tundra
Treeless arctic expanse
Tundra is a vast, flat, treeless arctic region where the subsoil is permanently frozen.
The landscape supports only low-growing vegetation—mosses, lichens, and hardy shrubs.
Tundra conditions also occur at high altitudes below the tree line.
The word extends figuratively to any barren, inhospitable expanse: The office felt like an emotional tundra.
Perpetually frozen earth layer
- caribouNorth American arctic deer
- reindeerArctic deer species
- arctic foxCold-adapted northern canine
- snowy owlLarge white Arctic raptor
polar bear · musk ox · lemming · Siberia · Nunavut · Greenland · Svalbard · Alaska
Having no woods
- desolateBleak and abandoned
- windsweptExposed to strong winds
- inhospitableUnwelcoming, harsh to visitors
- harshUnpleasantly severe or rough
bleak · stark · austere · exposed · sparse · uninhabited · remote · isolation
Low temperature state
- frigidExtremely and intensely cold
- frozenSolidified by extreme cold
- iceWater's solid form
- snowFrozen crystalline precipitation
frost · blizzard · wind · polar · subarctic · continental · dry · long winter
Symbiotic rock dweller
- mossSpore-bearing ground cover
- sedgeGrasslike wetland plant
- heatherMoorland flowering shrub
- crowberryBlack heath berry
bearberry · willow · birch · cotton grass · cloudberry · lingonberry · reindeer moss · sphagnum
Soil solidified by cold
- frost heaveSoil expansion from ice
- thawingFrozen matter liquefying
- carbon sinkCO2 storage reservoir
- patterned groundFreeze-thaw sorted terrain features
Basic and unremarkable
- flatLacking vertical variation
- rollingTurning over repeatedly
- low-lyingNear the ground
- boggySaturated and soft
marshy · hummock · tussock · peat · fen · wetland · pond · lake
Subarctic evergreen biome
- borealOf northern regions
- ecotoneBoundary between distinct habitats
- growing seasonTime crops can mature
- microclimateLocalized atmospheric zone
precipitation · drainage · snowmelt · thaw · freeze-thaw · biodiversity · adaptation · ecosystem
permafrost
Perpetually frozen earth layer
- caribouNorth American arctic deer
- reindeerArctic deer species
- arctic foxCold-adapted northern canine
snowy owl · polar bear · musk ox · lemming · Siberia · Nunavut · Greenland · Svalbard · Alaska · Inuit
treeless
Having no woods
- desolateBleak and abandoned
- windsweptExposed to strong winds
- inhospitableUnwelcoming, harsh to visitors
harsh · bleak · stark · austere · exposed · sparse · uninhabited · remote · isolation · solitude
cold
Low temperature state
snow · frost · blizzard · wind · polar · subarctic · continental · dry · long winter · short summer
lichen
Symbiotic rock dweller
crowberry · bearberry · willow · birch · cotton grass · cloudberry · lingonberry · reindeer moss · sphagnum · liverwort
frozen ground
Soil solidified by cold
- frost heaveSoil expansion from ice
- thawingFrozen matter liquefying
- carbon sinkCO2 storage reservoir
plain
Basic and unremarkable
boggy · marshy · hummock · tussock · peat · fen · wetland · pond · lake · stream
taiga
Subarctic evergreen biome
- borealOf northern regions
- ecotoneBoundary between distinct habitats
- growing seasonTime crops can mature
microclimate · precipitation · drainage · snowmelt · thaw · freeze-thaw · biodiversity · adaptation · ecosystem · habitat
- ecosystemsrainforest, forest, desert, jungle, ocean
- Ice Ageice age, mammoths, saber-tooth cat, mammoth, woolly mammoth
- polar regionsAntarctica, polar bears, Arctic Ocean, glaciers, Arctic
- biomesdesert, forest, grassland, jungle, taiga
- frozen landsglacier, iceberg, ice sheet, ice cap, ice field
- natural areasnature reserve, nature reserves, wilderness areas, wetland, wildlife refuge
tundrarainforest
Wet tropical woodland ecosystem
tropical rainforest · jungle · forest · temperate rainforest · Amazon
tundratropics
Warm equatorial region
tropical zone · tropical · equatorial regions · equatorial region · tropical climate
tundrarainforest
Wet tropical woodland ecosystem
wetland · estuary · coral reef · fertile plains · breadbasket
- frozen tundraIcy treeless polar landscape
- Toyota TundraFull-size pickup truck model
- tundra animalsSpecies inhabiting frozen plains
- tundra regionsTreeless polar biome areas
- Siberian tundraTreeless frozen Russian biome
- alpine tundraTreeless high-elevation ecosystem