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The Southern Arctic Ecozone, as defined by the
Commission for Environmental Cooperation The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC; es, Comisión para la Cooperación Ambiental; french: Commission de coopération environnementale) was established by Canada, Mexico, and the United States to implement the North American Agree ...
(CEC), is a Canadian terrestrial
ecozone An Ecozone may refer to: * Ecozone (Canada), one of 15 first-level ecological land classifications in Canada * Biogeographic realm, the broadest biogeographic division of Earth's land surface (referred to as ''ecozone'' by BBC) * Biome, a large c ...
which spans the northern coast of mainland
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
, most of northern mainland
Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...
excepting the northeast peninsula, and a portion of northwestern Quebec. Its two constituent territories are interrupted by
Hudson Bay Hudson Bay ( crj, text=ᐐᓂᐯᒄ, translit=Wînipekw; crl, text=ᐐᓂᐹᒄ, translit=Wînipâkw; iu, text=ᑲᖏᖅᓱᐊᓗᒃ ᐃᓗᐊ, translit=Kangiqsualuk ilua or iu, text=ᑕᓯᐅᔭᕐᔪᐊᖅ, translit=Tasiujarjuaq; french: b ...
. The ecozone can also be described as including the northernmost part of the Interior Plains of Western Canada and parts of the
Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the anc ...
located on both sides of northern Hudson Bay. It is sparsely populated, with less than 10,000 inhabitants in 17 major settlements, the largest of which is Rankin Inlet. About 80% of the population is Inuit.


Geography

Its southern boundary demarcates the tree line, and to the north it meets the Northern Arctic terrestrial ecozone and the Arctic Archipelago Marine ecozone. It was formed from glacial deposits left by retreating glaciers about 8,500 years ago, which amassed into
moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris (regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice shee ...
s cut by long eskers up to 100 km long. The scouring of the land by the 3 km thick glaciers left numerous depressions, some of which contained stray chunks of ice that, upon melting during warmer periods, created kettle lakes and ponds. The
Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...
granite bedrock of the
Canadian Shield The Canadian Shield (french: Bouclier canadien ), also called the Laurentian Plateau, is a geologic shield, a large area of exposed Precambrian igneous and high-grade metamorphic rocks. It forms the North American Craton (or Laurentia), the anc ...
protrudes to the surface through other sedimentary deposits in areas that surround Hudson Bay. Moreover, glacial erratic chunks of this rock may have been transported to other areas by the ice sheet, sometimes into surroundings with no common elements.
Permafrost Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
occurs in a continuous, permanent sheet throughout the zone, which consists primarily of rollings plains west of the Shield area. Just a few centimetres from the surface in some parts, it prevents water from penetrating deep into the soil, hence pooling and creating waterlogged soil that freezes regularly. Cyclic freezing and thawing of the soils results in irregular features throughout the terrain, including hummocks and polygonal shapes. The land is characterised by "sprawling
shrub A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
lands, wet sedge meadows, and cold, clear lakes".


Ecoprovinces

This ecozone can be further subdivided into three ecoprovinces: * Amundsen Lowlands * Keewatin Lowlands * Ungava-Belcher


Climate

This ecozone experiences short summers which are cool and moist, with mean July temperatures of about 10 °C. Winters are long, dark and bitterly cold, with average January mean temperatures of -30 °C. The area in Quebec is relatively warmer, with mean January temperatures of -18 °C. Annual precipitation increases eastward through the zone, with 250 mm in the west and no more than 500 mm in the east. It also varies latitudinally, with about twice as much precipitation at its southern edge than at the northern fringes.


Conservation

A number of
protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
s have been established to protect representative and/or significant portions of this ecozone. These include Ivvavik National Park,
Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary The Thelon Wildlife Sanctuary, at , over twice the area of Belgium, is the largest wildlife refuge in Canada. It is located in northern Canada's Arctic region, north of the tree line, straddling the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, halfway be ...
,
Tuktut Nogait National Park Tuktut Nogait National Park () is a National Parks of Canada, national park located in the Northwest Territories of Canada that was established in 1998. Meaning "young Barren-ground caribou, caribou" in Inuvialuktun, the park is home to the calvi ...
, and Pingo Canadian Landmark.


References

{{Reflist Ecozones and ecoregions of Nunavut Ecozones and ecoregions of the Northwest Territories Ecozones and ecoregions of Quebec Geography of the Arctic