Subarctic region

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World map using color coding to show the distribution of major floral kingdoms, subkingdoms, and regions. Key floral kingdoms include Boreal (green), Neotropical (pink), Paleotropical (yellow), South African or Capensic (purple), Australian (orange), and Antarctic (blue). Boundaries for subkingdoms, regions, and divisions are marked with different colored lines, and major regions such as Indoafrican, North American, and Malesian are labeled across continents.

Subarctic region

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World map using color coding to show the distribution of major floral kingdoms, subkingdoms, and regions. Key floral kingdoms include Boreal (green), Neotropical (pink), Paleotropical (yellow), South African or Capensic (purple), Australian (orange), and Antarctic (blue). Boundaries for subkingdoms, regions, and divisions are marked with different colored lines, and major regions such as Indoafrican, North American, and Malesian are labeled across continents. — Earth's floral regions Floral kingdoms, subkingdoms, and major regions of the world.

The Subarctic region is a vast area in North America, primarily in Alaska and Canada, characterized by a boreal forest (taiga) ecosystem with coniferous trees and marshes. This region experiences long, bitterly cold winters with short days and limited precipitation, followed by mild, short summers.123

The indigenous peoples of the American Subarctic traditionally relied on hunting game like moose, caribou, and beaver, as well as fishing and gathering wild plants. They developed technologies to survive the harsh climate, including well-insulated homes, fur garments, toboggans, and snowshoes.12

Historically, the fur trade significantly influenced the region's indigenous populations, altering their economies and leading to increased reliance on purchased goods. Despite these changes and assimilationist policies from colonial powers, many traditional beliefs and customs have persisted. The Subarctic is home to various Indigenous groups, including speakers of Algonquian and Athabaskan languages.142

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Arctic
Terrain of the Arctic
To the south in the subarctic, the permafrost thins and eventually becomes discontinuous, although locally it may still be 200 to 400 feet thick; along its southern boundary, permafrost survives under peat and in muskeg. In areas of continuous permafrost the active layer may be many feet thick in sandy…
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To the south in the subarctic, the permafrost thins and eventually becomes discontinuous, although locally it may still be 200 to 400 feet thick; along its southern boundary, permafrost survives under peat and in muskeg. In areas of continuous permafrost the active layer may be many feet thick in sandy…
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biogeographic region
Arctic and subarctic region
This region is the boreal tundra zone, extending from Spitsbergen (an island in the Arctic Ocean to the north of Norway) around the shores of the Arctic Ocean through Siberia and Arctic North America to Greenland (Figure 1). Flowering plants in this region…
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This region is the boreal tundra zone, extending from Spitsbergen (an island in the Arctic Ocean to the north of Norway) around the shores of the Arctic Ocean through Siberia and Arctic North America to Greenland (Figure 1). Flowering plants in this region…
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permafrost
…is widespread in the Arctic, subarctic, and Antarctica. It is estimated to underlie 24 percent of the land surface in the Northern Hemisphere.
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…is widespread in the Arctic, subarctic, and Antarctica. It is estimated to underlie 24 percent of the land surface in the Northern Hemisphere.
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polar ecosystem
…are in the Arctic and subarctic, as little land area in the Antarctic is ever free of snow and ice (seefigure). The Arctic can be divided into the Low Arctic and High Arctic, according to various environmental and biological characteristics. Tundras are most common in the Low Arctic, and polar…
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…are in the Arctic and subarctic, as little land area in the Antarctic is ever free of snow and ice (seefigure). The Arctic can be divided into the Low Arctic and High Arctic, according to various environmental and biological characteristics. Tundras are most common in the Low Arctic, and polar…
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Arctic
Vegetation
In the south is the subarctic, formed by the northern subzones of the circumpolar boreal forest. To the north is the Arctic proper, where the vegetation is generally referred to as tundra, from the Finnish word for an open rolling plain; in North America the descriptive term Barren Grounds is…
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In the south is the subarctic, formed by the northern subzones of the circumpolar boreal forest. To the north is the Arctic proper, where the vegetation is generally referred to as tundra, from the Finnish word for an open rolling plain; in North America the descriptive term Barren Grounds is…
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