Midway between the North Cape and the North Pole, far to the north, lies the Svalbard archipelago. The name Svalbard comes from Old Norse and means ‘cold edge’. The climate here is not unlike what we find in the mountains, with long, harsh, snowy winters and cold, short summers. Svalbard is part of the Arctic, which is the region around the North Pole. It consists mainly of the Arctic Ocean, but also the northernmost land areas of the USA, Canada, Russia, Norway and Greenland.

The landscape on Svalbard consists mostly of rugged, steep mountains with glaciers, where almost nothing can live. Between the mountains and the coast lie flat lowlands, which are home to the plants and animals found on the islands. The ground is frozen all year round. Only in the middle of summer do the uppermost soil layers thaw, allowing the plants to grow.

What is it like being a plant on Svalbard?

Because of the harsh weather conditions, plants have to grow close to the ground to protect themselves. Small differences in the form of a stone, little hollows, a trickle of running water can be of great importance to a low-growing plant. A small depression on the south side of a stone is a preferred place for a plant to grow because it is sheltered, warmer and more protected from snow in winter.

In the Arctic there is little nutrient content in the soil because it is so cold that turnover in the soil takes place slowly. You can therefore clearly see increased plant growth in places where nutrients are added, for example around a dead reindeer, beneath a bird cliff where the birds defecate, or around human settlement.

Just as in the mountains, the Arctic has a short growing season. The plants are therefore not able to produce flowers every year. Often they have to build up energy over several seasons, spending one summer forming the flower bud, which can then bloom the following summer. Purple saxifrage is a species that forms buds in autumn so that it can flower as soon as the snow is gone in spring.

Svalbard is a unique area in terms of both climate, animal and plant life, but also in terms of geology. Many fossil finds, for example of dinosaurs, have been made on the islands. A large part of Svalbard is therefore also protected by national parks and nature reserves.

At present, climate change is probably the greatest threat to the unique life on Svalbard, since the temperature is rising faster here than anywhere else in the country.

Plants on Svalbard

Many of the species found on Svalbard are also found in the mountains on the mainland.

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Next steps

• Lakes, watercourses and bogs — another biotope
• The mountains — another biotope
• Forest — another biotope
• Learn more about plants — species knowledge and reference
• Plants — the hub

Learn more

• Artsdatabanken — species, status, Red List
• SNL — norsk botanikk — encyclopaedic
• Sopp- og Nyttevekstforbundet — courses and checks
• Botanisk forening — Norwegian botany community

Text Lærke Søndergaard Stewart, Snuitide (2022)

• Sources

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  Bjerkely, H.J. (2018). Norske naturtyper – økologi og mangfold. 2. utgave. Universitetsforlaget.

  Halleraker, J. H. (2019, 5. desember). naturtyper. https://snl.no/naturtyper

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  Sabima (u.å.). VI SKAL REDDE GAMMELSKOGEN! Hentet 12. juli 2022 fra https://www.sabima.no/reddgammelskogen/

  Store norske leksikon: https://snl.no/

  Sømme (1987). Vegetasjonssoner. I Blystad, J.T. (red.) (2010). Turlederboka (s. 172). Oslo. Den Norske Turistforening

  Urtekildens Planteleksikon: https://rolv.no/urtemedisin/medisinplanter.htm