1.
Quebec
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Quebec is the second-most populous province of Canada and the only one to have a predominantly French-speaking population, with French as the sole provincial official language. Quebec is Canadas largest province by area and its second-largest administrative division and it also shares maritime borders with Nunavut, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia. Quebec is Canadas second-most populous province, after Ontario, most inhabitants live in urban areas near the Saint Lawrence River between Montreal and Quebec City, the capital. Approximately half of Quebec residents live in the Greater Montreal Area, the Nord-du-Québec region, occupying the northern half of the province, is sparsely populated and inhabited primarily by Aboriginal peoples. Even in central Quebec at comparatively southerly latitudes winters are severe in inland areas, Quebec independence debates have played a large role in the politics of the province. Parti Québécois governments held referendums on sovereignty in 1980 and 1995, in 2006, the House of Commons of Canada passed a symbolic motion recognizing the Québécois as a nation within a united Canada. These many industries have all contributed to helping Quebec become an economically influential province within Canada, early variations in the spelling of the name included Québecq and Kébec. French explorer Samuel de Champlain chose the name Québec in 1608 for the colonial outpost he would use as the seat for the French colony of New France. The province is sometimes referred to as La belle province, the Province of Quebec was founded in the Royal Proclamation of 1763 after the Treaty of Paris formally transferred the French colony of Canada to Britain after the Seven Years War. The proclamation restricted the province to an area along the banks of the Saint Lawrence River, the Treaty of Versailles ceded territories south of the Great Lakes to the United States. After the Constitutional Act of 1791, the territory was divided between Lower Canada and Upper Canada, with each being granted an elected legislative assembly, in 1840, these become Canada East and Canada West after the British Parliament unified Upper and Lower Canada into the Province of Canada. This territory was redivided into the Provinces of Quebec and Ontario at Confederation in 1867, each became one of the first four provinces. In 1898, the Canadian Parliament passed the first Quebec Boundary Extension Act that expanded the provincial boundaries northward to include the lands of the aboriginal peoples. This was followed by the addition of the District of Ungava through the Quebec Boundaries Extension Act of 1912 that added the northernmost lands of the Inuit to create the modern Province of Quebec. In 1927, the border between Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador was established by the British Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. Located in the part of Canada, and part of Central Canada. Its topography is very different from one region to another due to the composition of the ground, the climate. The Saint Lawrence Lowland and the Canadian Shield are the two main regions, and are radically different
2.
Biome
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A biome /ˈbaɪoʊm/ is a community of plants and animals that have common characteristics for the environment they exist in, and can be found over a range of continents. Spanning continents, biomes are distinct biological communities that have formed in response to a shared physical climate, biome is a broader term than habitat, any biome can comprise a variety of habitats. While a biome can cover large ares, a microbiome is a mix of organisms that coexist in a space as well. For example, the microbiome is the collection of bacteria, viruses. The biotas of the Earth make up the biosphere, the term was suggested in 1916 by Clements, originally as a synonym for biotic community of Möbius. In 1935, Tansley added the climatic and soil aspects to the idea, the International Biological Program projects popularized the concept of biome. However, in contexts, the term biome is used in a different manner. Both includes many biomes in fact and their boundaries must therefore be drawn arbitrarily and their characterization made according to the average conditions that predominate in them. A1978 study on North American grasslands found a positive correlation between evapotranspiration in mm/yr and above-ground net primary production in g/m2/yr. These findings help explain the categories used in Holdridge’s bioclassification scheme, Holdridge uses the four axes to define 30 so-called humidity provinces, which are clearly visible in his diagram. While this scheme largely ignores soil and sun exposure, Holdridge acknowledged that these were important and his scheme can be seen as a simplification of Holdridges, more readily accessible, but missing Holdridges greater specificity. Whittaker based his approach on theoretical assertions and empirical sampling and he was in a unique position to make such a holistic assertion because he had previously compiled a review of biome classifications. Physiognomy, the apparent characteristics, outward features, or appearance of communities or species. Biome, a grouping of terrestrial ecosystems on a continent that are similar in vegetation structure, physiognomy, features of the environment. Formation, a kind of community of plants on a given continent. Biome-type, grouping of convergent biomes or formations of different continents, whittakers distinction between biome and formation can be simplified, formation is used when applied to plant communities only, while biome is used when concerned with both plants and animals. Whittakers convention of biome-type or formation-type is simply a method to categorize similar communities. Whittaker considered four main ecoclines in the terrestrial realm, changes in physiognomic complexity vary with how favorable of an environment exists
3.
Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest
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Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest is a temperate climate terrestrial biome, with broadleaf tree ecoregions, and with conifer and broadleaf tree mixed coniferous forest ecoregions. The term Temperate broadleaf and mixed forest is used by the World Wildlife Fund in global biogeography as one of the biome designations under which to organize ecoregions, the typical structure of these forests includes four layers. The uppermost layer is the canopy composed of mature trees ranging from 30 to 61 m high. Below the canopy is the three-layered, shade-tolerant understory that is roughly 9 to 15 m shorter than the canopy, the top layer of the understory is the sub-canopy composed of smaller mature trees, saplings, and suppressed juvenile canopy layer trees awaiting an opening in the canopy. Below the sub-canopy is the layer, composed of low growing woody plants. Typically the lowest growing layer is the cover or herbaceous layer. In the Northern hemisphere, characteristic dominant broadleaf trees in this biome include oaks, beeches, maples, the term mixed forest comes from the inclusion of coniferous trees as a canopy component of some of these forests. Typical coniferous trees include, Pines, firs, and spruces, in some areas of this biome the conifers may be a more important canopy species than the broadleaf species. In the Southern hemisphere, endemic genera such as Nothofagus and Eucalyptus occupy this biome, Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests occur in areas with distinct warm and cool season, which give it a moderate annual average temperature —3 to 15.6 °C. These forests occur in warm and rainy climates, sometimes also with a distinct dry season. A dry season occurs in the winter in East Asia and in summer on the wet fringe of the Mediterranean climate zones. Other areas, as in the central and upper eastern United States and southeastern Canada, have an even distribution of rainfall, annual rainfall is typically over 600 mm
4.
Eastern forest-boreal transition
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The Eastern forest-boreal transition is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of North America, mostly in eastern Canada. There is a section of the ecoregion in the Adirondack Mountains in upper New York State. However the higher elevations of the Laurentian Mountains and the northern Appalachian Mountains in Canada constitute the Eastern Canadian forests ecoregion, the region has a humid continental climate consisting of warm summers and cold, snowy winters, and is warmer towards the south. The flora in this ecoregion varies considerably based on soil conditions and these mixed forests are distinct from the deciduous forests south of the Canadian Shield and the cooler boreal forests to the north. Conifer swamps occur in areas that seasonally flooded, trees can be very dense or sparse, mats of sphagnum moss cover the ground. Black spruce and tamarack are the predominant tree species, where the soil is not saturated year round grows northern white cedar. Speckled alder grows around the edges of swamps and red spruce. Lowland conifer forests occur on flats, low ridges, and knolls near bodies of water and they are dominated by balsam fir and red spruce, although white pine and paper birch also occur. The ground is often stony with little vegetation, hardwood-conifer mixed forests occur in a transition zone between lowland conifer and northern hardwood forests. The ground is less rocky than in the conifer forests. Trees include red spruce, balsam fir, eastern hemlock, red maple, the understory vegetation is abundant, with witchhobble, honeysuckle, and striped maple. The herbaceous layer include common wood sorrel, bunchberry, yellow clintonia, ferns, northern hardwood forests occur on the richest, most productive soils. Sugar maple, American beech, and yellow birch are the predominant tree species, in secondary forests, red spruce, white pine, white ash, eastern hemlock, black cherry, and red maple are present. Witchhobble is an understory shrub. Ferns clubmosses grow in the herbaceous layer, upper slope hardwood-conifer mixed forests are an area of transition between the northern hardwood and the mountain conifer forests. They are similar to forests, but with no red maple. Red spruce and eastern hemlock, together with maple, yellow birch. Red spruce and balsam fir are common at elevations of the mountain conifer forests
5.
