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Vegetation, Floristics, and Phytogeography of Northern Alaska

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Vegetation and Production Ecology of an Alaskan Arctic Tundra

Part of the book series: Ecological Studies ((ECOLSTUD,volume 29))

Abstract

The word tundra means very different things to different people; nevertheless, except for its occasional usage in the vernacular for treeless bogs in the subarctic interior, it denotes both the circumpolar treeless region north (and south) of the latitudinal treeline and the less extensive mountain landscapes above altitudinal treeline. Originally the word tundra was applied to treeless rolling plains of the Eurasian far north, thus connoting a regional climate, a landscape, and a vegetative cover. Since the history of the landscape and biota is not the same throughout tundra regions, since climates vary, and since floras differ from place to place, tundra, as it might apply to vegetation, is an ambiguous term (Griggs, 1934). Depending upon one’s frame of reference, it is possible to develop three basic stereotypes: a steppe-desert, a heathland, and a bog and meadow landscape. All are correct; treelessness is the shared feature.

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  1. David F. Murray
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Larry L. Tieszen

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Murray, D.F. (1978). Vegetation, Floristics, and Phytogeography of Northern Alaska. In: Tieszen, L.L. (eds) Vegetation and Production Ecology of an Alaskan Arctic Tundra. Ecological Studies, vol 29. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-6307-4_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-6307-4_2

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