1. Mapping vegetation zones
Russia’s regions
Mapping vegetation zones
Lesson 2  Starter

2. Russia’s regions
The land surface of Planet Earth can be divided up into a number of large regions, named after the dominant vegetation type (such as forest) or landscape (such as desert)
These regions are called biomes
Russia is such a large country that many of the major biomes can be found there

3. Global biomes

4. Russia’s biomes ? ? ? ? ?
Later in the lesson you will be asked to identify the biomes found in Russia
Don’t forget the small brown-coloured area by the Caspian Sea

5. Hot desert Russia has tiny pockets of true desert
Look for this on the map close to the Caspian Sea

6. Grassland (steppe) Russia’s grasslands
Traditionally, the Cossack people travelled on horseback

7. Deciduous forest This Russian biome is shared with the UK
Where is the nearest deciduous forest to where you live?

8. Coniferous forest Much of Russia is covered with this vegetation
Also called boreal forest or taiga

9. Arctic tundra Too cold for trees
The ground is frozen, this is called permafrost

10. Thawing tundra In Spring, the surface active layer thaws
The ground becomes boggy and difficult to travel on, or build on

11. Polar desert Hot desert is found in the far south of Russia
Whereas, polar desert is found in the far north of Russia

12. Edge of the ice sheet
Can you see the houses? They give you an idea of the scale of this image
Quite literally, this is the edge of the world!

13. Ural mountains
The environment in Russia changes because of altitude as well as latitude
We studied the Ural Mountains last lesson

14. Alpine vegetation Mountains have their own biome: alpine tundra
Strong winds result in low-lying vegetation

15. Amazing landscapes This is a river in northern Siberia
Few people have ever visited here

16. Amazing landscapes In tundra regions, patterned ground can be seen
Physical processes produce shapes called polygons, many metres wide

17. Cruel landscape
During the years of the Soviet Union, prisons were built in tundra regions, called gulags
The remains of a gulag can be seen here

18. Climate change
 Melting ice Arctic ice is thinning and breaks up sooner each year
 Might it be gone altogether by the end of the century?

19. Climate change
 Melting tundra Scientists are concerned with methane release
 Retreating tree line Is the boreal (taiga) forest marching northwards?

20. Picture credits Slide 3, 4 wiki commons
Slide 5 englishrussia.com (open source disclaimer)
Slide 6 Flickr Creative Commons user zabaraorg
Slide 7 Flickr Creative Commons user Tatters
Slide UNDP / Peter Prokosch