136 FORESTS OF SIBERIA AND TURKESTAN 



consideration, the climatic conditions in different 

 parts vary considerably. There are also considerable 

 differences in the nature of the surface formation and 

 soil. The character of the forests is, therefore, ex- 

 tremely varied. 



The Siberian Regions 



The great region bordering on the Arctic Ocean and 

 stretching from the Ural Mountains to the Bering 

 Strait is designated the Arctic tundra (swamp). 

 There are no real forests in this belt, but the area is 

 covered more or less densely with bushes and dwarf 

 forms. As is the case in the Government of Arch- 

 angel in European Russia, patches of tall trees are 

 found here in the far north encroaching upon the 

 tundra. In this way small forests are to be seen even 

 along the rivers Kolima and Anadir. In 1909 the 

 Chukotsky expedition discovered woods in sheltered 

 valleys at the source of the Great River (Bolshaya) 

 and even near Cape Dezhneff. Owing to these inroads 

 of the forest into it the southern boundary of the 

 tundra runs in a zig-zag fashion, gradually passing into 

 the forest zone. Next to the tundra comes the forest 

 zone, termed taiga,^ which stretches right across 

 Siberia to the Pacific Ocean, and occupies the tract 

 between the tundra and the Steppe region, an area of 

 from 1,000 to 2,300 versts broad and 7,000 versts 

 long. This zone is very varied in character, and does 

 not consist of uninterrupted forest. The belt is 



1 Taiga — the word applies literally to the vast marshy forests 

 of Siberia. 



