Flora and faunaThere is a wide range of flowering plants of great beauty present on the tundra, as well as small shrubs such as Arctic willow, some species of which are illustrated here. However, during our own visit, there was a dearth of fauna. We saw a solitary lemming, and the only evidence of larger mammals were a few highly weathered caribou antlers. Few birds were seen, and of the insects, an invasion of mosquitoes caused a period of unpleasantness – a sure sign of movement north as climate warms. | |||
 The tundra vegetation was particularly well developed at the level of our campsite. A thick cushion-like carpet of a wide variety of flowery plants and shrubs is here covering old glacial deposits. |  The only mammal seen during a whole month of fieldwork was this lemming, trying to hide among the stems of Arctic bell heather. |  Evidence of larger mammals was confined to ancient caribou antlers. The nutrients in this example have encouraged the growth of moss. |  Arctic cinquefoil (Potentilla hypartica). |
 In stagnant ponds in glacial river beds, the warm summer sun encourages the growth of blue-green algae. |  Mountain avens (Dryas octopetala). |  Arctic bell heather or white Arctic mountain heather (Cassiope tetragona). |  Arctic poppy (Papaver radicatum) with Fountain Glacier as a backdrop. |
 Arctic fireweed or dwarf fireweed (Chamerion latifolium). |  Purple saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia). |  Moss campion (Silene acaulis). |  Unidentified |
 Woolly lousewort (Pedicularis lanata). |  Mountain or alpine sorrel (Oxyria digyna). |  Arctic poppy (Papaver radicatum) with unnamed glacier as a backdrop. |  Greater stitchwort (Stellaria holostea) |
 Arctic fireweed or dwarf fireweed (Chamerion latifolium) with Fountain Glacier in background. |  Arctic willow (Salix arctica) with seed heads hugging a boulder of gneiss for protection from the elements. |  A slender stem of Arctic willow (Salix arctica) growing out of boulder ground. |  As Fountain Glacier recedes, it reveals an undisturbed mat of moss (rusty brown), which was springing back to life, despite being buried under ice for millennia. |
| Photos Michael Hambrey, July 2014 | |||