snow cover melts and plant, insect and animal life returns. Tundra is found in northern parts of Europe, Asia and North America and

in high mountain areas.

Few animals live here in the winter. Many come in the

summer when there is lots of food and it is safe.

A population is a single group of living things that live together in one place.

Antarctica is a frozen continent at the south pole.

Few animals live here in the winter. Many come in the

summer when there is lots of food and it is safe.

A population is a single group of living things that live together in one place.

The plants and animals that live in the polar region form a

community. The only 'plants' here are specialized forms of

cold-loving algae that grow on the surface of snow.

A community represents all the population groups within an environment.

The Polar regions are in danger. Each year the polar sea ice gets

smaller, possibly because of global warming.

Polar Review:• The climate in a polar region is dry most of

the time.• The arctic is made up of an ice-covered

ocean and treeless land called the tundra. Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth.

• Few animals live here in the winter. They return in when it is warmer.

• A community includes all the population groups in an environment.

• The Polar region has poor soil.