There are over 190 vascular plant species on the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. This figure does not include algae, mosses, and lichens, which are non-vascular plants. For an island so far north, this number of species constitutes an astonishing variety of plant life. Because of the harsh climate and the short growing season, all the plants are slow growing. They seldom grow higher than 10 cm (4 in)

In some areas, especially in warmer valleys, the plants produce carpets of blossoms. Svalbard has been divided into four vegetation zones.

Plant species edit

 
Arctic bell-heather
 
Hawkweed-leaved saxifrage
 
Alpine bistort
 
Moss campion
 
Svalbard poppy
 
Woolly lousewort

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Alsos, I. G.; Eidesen, P. B.; Ehrich, D.; Skrede, I.; Westergaard, K.; Jacobsen, G. H.; Landvik, J. Y.; Taberlet, P.; Brochmann, C. (2007). "Frequent Long-Distance Plant Colonization in the Changing Arctic". Science. 316 (5831): 1606–1609. Bibcode:2007Sci...316.1606A. doi:10.1126/science.1139178. PMID 17569861. S2CID 37250212.