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Explore a variety of locations and learn about its biology, history and more. All in 360 degrees!
ArtsApp - Digital Key
A digital key for Svalbard’s flora, with specific keys for vascular plants and grasses.
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The freshwater invertebrates of Svalbard
Freshwater habitats are comprised of pools, ponds, lakes and streams. These may on occasion be connected to the sea enabling some populations of the arctic
Climate, topography and spatial heterogeneity
Arctic biodiversity is structured by a range of environmental factors. To understand which environmental factors that are decisive to the species composition in an area,

Saprotrophic fungi
Saprotrophic fungi degrade dead organisms or their remains, such as litter or dung. Depending on their mode of breaking down cellulose or lignin, we recognise
Bryophyte habitats
Bryophytes are found throughout the world from the harsh environments of Antarctica to the lush conditions of the tropical rainforests. Despite their small size, they
LGM and postglacial migration
During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), biodiversity was significantly reduced throughout the Arctic (Willerslev et al., 2014); however, the extent of this biodiversity loss varied. The
Bedrock, soil development and soil disturbance
Glaciation have shaped biodiversity through time, but glaciations also greatly affects habitat and ecosystem development within landscapes. Mountain slopes above the marine limit are covered
Plant-insect phenology and physiological synchrony
The impact of insect herbivores on Arctic plants is known to be dismissable (Roslin et al. 2013); however, successful Arctic herbivores need to ensure they
Ecosystem role of bryophytes
Bryophytes have many important ecosystem functions in the Arctic. These include: Regulation of hydrology In many habitats, bryophytes control soil and vegetation hydrology (Beringer et
What enviroment do microbes encounter in the Arctic?
Environmental conditions in the Arctic are highly variable in space and they can fluctuate seasonally. As for all living organisms, Arctic microbes are affected by
What is a fungus?
The fungal kingdom (Fungi) is related to the animal kingdom. They separated approximately 1.5 billion years ago. Like animals and plants, fungi are eukaryotes, which
Microbial eukaryotes
Microbial eukaryotes are an evolutionary diverse group that gathers various eukaryotic organisms of often microscopic sizes, such as protist and fungi. Protists, comprise a large
Archaea
Compared to Bacteria and Eukaryotes, Archaean diversity, physiology and ecology is still very little explored. Many Archaea are extremophiles – living in extreme environments –
Mutualistic fungi
Mutualistic fungi live on other organisms, however in contrast to parasitism, mutualism benefits all involved organisms. The fungi get nutrition, mainly carbohydrates, from their partners,
Fungi in the Arctic Environment
Fungi are heterotrophic organisms feeding by osmotrophy. Their ecology can be divided into saprotrophs, parasites and mutualists. However, transitions exist between all these groups. Most
Parasitic fungi
Parasitic and pathogenic fungi obtain their nutrition from other living organisms, and have a negative effect upon the individuals – hosts – they are parasites
Biogeography of bryophytes
History The Pleistocene is the world’s recent period of repeated glaciations between 2.5 million to 11700 years ago. More than 20 cycles of glaciation occurred
Useful learning resources

bioCEED resource for learning statistics, tutorials for the statistical computing language R and more!
How do you start with academic writing? This is the prefect resources for those who are about to write their first thesis/poster/essay etc. or looking for new tips when it comes to academic writing.
Svalbox is all about Svalbard geology. Svalbox aims to compile and acquire key data sets and publications to provide an interactive 3D geoscientific database of Svalbard.
The UNIS Executable Books page provides an overview of all eBooks available and/or used for teaching at the University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS).