Nature

Characteristics of the physical environment
Taiga is a cold climate biome where temperatures rage from -65 F to 70F (Whittaker).  Precipitation in these regions varies, but most of the precipitation occurs in the form of snow, precipitation varies from 20cm to 200 cm (Whittaker). The winters are cold and long whereas the summers are cool and short. The landscape is varied in this region and marked by forests, lowlands, hills and plains. It is almost equally distributed in two sections, one is open lichen woodlands while the other is the closed crown forest, and this reflects the temperature changes in the Boreal forest from north to south (Larsen). In the southern region, the soil is fertile and rich however in the north the soil is not as much fertile due to colder temperatures. This can also be seen by observing that the trees grow taller in the south than in the north.

Large bodies of water are also found in the boreal these include the Peace River, the Athabasca River and the Slave Lake (Larsen). As the snow melts in winter, the ground is very moist, but due to low temperatures even in winters, there is very little evaporation and the soil remains moist throughout much of the year. Due to the fact that days are longer in summer in many of the Boreal regions, there is possibility of explosive plant growth. This is because ample moisture and sunlight is available during the summers.

However, this growth period remains limited due to the short time span of the summer season, as winter starts in about 3 months. Hence, this growth period may be limited to 3 months at most (Hogan).

Dominant processes
A change in carbon di oxide concentrations in the atmosphere and fire regimes is important for boreal forests because the development of such changes affects the plantations that occur in these forests in particular and the whole ecosystem in general (Bond-Lamberty). Fire is an important part of the boreal forest because it keeps the forest eco system in a continuous flux. An important function of fires is to restore nutrients to the soil by breaking down organic matter (Bond-Lamberty).
Fires remove a part or the whole of the vegetation, depending upon its severity, and release the nutrients to the soil in the form of ash. After a part of the forest is burned, a new process of change begins. Initial species that sprout up in burned areas are the ones which could not have sprouted there before this is because of the more nutrient rich soil. After that, one species of plants take over the previous in a process which is called succession. Initially herbaceous plants such as fireweed grow deciduous species such as birch and aspen which grow fast also come in the beginning of this cycle. In time, conifers such as black and white spruce grow. This happens until there is another fire from where the whole process starts again. Fire also plays an important role in opening of the conifer cones (Bond-Lamberty). The drier western regions are more susceptible to fires because of low average rainfalls as compared to the eastern and central boreal forest, this is also the area which has a higher frequency of forest fires (State of Canada).

Poor soil drainage also affects the variability of landscape carbon balance, which is an important factor in Boreal forest (Bond-Lambardy). Such variation in carbon balance is due the increasing frequency of fire, this also increases the vegetation in the boreal forests (Hogan).

Family, genus and species names for significant organisms
There are many plant species that are found in the boreal forests, but the most dominant among these is coniferous e.g Black Spruce (Picea mariana). Coniferous plants are well suited for the harsh climate their conical shapes reduce snow buildup on branches during the winter, and their narrow needles which have thick waxy coating protect them from dry winds. They are important because the support a large variety of animal species in addition to storing large amount of carbon and producing a great deal of oxygen. Another importance of conifer trees is that under these trees mosses grow so thick that they form a carpet on the soils surface, which prevents other plant species from growing (Larsen).

An important animal species in boreal forest is the Grey Wolf, or Timber wolf (Canis lupus). This species is important because it is the only species in these forests that have no natural enemies and is at the top of the food chain. Wolves are an important part of the ecosystem and help keep the ecosystems population in check by preying on the weak animals so there will be food for the stronger ones (Banfield). The population of the grey wolf is stable in the boreal forests of Canada.

Conservation challenges
In general, there are many risks that boreal forest of Canada faces. For example habitat can be disturbed by construction of roads and mines in the forest area which in turn disturbs the plant life and the whole eco system, similarly, explorations, pipelining and oil and gas exploration is also one of the major challenges that boreal forests need to face.

This also affects the wildlife in the region, for example marten is one of the species in the boreal forest which is threatened by habitat loss (Larsen).

While these are the general threats that Boreal forest faces, a specific threat that can prove to be extremely destructive in the long run is global warming. As global temperatures increase, temperatures at boreal forests are also expected to increase (Mercier). This would have very lasting impact on the eco systems of the boreal forest which means that there would be increase in forest fires and might even mean the outbreak of various harmful insects in the area, which would adversely affect the natural habitat. Furthermore, the logging industry cuts down over 290,000 hectares of forest in Quebec, 185,000 hectares in Ontario and 67,000 hectares of forest in Alberta every year (Mercier). This is also a very grave threat to the boreal forest. As forest disappears, threats to the wildlife that inhabits it increases over time. This means that as the eco system is destroyed, wildlife might become extinct. The problem in boreal forest is that the areas which are heavily being cut down are also the areas where large amount of wildlife is present and it is heavily inhabited.

To save this forest we must conserve the environment. This can be a two pronged process to save the forest from slowly being destroyed, one can be the reduction in the emissions of greenhouse gases which would reduce the rate of global warming, the second step is the reduction of cutting down of forests in areas which are heavily inhabited by wildlife (Mercier). Works Cited