New England/Acadian forests
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This ecoregion has a humid continental climate with warm summers and cold winters. There is also a patch of forest-boreal transition on the Adirondack Mountains. This entire area is referred to as the Atlantic Northeast. The climate consists of warm summers and cold winters with the Atlantic Ocean bringing rain all year round. The seaboard lowlands of this region, which extends to mid-coastal Maine, the forests of this area were radically cleared for agricultural land by the 19th century and then renewed as many of these farms were abandoned following the migration westward. Today the area is largely a mosaic of habitats influenced locally by micro-climatic differences, essentially, there are four important community types which show considerable diversity and blending across this physiographic province. These communities are, alpine communities on the highest mountains, coniferous forests, northern hardwood forests, there are no clear boundaries between the coniferous forests and the hardwood forests in the New England-Acadian ecoregion. The prevalence in the canopy of red pine and red spruce distinguish the transition forests of New England from those in the Great Lakes region to the west, some of western Vermont is in the Adirondack province, but generally exhibits similar vegetation. Areas of particular interest include areas of rocks, peat bog. Alpine communities are essentially regions of Arctic tundra, or treeless tundra-like communities and these are restricted to the tops of mountains that reach above the tree line, about 1300 metres. Mountaintops of Nova Scotias Cape Breton Island may have minor alpine biota, krumholtz and other aspects, full-blown alpine communities are found on Washington and the other White Mountains of New Hampshire and on Mount Katahdin in Maine. Quebecs Gaspé Peninsula, vegetatively similar to Maine and New Brunswick and these tall mountains serve as refugia for arctic plants left over from the retreat of the Laurentide glacier at the end of the last ice age. The truest alpine tundra communities are located on the western and northwestern slopes of tall mountains. The western slopes are typically heath dominated communities composed of plant of the family Ericaceae, common dominant components of the heaths are alpine bilberry and mountain cranberry. It is also found on parts of the Fundy coast in Maine and the Maritimes, the coniferous forest goes by many names, including, Boreal forest, fir-spruce forest, the North Woods, and the taiga. It is noted in New England for its harsh conditions such as cold, subarctic temperatures, a growing period, sandy-gravely acidic soil. It is also noted for a rate of precipitation, year round, as rain and snow. The dominant canopy species of this area include red pine, balsam fir, paper birch, red spruce, also present are jack pine, and white pine which is found in areas of richer soil in the lower elevations of this forest
6.
Northeastern coastal forests
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The Northeastern coastal forests are a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of the northeast and middle Atlantic region of the United States. The ecoregion is bounded on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the north, it transitions to the New England-Acadian forests, which cover most of northern and inland New England. To the west, the transitions to Allegheny Highlands forests. To the south lie the Southeastern mixed forests and the Middle Atlantic coastal forests, the ecoregion surrounds the distinct Atlantic coastal pine barrens ecoregion, which covers portions of southern New Jersey, Long Island and Cape Cod in southeastern Massachusetts. The climate in this ecoregion is the transition from the northern humid continental Oak forests dominate this ecoregion. American chestnut was formerly important, but its population was devastated by the chestnut blight early in the 20th century, Northeastern interior dry-mesic oak forests are found throughout this ecoregion. They cover large areas at low and middle elevations, typically on flat to rolling terrain. Red oak, white oak, and black oak are common oaks in this habitat, other trees include hickories, red maple, sugar maple, white ash, tulip tree, American beech, black cherry, black birch, black tupelo, and American elm. Flowering dogwood is an understory tree. Common shrubs are maple-leaved viburnum, spicebush, and witch hazel, in sandier or more acidic soils are mountain laurel, blueberry, huckleberry, and swamp azalea. Mayapple is a herbaceous plant. Hemlock-northern hardwood forests occur in coves, moist flats. They include sugar maple, yellow birch, and beech and these trees often form a deciduous canopy, but are sometimes mixed with hemlock or white pine. Other common trees include oaks, tuliptree, black cherry, in the Northeast, red spruce can be a minor canopy associate. Hophornbeam is frequent but not dominant, central Appalachian dry oak-pine forests occur on dry sites with loamy to sandy soils. A mix of oak and pine tree species dominate the canopy, typically oak, Virginia pine, and white pine. Varying amounts of oaks and pines result in oak forests, mixed oak-pine forests, shrubs such as hillside blueberry, black huckleberry, and mountain laurel are common in the understory and can form a dense layer. Central Appalachian pine-oak rocky woodlands occur on hilltops, outcrops
7.
Allegheny Highlands forests
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The Allegheny Highlands forests are a temperate broadleaf and mixed forests ecoregion of North America, as defined by the World Wildlife Fund. The ecoregion has a continental climate with warm to hot summers. Most of this forest was cleared in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, although all individual trees species still remain, their quantities and distribution are radically different from the forests original state. The Finger Lakes area has a rich mixture of woodland. Upland hardwood forests include red maple, American beech, black cherry, Allegheny hardwood forests consist of black cherry, white ash, and tulip poplar. Mixed-oak forests of red oak, white oak, eastern black oak. Northern hardwood forests include sugar maple and American beech, also common are yellow birch, eastern hemlock, red maple, black cherry, and eastern white pine. Hemlock tends to follow stream drainages, while white pine prefers drier ridgetops, white ash, American elm, basswood, and hop hornbeam can occur locally. Boreal forests occur at high elevations, particularly on the peaks of the Catskill Mountains and these forests include balsam fir, paper birch, mountain ash, and red cherry. Wild raisin and mountain holly are shrubs that grow in high elevation swamps, bogs, Wildlife of the forest includes bobcat, American black bear, coyote, and flying squirrel
8.
