The Moose
The moose is the largest animal in the taiga. Moose eat aquatic plants and grasses. Moose have many adaptations. They are one of the few species in the world that can eat and digest pine needles and spruce needles. This adaptation is essential to their survival in the winter. Their thick coats are also essential to keep warm in the winter. Their legs are very long which helps with navigation in deep snow. The moose is one of the only animals to live across most of the taiga. most animals live only on one continent.
The Gray Wolf
The gray wolf is the largest member of the canid family to live in the taiga. They are fierce predators that can hunt and kill very large mammals including moose, elk and caribou. The gray wolf has many adaptations. First, it has a social adaptation to live in packs. This feature enables the wolves to hunt large animals that would otherwise be unhuntable. Secondly, the gray wolf has a very sensitive sense of smell and hearing. This helps them to locate prey quickly. They also have a very thick coat that insulates them very well.
The Snowshoe Hare
The snowshoe hare lives across most of the north american taiga and even farther south. It is very important to the taiga because many predators depend on it to survive. It has many adaptations. First, like its name suggests, it has snowshoes as feet. These wide feet help the hare to manoeuvre in the deep snow acting as snowshoes. Another adaptation is camouflage. In the summer months, the hare is brownish grey to camouflage with the foliage. In the winter months, its coat turns pure white to camouflage with the snow.
The Brown Bear
The brown bear lives in most of the taiga. There are three subspecies. In North America, it is the grizzly bear and the kodiak bear and in Europe and Asia, it is the eurasian brow bear. This bear has many useful adaptations to let it survive in the taiga. First, the bear hibernates to survive the bitter winters. Secondly, it is a generalist and it is an omnivore. This helps the bear find lots of food because it has so many choices. The brown bear has a very keen sense of smell to help it locate food.
The Great Horned Owl
The great horned owl lives in the southern parts of the North American taiga. It eat mainly small mammals such as the snowshoe hare. There are many adaptations that make this owl suitable to life in the taiga. First, it has excellent hearing that enables it to locate prey beneath the snow. It has huge sharp talons to firmly grasp prey and a large sharp beak to kill.