Canada’s Ecozones
What is an Ecozone?
„
Canada is divided into 15 broad
terrestrial ecozones, and 5 marine
ecozones. These are very extensive
geographical areas, each with a
distinct combination of climate,
landforms and soils, water features,
animals, vegetation, and people.
Ecozones of Canada
„
How many Ecozones in Canada are
there?
„
15 Terrestrial, 5 Marine
Arctic Cordillera
„
„
How would you describe this
region looking at the picture?
A land frozen in time Located along
the north-eastern edge of Nunavut
and on the northernmost tip of
Labrador, the Arctic Cordillera is
Canada’s “Far North.” The zone is
an area of vast polar ice fields, icecovered mountains soaring to 2500
metres, and valleys and fjords that
cut deep into the crystalline rock.
The Nothern Arctic
„
„
What is the population
of the Nothern Arctic?
The Northern Arctic takes in most of the islands off the
northern shores of Nunavut and the Northwest
Territories, as well as the northern tip of Ungava.
Peninsula, in Quebec. Today, the Northern Arctic has a
population of just over 16,000 people, about 80 percent
of them Inuit. These people hunt, fish, trap, or work in
ecotourism or with government agencies.
The Southern Arctic
„
What is the name of Canada’s
longest river that runs through
here?
„
The Southern Arctic ecozone stretches
for almost 2000 kilometres along the
northern mainland of Canada.
„
Glaciers retreated from this area almost
9000 years ago, but still remaining are
the scratch marks of the rocks that they
slowly dragged across the Precambrian
bedrock. Reminders of the glaciers can
also be seen in the many lakes of the
zone
The Taiga Plains
„
Are plains mountains or flat land?
„
As its name implies, this is generally
flat or gently rolling country
„
The Taiga Plains are located mainly
in the western part of the Northwest
Territories. Bordered by the
Mackenzie Mountains on the west,
they are distinguished, in the east,
by the presence of two very large
lakes: Great Bear and Great Slave.
The Taiga Shield
„
What caused the shape of this
rock?
„
The world’s oldest rocks can be found here.
Smoothed by glaciers as late as 10,000
years ago, the landscape is generally rolling
and now because of the glaciers carving the
land, it contains thousands of lakes
„
Covering 1,300,000 square kilometres, or 14
percent of Canada, the Taiga Shield is the
country’s third largest ecozone
The Taiga Shield
„
this area offers a stunning array
of landforms – rugged
mountains, broad plateaux,
labyrinthine caves dripping with
stalactites, mighty rivers
crashing though steep canyons,
and precipitous waterfalls
„
Human beings have lived in the
Taiga Cordillera for between
20,000 and 40,000 years or
more, making it probably the
longest inhabited area of the
land we now call Canada
The Hudson Plains
„
This ecozone is located at the
southern end of Hudson Bay.
One of the towns located in this
area is Churchill, Manitoba.
What is Churchill famous for?
„
There is only one National Park
on the Hudson Plains –
Wapusk, Cree for “White Bear,”
a reminder of the polar bears
that inhabit this protected area.
The female bears are known to
travel up to 80 kilometres inland
to dig earth dens in the
permafrost for giving birth to
and protecting their young
The Boreal Plains
„
What is the primary industry in
this ecozone?
„
How do you think foresting can
affect the wildlife in the area?
„
The Boreal Plains are a rich
habitats for fish, birds, insects,
and waterfowl (especially
ducks). It’s estimated, infact,
that about half of North
America’s migratory birds stop
off at these potholes.
The Boreal Shield
„
Have you ever seen the
Canadian Shield? What
are two typical features
of the shield shown by
the picture
„
Canadian Shield was
formed by volcanic
activity. Soil is very poor.
„
Many different forms of
wildlife including Beaver
and loons. Other typical
wildlife include rare
woodlan
The Boreal Cordillera
„
What are the name of
the mountains found in
this area?
„
Do you think volcanoes
can exist in this climate?
„
2787 metre high Mount
Edziza, a volcano that
last erupted over four
million years ago.
„
The Boreal Cordillera is
located in the mid
section of the Canadian
Rocky Mountain
System.
The Pacific Maritime
„
Is the Pacific Ring Of
Fire a Johnny Cash
song?
The Ring of Fire has
452 volcanoes and is
home to over 75% of the
world's active and
dormant volcanoes
„
Canada’s highest peak,
Mount Logan, is located here,
rising to 5959 metres above
sea level in the Yukon’s Kluane
National Park, in the most
northerly part of the zone.
„
The Montane Cordillera
„
Why should early
settlers found this region
difficult to cross?
The Montane Cordillera
ecozone is famous for its
enormous mountains and
numerous glaciers. The glaciers
were formed around 20,000 years
ago, when the climate was much
cooler
„
This region is known for forestry
and coal mining.
„
The Prairies
„
Why are the Praries
referred to as “the
bread basket” of
Canada?
Why do you think the Praries
are so flat? What do you think
shaped them?
„
Like the adjoining Boreal Plains to the
north, glaciers have largely flattened
the land here, leaving behind a thick
layer of dark, humus-rich topsoil
(called chernozem, or black earth)
that has made the Prairies very fertile,
The Atlantic Maritime
„
What Eastern
provinces make up the
Atlantic Maritime
Ecozone?
Why is the Bay of Fundy so
famous?
„
The Bay of Fundy tides are among
the highest in the world, changing
twice a day, every six hours and
thirteen minutes. With each tide, the
bay flushes 100 cubic km of water,
roughly equal to the entire daily
discharge of all the rivers in the world
combined.
The Mixwood Plains
„
One of the defining physical
features of this ecozone is the
Niagara Escarpment.
„
What type of tourist attractions might
you find at the Niagara Escarpment?
What waterfall is part of the
escarpment?
The smallest of the
ecozones, but the most
populated. It is the
industrial and
commercial heartland
of Canada.