Southern Great Lakes forests
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The Southern Great Lakes lowland forests is a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest ecoregion of North America, as defined by the World Wildlife Fund. It lies mostly in the central northeastern United States and extends into southeast central Canada and this area includes the southern half of Michigans Lower Peninsula, and much of Indiana and Ohio. It also extends through the half of Southwest Ontario from Windsor to Toronto and into Pennsylvania and New York on the southern rims of lakes Erie. This region is characterized by warm-to-hot summers and mild-to-cold, snowy winters, the Southern Great Lakes forests were very rich in wildlife. Birds include cardinals, downy woodpecker, wood duck and eastern screech owl, because of extensive urbanization and agricultural use very little of this habitat remains intact. List of ecoregions in the United States Southern Great Lakes Forests, archived from the original on 2010-03-08. Central U. S. hardwood forests images at bioimages. vanderbilt. edu Southern Great Lakes forests
9.
Canada
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Canada is a country in the northern half of North America. Canadas border with the United States is the worlds longest binational land border, the majority of the country has a cold or severely cold winter climate, but southerly areas are warm in summer. Canada is sparsely populated, the majority of its territory being dominated by forest and tundra. It is highly urbanized with 82 per cent of the 35.15 million people concentrated in large and medium-sized cities, One third of the population lives in the three largest cities, Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Its capital is Ottawa, and other urban areas include Calgary, Edmonton, Quebec City, Winnipeg. Various aboriginal peoples had inhabited what is now Canada for thousands of years prior to European colonization. Pursuant to the British North America Act, on July 1,1867, the colonies of Canada, New Brunswick and this began an accretion of provinces and territories to the mostly self-governing Dominion to the present ten provinces and three territories forming modern Canada. With the Constitution Act 1982, Canada took over authority, removing the last remaining ties of legal dependence on the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Canada is a parliamentary democracy and a constitutional monarchy, with Queen Elizabeth II being the head of state. The country is officially bilingual at the federal level and it is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many other countries. Its advanced economy is the eleventh largest in the world, relying chiefly upon its abundant natural resources, Canadas long and complex relationship with the United States has had a significant impact on its economy and culture. Canada is a country and has the tenth highest nominal per capita income globally as well as the ninth highest ranking in the Human Development Index. It ranks among the highest in international measurements of government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic freedom, Canada is an influential nation in the world, primarily due to its inclusive values, years of prosperity and stability, stable economy, and efficient military. While a variety of theories have been postulated for the origins of Canada. In 1535, indigenous inhabitants of the present-day Quebec City region used the word to direct French explorer Jacques Cartier to the village of Stadacona, from the 16th to the early 18th century Canada referred to the part of New France that lay along the St. Lawrence River. In 1791, the area became two British colonies called Upper Canada and Lower Canada collectively named The Canadas, until their union as the British Province of Canada in 1841. Upon Confederation in 1867, Canada was adopted as the name for the new country at the London Conference. The transition away from the use of Dominion was formally reflected in 1982 with the passage of the Canada Act, later that year, the name of national holiday was changed from Dominion Day to Canada Day
10.
Vermont
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Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It borders the other U. S. states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the north. Lake Champlain forms half of Vermonts western border with the state of New York, Vermont is the 2nd-least populous of the U. S. states, with nearly 50,000 more residents than Wyoming. The capital is Montpelier, the least populous state capital in the U. S, the most populous municipality, Burlington, is the least populous city in the U. S. to be the most populous within a state. As of 2015, Vermont continued to be the producer of maple syrup in the U. S. It was ranked as the safest state in the country in January 2016, for thousands of years inhabited by indigenous peoples, including the Algonquian-speaking Abenaki and Mohawk, much of the territory that is now Vermont was claimed by Frances colony of New France. France ceded the territory to Great Britain after being defeated in 1763 in the Seven Years War, for many years, the nearby colonies, especially the provinces of New Hampshire and New York, disputed control of the area. Settlers who held land titles granted by New York were opposed by the Green Mountain Boys militia, ultimately, those settlers prevailed in creating an independent state, the Vermont Republic. Founded in 1777 during the American Revolutionary War, the republic lasted for 14 years, aside from the original 13 states that were formerly colonies, Vermont is one of only four U. S. states that were previously sovereign states. Vermont was also the first state to join the U. S. as its 14th member state after the original 13, while still an independent republic, Vermont was the first of any future U. S. state to partially abolish slavery. It played an important geographic role in the Underground Railroad, sights in Vermont Vermont is located in the New England region of the northeastern United States and comprises 9,614 square miles, making it the 45th-largest state. It is the state that does not have any buildings taller than 124 feet. Land comprises 9,250 square miles and water comprises 365 square miles, making it the 43rd-largest in land area, in total area, it is larger than El Salvador and smaller than Haiti. The west bank of the Connecticut River marks the eastern border with New Hampshire. 41% of Vermonts land area is part of the Connecticut Rivers watershed, Lake Champlain, the major lake in Vermont, is the sixth-largest body of fresh water in the United States and separates Vermont from New York in the northwest portion of the state. From north to south, Vermont is 159 miles long and its greatest width, from east to west, is 89 miles at the Canada–U. S. Border, the narrowest width is 37 miles at the Massachusetts line, the states geographic center is approximately three miles east of Roxbury, in Washington County. There are fifteen U. S. federal border crossings between Vermont and Canada, the origin of the name Vermont is uncertain, but likely comes from the French les Verts Monts, meaning the Green Mountains
11.
