Lecture 3

Question 1

Tundra Indicator Species

Answer 1

Tundra Goose
Polar Bear
Walrus
Hudsonian Godwit
Snow Goose
Arctic Willow
Arctic Fox

Question 2

Arctic Fox adaptations

Answer 2

Thick/white fur, small extremities, bushy tail

Question 3

Location of Arctic Walrus colony

Answer 3

Off Cape Henrietta Maria

Question 4

What rock underlies the tundra?

Answer 4

Limestone

Question 5

Why does the tundra have poor drainage?

Answer 5

Permafrost, clay

Question 6

What is an indicator species?

Answer 6

A species that is representative of an area of Ontario.

Question 7

Walrus features (2)

Answer 7

Thick skull (to withstand water pressure)
Pink skin (blood rises to skin to prevent overheating)

Question 8

Why are geese harmful to the tundra?

Answer 8

Cause physical disturbance by digging up tubers from the ground, and their nitrogen-rich waste kills the tundra’s plants.

Question 9

Freeze Tolerance

Answer 9

The ability to withstand the formation of ice in the body.

Question 10

This type of animal is present in the tundra (unlike turtles, salamanders, and snakes) b/c it’s freeze tolerant.

Answer 10

Frogs

Question 11

T/F: the Hudson Bay doesn’t freeze over in the winter

Answer 11

False; freshwater from rivers (e.g. Winisk River) flows in and dilutes the salt water

Question 12

Arctic Watershed

Answer 12

Contains rivers north of the drainage divide; they flow into Hudson Bay and the Arctic Ocean

Question 13

Atlantic Watershed

Answer 13

Contains rivers south of the drainage divide; they flow into the Atlantic Ocean

Question 14

Animals found in freshwater rivers

Answer 14

Beavers, otters

Question 15

Hudson Bay + salinity

Answer 15

33% the salt of oceans due to freshwater input; freezes in winter

Plants in Hudson Bay must still be able to tolerate salt

Question 16

Bird that thrives in saltwater

Answer 16

King Eider (insulated by down feathers, nests along the coast of Hudson Bay)

Question 17

Loons along the coast of Hudson Bay

Answer 17

• Diving birds that feed in the ocean
• Eat saltwater fish; salt glands filter salt from the blood
• e.g. common loon, red-throated loon, Pacific loon

Question 18

Marine mammals in Hudson Bay

Answer 18

Ringed/bearded seals

Walruses

Question 19

T/F: marine animals can forage over submerged water in high tides

Answer 19

True

Question 20

T/F: ON is home to the southernmost population of polar bears

Answer 20

True

Question 21

What do polar bears do when ice breaks?

Answer 21

They come onto shore; since they depend on ice for hunting, they eat less when not on ice

Question 22

What do walruses use their tusks for?

Answer 22

• To move
• To dig up food
• To crush shells to eat shellfish

Question 23

How do sand dunes form?

Answer 23

Sand is pushed up by water (coastal sand deposits)

Question 24

What do polar bears do at sand dunes?

Answer 24

Go on them and dig pits to stay in

Question 25

Plants growing along Hudson Bay have adapted to ____

Answer 25

live in salty conditions (e.g. American Dune Grass)

Question 26

Raised Beach Ridges

Answer 26

- Habitat created when water comes in at high tide and sorts material - Polar bears dig out dens here - Don't get flooded & drain well - Nesting sites for birds that feed along the coast & rivers (e.g. Arctic Tern)

Question 27

Jaeger

Answer 27

Bird that chases other birds, eats small mammals, and robs terns of their food

Question 28

Halophyte + characteristics

Answer 28

Salt-tolerant plant - thick, leathery, small leaves (store water, resist abrasion) - indicate marine environment

Question 29

Halophytic plant examples

Answer 29

goosegrass (main food for geese), seaside lungwort (oysterleaf, bluebells)

Question 30

Why can beach ridges be found farther inland? What are these ones called?

Answer 30

Former shoreline of the Tyrrell Sea; known as stranded beach ridges

Question 31

Arctic Fox adaptations

Answer 31

small extremities, thick/bushy tail, dense fur, white in winter

Question 32

T/F: Hudsonian Godwits nest and feed on beach ridges

Answer 32

F: they only nest there

Question 33

Shorebirds that nest on stranded beach ridges

Answer 33

sandpipers, plovers

Question 34

Niche partitioning + example

Answer 34

multiple species using the same resources in different ways - e.g. different beak sizes of birds

Question 35

Why is the tundra higher/drier farther inland?

Answer 35

- Longer period of rebound | - Farther away from the shoreline

Question 36

What organisms dominate the tundra?

Answer 36

Mosses, lichens

Question 37

Why are sphagnum mosses important?

Answer 37

Insulate the ground, keep it frozen, wetland colonizers

Question 38

Reindeer Lichens

Answer 38

Food for woodland caribou

Question 39

Woodland caribou characteristics

Answer 39

- Small extremities - Large hooved feet - shovel-like (can dig things out of the ground) - Dense hair near hooves to prevent slipping

Question 40

What animal preys upon caribou?

Answer 40

Gray wolves/timberwolves

Question 41

Caribou migration

Answer 41

- Migrate from HBL/BF forest regions to tundra in late spring, and go back when summer ends

Question 42

T/F: calcium is easily accessible in the tundra

Answer 42

F: although the bedrock is limestone, it's hard to get calcium due to clay & permafrost

Question 43

Name a group of birds that isn't found in the tundra.

Answer 43

Woodpeckers