Transcript Document

Qui ckTi me™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this pictur e.
Ecozone project
By Jordan Fairn
Links:
Landforms
Climate
Human Activities
Landforms 2
Climate Graphs
Major Cities
ONT Fly by
Vegetation
Bibliography
Animals
Soils
Landforms
• The area of the Boreal shield is 1 774 000 km2 and it has plains
and the low hills of the Canadian Shield. The Boreal Shield is
the largest of Canada’s terrestrial ecozones. This natural region
- popularly known as “shield country” - extends 3,800 kilometers
from Saskatchewan to Newfoundland and Labrador. It covers
1.8 million square km’s and surrounds almost 20 percent of
Canada’s landmass; its countless rivers and lakes account for
22 percent of Canada’s freshwater surface area. The Boreal
Shield has a rich supply of minerals and lumber plays a major
role in fueling the economy of the “heartland” of southern
Ontario and Quebec.
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Legend
1. Canadian Shield Rock
2. Quartz vein
3. Glacial striations
4. Erratic
5. Fen-bog complex
6. Rocky hills and morainal debris
Types of
Land
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Ontario Fly By
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Animals
• White-tailed deer, black bear, wolves, raccoons, and bobcats
are some of the mammals associated with the Boreal Shield.
The freshwater lakes attract lots of animals each spring,
including buffleheads and ring-necked ducks. Other local birds
include great horned owls, evening grosbeaks, and whitethroated sparrows.
Qui ckT ime™ and a
T IFF (Uncompres sed) dec ompres sor
are needed to s ee this pic ture.
Whitethroated
sparrows
White-tailed
deer
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are needed to see t his picture.
Black Bear
Ringnecked
Ducks
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Climate
• The Boreal Shield provides the images of exposed bedrock,
endless forests, and rushing rivers that make the image that
much of the world has of Canada. The short summers have
roughly the same average temperature throughout the area,
about 13˚C. The maritime influence in the east gives it a
milder winter, with a mean temperature of about -1˚C, while
the western edge suffers through average winter
temperatures of -20˚C. Precipitation in the west is low, about
400mm a year, but it can be a high as 1600mm a year in
some areas of Newfoundland, largely due to its position in
the Atlantic. I have two climate graphs and an interpretation
of both. They are from two different locations in the Boreal
shield because it is so big.
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Timmins, ONT Climate Graph
Goose Bay, NFL Climate Graph
Goose Bay
Tim m ins , ONT
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Precipitation (mm)
400
10
350
300
0
250
-10
200
-20
150
-30
100
-40
0
-50
Ja
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Fe ry
bu
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M y
ar
ch
Ap
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M
ay
Ju
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Ju
A ly
Se ugu
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em t
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ct r
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ov be
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D mb
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50
120
100
Precipitation (mm)
30
450
Temperature (ûC)
500
80
60
40
Months
20
0
Interpretation:
1.Average temp: 69.283333
2.Temperature range: 34.9
3.Total precipitation: 16.3
4.Season of maximum precipitation: Summer
Interpretation: J F M A M J J A S O N D
1.Average temp: -0.54166666667
Months
2.Temperature range: -2.7
3.Total precipitation: 949.5
4.Season of maximum precipitation: Summer
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Vegetation
• Forest fires create a patchy forest types in different stages of
recovery from the fire. Trees in the north are coniferous, but
broadleaf trees appear further south and trees normally found in
much warmer climates, such as the yellow birch and sugar
maple, can be found in the south of the Boreal Shield. Bogs and
other wetlands, some of the most diverse and productive areas
in the Boreal Shield, cover one-fifth of the land. Tree species
that can be found here include the white spruce, black spruce,
balsam fir, tamarack, trembling aspen, balsam poplar, white
pine, red pine, jack pine, eastern white pine, red maple,
mountain maple, eastern red cedar, eastern hemlock, black ash,
speckled alder, pin cherry, paper birch, and white birch. Some of
the other plants that grow here are ericaceous shrubs,
sphagnum moss, willow, alder, Labrador tea, blueberry, bog
rosemary, feathermoss, cottongrass, sedges, kalmia heath, high
bush cranberry, baneberry, wild sarsaparilla, bunchberry, shield
fern, goldenrod, water lilies and cattails.
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Soils
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1- Orthic
2- Orthic Humo-Ferric
3- Eluviated Dystric
4- Orthic Gleysol
5- Typic Fibrisol
Vegetation can be found in many areas
through out the boreal shield ecozone
because of the soils. Many urban centers
have been created near the boreal
shield’s resource bases. Although
patches of fertile soil can only be found
in few areas which also have a suitable
climate (leading to limited agriculture),
this does not prevent beef cattle farming
which is predominate in this ecozone.
Dairy production is also important in this
area. There are two different types of
soil, which dominate this ecozone,
Luvisolic and Brunisolic. Luvisolic soil is
made up of mostly silicate clay and
develops under deciduous, mixed forest
or forest-grassland transitions in a
moderate to cool climate. Brunisolic soil
is usually found under forest, tundra and
alpine vegetation and is usually an
immature soil. Overall, the boreal shield
ecozone isn’t extremely fertile and has
only about 10, 900 farms which is tiny for
its size.
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Human Activities
• The big water areas in the Boreal Shield were the roads of the
fur trade. More recently, some rivers have been altered and
degraded by mining, hydroelectric development, and logging
practices, though many are still relatively unaffected. Insect
control, monoculture tree plantings, control of natural forest fires
and acidification of the lakes and soil all affect the natural
system, but in many cases the long-term effects are unknown.
The current population is approximately three million. Most of
the population lives along the St. Lawrence River and the Great
Lakes and in areas where economic activities are based on the
exploitation of natural resources (mining, forestry, recreation,
hunting and fishing). Farming is limited to a few areas where the
soil quality and microclimate are suitable.
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Major Cities
• The major in cities and towns are Flin Flon, Thunder
Bay, Sault Ste. Marie, Rouyn-Noranda, and St.
John's. While agriculture is limited, there are lots of
natural resources and they help create employment
in mining, forestry, hydropower, and tourism. Most of
the people work in the urban centers: in public
administration, and in the service and retail
industries.
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Bibliography
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http://ernestchi.tripod.com/id5.html
http://canadianbiodiversity.mcgill.ca/
http://english/ecozones/borealshield/borealshield.htm
http://www.ec.gc.ca/soer-ree/English/
http://vignettes/Terrestrial/bs/default.cf
http://ecosys.cfl.scf.rncan.gc.ca/classif/classif03_e.htm
http://www.canadiangeographic.ca/atlas/themes.aspx?id=shield
&lang=En
• http://www.heritage.nf.ca/environment/boreal_shield.htm
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