An inventory of tundra animals with footage and details, plus info on the tundra biome.
Scroll all the way down to see the entire animals, or use the index under to go on to a selected species and be taught in regards to the tundra biome.
Web page Index
Animals That Reside In The Tundra
Tundra Animals Record
What Is The Tundra?
The tundra is a biome characterised by its chilly, harsh local weather, low biodiversity, and quick rising season. Tundra is discovered within the far northern areas of North America, Europe, and Asia; comparable circumstances will be present in elements of Antarctica (Antarctic tundra) and a number of other mountainous areas (Alpine tundra).
Tundra landscapes are comparatively flat and treeless, with the bottom typically being completely frozen, a situation often called permafrost. Summers are quick and funky, with temperatures not often exceeding 50 levels Fahrenheit (10 levels Celsius), whereas winters are lengthy, darkish, and very chilly, with common temperatures being under freezing for not less than half of the 12 months.
The tough circumstances of the tundra biome restrict the forms of organisms that may survive there. Vegetation is especially composed of grasses, mosses, lichens, and dwarf shrubs.
Though inhospitable, the tundra is residence to numerous animal species, lots of which have variations for all times in these excessive circumstances.
You will discover out extra in regards to the tundra on this web page: The Tundra Biome Information
Animals That Reside In The Tundra
Examples of tundra animals embody mammals such because the caribou, arctic fox, polar bear, lemmings, ringed seal, harp seal and Arctic wolf; and birds such because the Arctic skua, snow goose and snowy owl.
(Proceed studying to see footage and details on these and plenty of different tundra animals.)
Why Is The Tundra Necessary?
The tundra performs a vital function within the planet’s local weather regulation, and regardless of its robust circumstances, it’s a delicate ecosystem that’s extremely delicate to environmental adjustments and human actions.
Beneath is an inventory of animals discovered within the Arctic tundra of North America and Eurasia.
Arctic Fox
Scientific title: Vulpes lagopus
Household: Canidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Arctic Fox is a small member of the canine household Canidae tailored to outlive within the harsh Arctic setting. It has thick, heat fur that adjustments shade with the seasons—white in winter for camouflage within the snow, and brown or grey in summer time.
Arctic Foxes are omnivores and opportunistic feeders, with a food plan of rodents, birds, eggs, and plant materials. These adaptable tundra animals are identified for following polar bears to scavenge on leftover kills.
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Arctic Floor Squirrel
Scientific title: Urocitellus parryii
Household: Sciuridae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of North America and jap Siberia
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Arctic Floor Squirrel is a medium-sized rodent tailored to chilly environments. It has a thick fur coat that varies from reddish-gray to brown.
The food plan of the Arctic Floor Squirrel consists primarily of seeds, fruits, leaves, and small invertebrates.
The Arctic Floor Squirrel holds the report for having the longest hibernation of all animals; this tundra species is thought to hibernate for as much as 8 months within the coldest elements of its vary.
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Arctic Hare
Scientific title: Lepus arcticus
Household: Leporidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of North America and Greenland
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Arctic hare is a big species of hare tailored to the intense chilly local weather of the Arctic tundra. Its thick coat adjustments from brown or grey in summer time to white in winter for camouflage.
An extremely quick runner, the Arctic hare is able to reaching speeds of as much as 60 kilometers per hour / 40 mph.
The Arctic hare is primarily herbivorous, with Arctic willow making up the majority of its food plan. It additionally eats the leaves, twigs, and bark of different vegetation, and has been reported to sometimes eat meat.
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Arctic Skua
Scientific title: Stercorarius parasiticus
Household: Stercorariidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of Europe, Asia, and North America
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The arctic skua, often known as the parasitic jaeger, is a medium-sized seabird identified for its aggressive habits. It has a diverse plumage that ranges from darkish brown to mild brown with a darkish cap, and will be recognized by a tail streamer.
Arctic Skuas are identified for his or her kleptoparasitic feeding habits, chasing different birds to steal their catches. They feed primarily on fish and small mammals, and likewise eat the eggs and chicks of different fowl species.
The species breeds on the Arctic tundra and migrates to the Southern Hemisphere in the course of the winter.
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Arctic Tern
Scientific title: Sterna paradisaea
Household: Laridae
The place discovered: Arctic and sub-Arctic areas in the course of the breeding season, migrates to the Antarctic coast for the Southern Hemisphere’s summer time
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The arctic tern is a small seabird identified for its unimaginable long-distance migration, wherein it covers between 40,000 and 70,000 kilometers / 24,840 and 43,470 miles annually. No different animal migrates as far.
The arctic tern has a slender physique with a lightweight gray and white plumage, purple beak, and black cap.
