Research on the Artic Fox - jojeen 13

Vista previa del material en texto

Research on the Arctic Fox
Tecmilenio University 
Guadalajara
Biology 
The Arctic Fox live in arctic tundras, at the edge of a forest. Arctic tundra is located in the northern hemisphere, encircling the north pole and extending south to the coniferous forests of the taiga. The Arctic is known for its cold, desert-like conditions. The average winter temperature is -34 C, but the average summer temperature is -12 C which enables this biome to sustain life. There are no deep root systems in the vegetation of the arctic tundra, however, there are still a wide variety of plants that are able to resist the cold climate. There are about 1,700 kinds of plants in the arctic and subarctic. 
Arctic tundra can be found in several places around the world, including Churchill in Canada, Alaska in the USA and Siberia in Russia.
The arctic tundra has a wide variety of plants and animals, including:
Insects: mosquitoes, flies, moths, grasshoppers, blackflies and arctic bumble bees
Human Being; According to an article from the University of Michigan, indigenous groups reside in the Arctic Tundra in small groups. In total, only about 4 million people live in the Arctic worldwide and they are part of the minority population.
Microorganisms: There are indeed microorganisms living in the Arctic Tundra. Prior to a study carried out by Josh D. Neufeld and William W. Mohn in 2005, there was no evidence suggesting that bacterial diversity in arctic tundra was higher or lower than in any other geographical regions.
Plants: There are about 1,700 kinds of plants in the arctic and subarctic, such as low shrubs, sedges, reindeer mosses, liverworts, and grasses.
 
Picture by Jeff Foot, retrieved from Allposters.es
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Vulpes lagopus
Habitat: Arctic Foxes are native to the cold Arctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The Arctic Foxes' adaptations allow them to live in such an extreme environment. They live in treeless terrain, with temperatures ranging between -76 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit yearly. They often live in a den dug into the side of a hill, cliff, or riverbank. Although the Arctic Fox's surroundings change throughout the year, it adapts to meet its current needs. 
Lifecycle: Arctic foxes live for three to six years.
Reproduction: Arctic foxes are monogamous and usually mate for life. They mate between February and June. The female builds a new den and gives birth to 6-12 furred kits. Both the female and the male take care of the young kids. The male guards the den and brings food to the den for the mother and the kids. 
 
Nutrition: The arctic foxes are carnivores and they can eat practically any animal, alive or dead. Although they prefer small mammals, they will eat insects, berries, carrion, and even the stool of animals or human beings. Generally, its winter diet consists of marine animals. During the summer months, when food is much more readily available, arctic foxes collect a big amount of food and carry it back to their dens, where it is stored under stones for later use.
Answer:
· What is the relationship between the two organisms (arctic fox and shark) in their ecosystem?
· How important are the species arctic fox and shark) in their environment?
The Arctic fox is a top predator and they can provide fundamental services in their ecosystems such as nutrient cycling. Tazarve, James Roth, Paul Fafard, and John Markham estimated the effects of the Arctic fox denning on soil nutrient dynamics and vegan production near Churchill, Manitoba in June and August 2014.
The result concluded that Arctic foxes enhance nutrient cycling as an ecosystem engineer. 
Arctic foxes are really important in the arctic tundra because if they were suddenly extinct, the food web would suffer a lot because they are the food of wolves, snowy owls, polar bears and so much more. Without counting the tons of population of organisms that the arctic fox eats.
Bibliography
National Geographic. (2018, 21 septiembre). Arctic Fox. Recuperado 6 marzo, 2019, de https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/mammals/a/arctic-fox/
New Hampshire's PBS. (s.f.). Arctic Fox - Vulpes Lagopus. Recuperado 6 marzo, 2019, de https://nhpbs.org/natureworks/arcticfox.htm
Defenders of Wildlife. (2019, 10 January). Basic Facts About Arctic Foxes. Recuperado 6 March 2019, de https://defenders.org/arctic-fox/basic-facts
UC Museum of Paleontology. (s.f.). The tundra biome. Recuperado 7 March 2019, de https://ucmp.berkeley.edu/exhibits/biomes/tundra.php
Oddizzi. (2019, 19 February). Tundra. Recuperado 7 March, de https://www.oddizzi.com/teachers/explore-the-world/physical-features/ecosystems/tundra/
Neufeld, J. D., & Mohn, W. W. (2005, 1 ). Unexpectedly High Bacterial Diversity in Arctic Tundra Relative to Boreal Forest Soils, Revealed by Serial Analysis of Ribosomal Sequence Tags. Recuperado 7 March 2019, de https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1266009/
National Snow and Ice Data Center. (s.f.). Arctic People. Recuperado 7 marzo, 2019, de https://nsidc.org/cryosphere/arctic-meteorology/arctic-people.html
University of Michigan, Dewey, T., & Middlebrook, C. (s.f.). Vulpes lagopus (Arctic fox). Recuperado 7 March 2019, de https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Vulpes_lagopus/
Markham, J. H., Gharajehdaghipour, T., Roth, J. D., & Fafard, P. M. (1970, 1 January).Arctic foxes as ecosystem engineers: increased soil nutrients lead to increased plant productivity on fox dens. Recuperado 7 March 2019, de 
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4820751/
Glogster Team. (s.f.). Arctic Fox. Recuperado 7 Marzo, 2019, de https://edu.glogster.com/glog/1475270/100