URL: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/tundra_plant_page.htm

Arctic Moss

Genus: Calliergon

Species: giganteum

·        The Calliergon giganteum is an aquatic plant found growing on the bottom of tundra lake beds and in and around bogs and fens.

·        It is a member of the Siberian tundra biome.

·        Like all mosses, Calliergon giganteum is a bryophyte.

·        They have rhizoids (tiny rootlets) instead of roots.

·        They never have wood stems.

·        They have tiny leaves, usually only one cell thick.

·        There are lots of leaves on the stem.

·        They do not have flowers.

·        They can either reproduce by growing shoots or by sending out spores, which need to be wet to survive.

·        They have two life stages; gametophyte and sporeophyte.

·        It is very slow growing.

·        It grows as slow as one centimeter per year.

·        It also lives a very long time; the shoots live seven to nine years, the leaves live for four.

·        It is brown in color.

·        Its branches are crowded.

·        It is one of the few plants on the tundra.

·        It is "the slowest growing longest living freshwater macrophyte ever recorded" (Amazing Arctic Moss.)

·        The Calliergon giganteum has adapted well to its cold climate. When it is not growing, it stores nutrients so new leaves can be made quickly next spring. The more leaves the more they can photosynthesize.

·        It is adapted to the incredibly strong winds because it grows near to the ground.

·        Because it can grow under water it is protected from the drying winds and cold, dry air of the frozen tundra.

·        Its long life and slow growth are probably adaptations to the short growing season and the cold.

URL: http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/tufted_saxifrage.htm

Tufted Saxifrage

Common Name: Saxifrage

Genus: Saxifraga

Species: caespitosa

·        Tufted Saxifrage is a small perennial that grow in thick mats on the tundra.

·        It has several straight flower stems which can get 3-15 cm high.

·        The leaves are rigid and very hairy and only 5-10 mm long. Their tips divide into 3 lobes.

·        Two to ten flowers bloom from the top of each stem.

·        Each flower has five white petals that look like a bell when just opening and turn into a star when fully opened. This flower also has a small fruit which usually holds many small seeds.

·        There are many varieties of saxifrage in the wild.

·        Saxifrages like cool weather. The Saxifrage has a well-developed underground root system for storing carbohydrates, so that they can respond quickly to the cold weather of the tundra.

·        The Tufted saxifrage grows on the rocky slopes and crevices of the tundra. It can be found from Alaska to the Cascade and Olympic Mountains and northwestern Oregon. Saxifraga comes from the Latin word "rock breaker".