Arctic terns feed on fish and invertebrates, and are identified for his or her aggressive protection of their nests and younger.
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Arctic Wolf
Scientific title: Canis lupus arctos
Household: Canidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of North America and Greenland
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Arctic Wolf is a subspecies of the grey wolf tailored to outlive within the harsh Arctic setting. It has a thick, white fur coat for insulation and camouflage within the snow.
Arctic Wolves feed primarily on muskoxen and Arctic hares, and they’re identified for his or her endurance in pursuing prey. In contrast to a number of different wolf subspecies, Arctic Wolves aren’t threatened by searching or persecution resulting from distant tundra habitat wherein they reside.
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Beluga Whale
Scientific title: Delphinapterus leucas
Household: Monodontidae
The place discovered: Arctic and sub-Arctic waters
Conservation standing: Close to Threatened
The Beluga Whale is a small, white whale identified for its bulbous brow (often called a “melon”) and absence of a dorsal fin. It’s a extremely social animal, typically forming pods of as much as a number of hundred people.
Beluga Whales primarily feed on fish, crustaceans, and worms. They’re identified for his or her wide selection of vocalizations, which have earned them the nickname “canaries of the ocean.”
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Bowhead Whale
Scientific title: Balaena mysticetus
Household: Balaenidae
The place discovered: Arctic and sub-Arctic waters
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Bowhead Whale is a baleen whale identified for its huge bow-shaped cranium, which it makes use of to interrupt via Arctic ice. It has a darkish physique, white chin, and a thick layer of blubber for insulation within the chilly waters.
Bowhead Whales primarily feed on zooplankton. They’re one of many longest-living mammals, with a lifespan that may exceed 200 years.
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Caribou / Reindeer
Scientific title: Rangifer tarandus
Household: Cervidae
The place discovered: Arctic and sub-Arctic areas of North America, Europe, Asia, and Greenland
Conservation standing: Susceptible
The Caribou, often known as a reindeer in Europe, is a big mammal identified for its massive, branching antlers, that are current in each women and men. (The caribou is the one member of the deer household, Cervidae, wherein females have antlers.)
The caribou has a thick coat that varies in shade from white to brown. It feeds primarily on lichens in winter, and leaves, stems, and flowers in summer time.
This tundra animal is thought for its long-distance migrations, that are among the many longest of any terrestrial mammal. Some Canadian caribou populations journey 5,000 km / 3,000 miles in a single 12 months.
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Brief-Tailed Weasel
Scientific title: Mustela erminea
Household: Mustelidae
The place discovered: Northern areas throughout North America, Europe, and Asia
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The short-tailed weasel, often known as the stoat or ermine, is a small mammal with a slender physique and quick legs. Its coat adjustments shade with the seasons, being brown in summer time, and white in winter for camouflage within the snow.
A carnivore, the short-tailed weasel feeds primarily on rodents. It’s identified for its agility and velocity, which it makes use of to pursue prey.
The short-tailed weasel is present in quite a lot of habitats and has a number of subspecies. The tundra stoat subspecies Mustela erminea arctica, is especially related to the Arctic tundra.
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Greenland Shark
Scientific title: Somniosus microcephalus
Household: Somniosidae
The place discovered: North Atlantic and Arctic waters
Conservation standing: Close to Threatened
The Greenland Shark is a big shark species identified for its sluggish velocity and lengthy lifespan. The species can reside over 400 years, making it the longest-living vertebrate identified.
The Greenland Shark has darkish, tough pores and skin and small eyes. It feeds primarily on fish, however has additionally been discovered with quite a lot of different animals in its abdomen, together with seals, caribou and even polar bears. Regardless of its sluggish velocity, it’s a profitable predator, seemingly utilizing ambush techniques to catch prey.
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Gyrfalcon
Scientific title: Falco rusticolus
Household: Falconidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Gyrfalcon is the biggest of the falcon species. Its thick plumage is grey, white, or darkish brown in shade. The Gyrfalcon is a carnivore that primarily feeds on birds and mammals as much as the dimensions of a hare. It’s identified for its high-speed flight and precision in searching, typically capturing prey in mid-air.
The Gyrfalcon nests on the tundra, and both stays within the chilly north throughout winter or migrates south for the colder months.
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Harp Seal
Scientific title: Pagophilus groenlandicus
Household: Phocidae
The place discovered: North Atlantic and Arctic waters
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Harp Seal is a medium-sized seal acknowledged by its black eyes and the distinctive, harp-shaped sample on the again of grownup people. A thick layer of blubber gives the seal with insulation within the chilly waters.
The Harp Seal primarily feeds on fish and crustaceans. A typical predator of the harp seal is the polar bear.
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Ivory Gull
Scientific title: Pagophila eburnea
Household: Laridae
The place discovered: Excessive Arctic areas of Canada, Greenland, and Eurasia
Conservation standing: Close to Threatened
The Ivory Gull is a small seabird identified for its utterly white plumage, which helps it mix into its snowy environment. It has a thick, rounded physique, a small black eye, and a yellow invoice with a purple tip.
The Ivory Gull feeds on fish, invertebrates, and carrion. It’s identified for its distant and inaccessible nesting websites on rocky cliffs and ice floes.
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Lemmings
Scientific names: Lemmus and Dicrostonyx genera
Household: Cricetidae
The place discovered: Arctic and Subarctic areas throughout the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Species fluctuate, however most are Least Concern
Lemmings are small rodents native to the tundra and boreal forests, notably within the Arctic areas of North America, Europe, and Asia. Among the finest-known species is the Norway lemming, Lemmus lemmus.
About 13 to 18 cm / 5 to 7 inches in size, lemmings are compact creatures with quick legs, a stout physique, and a brief tail. Lemmings have a thick, mushy fur coat that varies in shade relying on the species and season, starting from gray to brown and even reddish hues, turning white in winter for some species. They’re herbivores, feeding on leaves, shoots, bark, roots, and berries.
Lemmings are well-known for his or her inhabitants booms and crashes, which happen in cycles. Throughout a inhabitants increase, lemmings might disperse in quest of new habitats, generally resulting in the parable that they commit mass suicide by leaping off cliffs, a false impression fueled by a controversial Fifties Disney documentary. In actuality, these mass migrations are a pure response to overpopulation and don’t finish in intentional mass loss of life.
Lemmings are an necessary a part of the tundra ecosystem as a meals supply for a lot of predators, together with foxes, owls, and weasels. They’re additionally necessary for soil aeration via their burrowing actions. Their inhabitants dynamics can considerably impression the general well being and steadiness of the tundra ecosystem.
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Muskox
Scientific title: Ovibos moschatus
Household: Bovidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of North America and Greenland
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The musk ox, or muskox, is a big tundra mammal recognized by its shaggy coat and curved horns. They’re named for the sturdy, musky odor emitted by males in the course of the mating season
The musk ox has a strong physique tailored to resist the tough Arctic setting. It’s an herbivore whose food plan consists primarily of grasses, mosses, and lichens.
When threatened, the muskox kinds a good circle with different members of the herd to guard the younger. The species’ essential predator is the Arctic wolf.
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Narwhal
Scientific title: Monodon monoceros
Household: Monodontidae
The place discovered: Arctic waters round Greenland, Canada, and Russia
Conservation standing: Close to Threatened
The Narwhal is a medium-sized whale identified for the lengthy, spiral tusk protruding from head of the male. This tusk is definitely an elongated tooth.
The Narwhal has a strong physique, rounded head, and mottled grey pores and skin. It feeds totally on fish, shrimp, squid, and different aquatic organisms. It’s identified for its deep-diving means, and is able to diving greater than 1,500 meters / 4,921 toes under the floor.
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Northern Pintail
Scientific title: Anas acuta
Household: Anatidae
The place discovered: Wetlands throughout the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Northern Pintail is a medium-sized duck recognized by its slender physique, lengthy neck, and pointed tail, which is longer within the male. The male has a particular brown head, white breast, and grey physique, whereas the feminine is extra subdued in shade.
The Northern Pintail feeds on seeds and aquatic invertebrates. The species breeds in quite a lot of area within the Northern Hemisphere, together with the tundra. Most populations migrate south within the winter.
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Northern Crimson-Backed Vole
Scientific title: Myodes rutilus
Household: Cricetidae
The place discovered: Northern and jap elements of Europe, Siberia, and North America
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Northern Crimson-backed Vole is a small rodent with reddish-brown fur on the higher elements of its physique (which provides the species its title) and grey or white fur on the underside. It has a compact physique, a brief tail, and small ears.
The Northern Crimson-backed Vole is present in taiga forests in addition to in tundra. It feeds on seeds, fruits, and bugs.
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Polar Bear
Scientific title: Ursus maritimus
Household: Ursidae
The place discovered: All through the Arctic Circle
Conservation standing: Susceptible
Description:
No record of tundra animals can be full with out the polar bear, one of many world’s most recognizable species. On common the biggest of the eight dwelling bear species, the polar bear will be recognized by its white fur, which helps it mix into the icy, snowy setting.
The polar bear is very tailored for survival within the Arctic, with a stocky physique, a small head, and enormous, paddle-like toes for swimming.
Probably the most carnivorous of the bears, the polar bear primarily feeds on seals, and is a robust swimmer, typically searching within the water.
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Ringed Seal
Scientific title: Pusa hispida
Household: Phocidae
The place discovered: All through the Arctic Ocean
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Ringed Seal is the smallest and commonest seal discovered within the Arctic. It’s named for the distinctive, ring-like patterns on its grey or silver fur. It has a small head, quick flippers, and a strong physique.
The Ringed Seal primarily feeds on fish and invertebrates. The species’ common lifespan is 40 years. Its predators embody the polar bear and killer whale.
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Rock Ptarmigan
Scientific title: Lagopus muta
Household: Phasianidae
The place discovered: Arctic and alpine areas throughout the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Rock Ptarmigan is a member of the household Phasianidae, which additionally consists of birds similar to pheasants, grouse, chickens and turkeys. It has a compact physique, a small black invoice, and feathered toes, and is thought for its seasonal camouflage—white in winter and brown in summer time.
The Rock Ptarmigan feeds on leaves, flowers, berries, and bugs. It’s identified for its exceptional means to mix into its setting, making it tough for predators to identify.
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Snow Bunting
Scientific title: Plectrophenax nivalis
Household: Calcariidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of the Northern Hemisphere
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Snow Bunting is a small passerine (perching fowl) with a white-gray chest and black and brown streaky markings on the again and wings. The Snow Bunting primarily feeds on seeds and bugs. This hardy little fowl nests within the Arctic tundra and migrates south within the winter.
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Snow Goose
Scientific title: Anser caerulescens
Household: Anatidae
The place discovered: North America, migrating between Arctic Canada and the Southern United States/Mexico
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Snow Goose is a medium-sized goose that breeds within the Arctic tundra in the summertime and overwinters the contiguous United States, with some people migrating as far south as Central America. The species kinds massive, noisy migratory flocks that may quantity within the hundreds.
Probably the most acquainted number of snow goose has white plumage and black-tipped wings, however the species additionally has a “blue morph” with a white head and gray-brown physique. On this morph, the snow goose is commonly often called the “blue goose”.
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Snowy Owl
Scientific title: Bubo scandiacus
Household: Strigidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of North America, Europe, and Asia
Conservation standing: Susceptible
The Snowy Owl is a big owl identified for its white plumage, which gives wonderful camouflage within the snowy panorama of the Arctic tundra. The species has a strong physique, a rounded head with out ear tufts, and enormous yellow eyes.
Present in Arctic areas of North America, Europe and Asia, the Snowy Owl feeds on small mammals and birds, with lemmings being one in all its essential prey gadgets.
When meals is brief, the snowy owl migrates south in massive numbers, with people often turning up within the southern United States.
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Tundra Shrew
Scientific title: Sorex tundrensis
Household: Soricidae
The place discovered: Tundra areas of Alaska, Canada, and Siberia
IUCN conservation standing: Least Concern
The tundra shrew is a small, mouse-sized mammal with an elongated snout, small eyes, and dense, darkish brown fur. Regardless of their look, shrews aren’t rodents, and belong to the order Eulipotyphla, together with animals similar to hedgehogs and moles.
The Tundra Shrew primarily feeds on bugs, spiders, and different small invertebrates, utilizing its delicate snout to find prey. Like many shrews, has a excessive metabolic charge, requiring it to eat ceaselessly.
The tundra shrew was as soon as thought-about to be a subspecies of Arctic shrew, a closely-related species additionally discovered from the Arctic tundra to the northern contiguous United States.
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Tundra Swan
Scientific title: Cygnus columbianus
Household: Anatidae
The place discovered: North America and Eurasia, migrating between Arctic breeding grounds and hotter wintering grounds
Conservation standing: Least Concern
The Tundra Swan is a comparatively small swan with white plumage and a yellow and black invoice. The species is commonly break up into two separate species: Bewick’s swan (Cygnus bewickii), present in Eurasia; and the bigger whistling swan (Cygnus columbianus), of North America.
The Tundra Swan primarily feeds on aquatic vegetation, but in addition eats grains and small invertebrates. Like many tundra birds, it migrates south for the winter months.
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Walrus
Scientific title: Odobenus rosmarus
Household: Odobenidae
The place discovered: Arctic areas of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans
Conservation standing: Susceptible
One of the crucial acquainted tundra species, the Walrus is a big marine mammal identified for its lengthy, sharp tusks, whiskered face, and wrinkled, brown pores and skin. It has a cumbersome physique, a small head, and flippers for locomotion.
The Walrus feeds on clams and different seabed invertebrates, utilizing its delicate whiskers to find prey. It’s identified for its social nature, typically seen in massive herds on sea ice or seashores.
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