New York (state)
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New York is a state in the northeastern United States, and is the 27th-most extensive, fourth-most populous, and seventh-most densely populated U. S. state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south and Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont to the east. With an estimated population of 8.55 million in 2015, New York City is the most populous city in the United States, the New York Metropolitan Area is one of the most populous urban agglomerations in the world. New York City makes up over 40% of the population of New York State, two-thirds of the states population lives in the New York City Metropolitan Area, and nearly 40% lives on Long Island. Both the state and New York City were named for the 17th-century Duke of York, the next four most populous cities in the state are Buffalo, Rochester, Yonkers, and Syracuse, while the state capital is Albany. New York has a diverse geography and these more mountainous regions are bisected by two major river valleys—the north-south Hudson River Valley and the east-west Mohawk River Valley, which forms the core of the Erie Canal. Western New York is considered part of the Great Lakes Region and straddles Lake Ontario, between the two lakes lies Niagara Falls. The central part of the state is dominated by the Finger Lakes, New York had been inhabited by tribes of Algonquian and Iroquoian-speaking Native Americans for several hundred years by the time the earliest Europeans came to New York. The first Europeans to arrive were French colonists and Jesuit missionaries who arrived southward from settlements at Montreal for trade, the British annexed the colony from the Dutch in 1664. The borders of the British colony, the Province of New York, were similar to those of the present-day state, New York is home to the Statue of Liberty, a symbol of the United States and its ideals of freedom, democracy, and opportunity. In the 21st century, New York has emerged as a node of creativity and entrepreneurship, social tolerance. On April 17,1524 Verrazanno entered New York Bay, by way of the now called the Narrows into the northern bay which he named Santa Margherita. Verrazzano described it as a vast coastline with a delta in which every kind of ship could pass and he adds. This vast sheet of water swarmed with native boats and he landed on the tip of Manhattan and possibly on the furthest point of Long Island. Verrazannos stay was interrupted by a storm which pushed him north towards Marthas Vineyard, in 1540 French traders from New France built a chateau on Castle Island, within present-day Albany, due to flooding, it was abandoned the next year. In 1614, the Dutch under the command of Hendrick Corstiaensen, rebuilt the French chateau, Fort Nassau was the first Dutch settlement in North America, and was located along the Hudson River, also within present-day Albany. The small fort served as a trading post and warehouse, located on the Hudson River flood plain, the rudimentary fort was washed away by flooding in 1617, and abandoned for good after Fort Orange was built nearby in 1623. Henry Hudsons 1609 voyage marked the beginning of European involvement with the area, sailing for the Dutch East India Company and looking for a passage to Asia, he entered the Upper New York Bay on September 11 of that year
12.
Ontario
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Ontario, one of the 13 provinces and territories of Canada, is located in east-central Canada. It is Canadas most populous province by a margin, accounting for nearly 40 percent of all Canadians. Ontario is fourth-largest in total area when the territories of the Northwest Territories and it is home to the nations capital city, Ottawa, and the nations most populous city, Toronto. There is only about 1 km of land made up of portages including Height of Land Portage on the Minnesota border. Ontario is sometimes divided into two regions, Northern Ontario and Southern Ontario. The great majority of Ontarios population and arable land is located in the south, in contrast, the larger, northern part of Ontario is sparsely populated with cold winters and is heavily forested. The province is named after Lake Ontario, a thought to be derived from Ontarí, io, a Huron word meaning great lake, or possibly skanadario. Ontario has about 250,000 freshwater lakes, the province consists of three main geographical regions, The thinly populated Canadian Shield in the northwestern and central portions, which comprises over half the land area of Ontario. Although this area mostly does not support agriculture, it is rich in minerals and in part covered by the Central and Midwestern Canadian Shield forests, studded with lakes, Northern Ontario is subdivided into two sub-regions, Northwestern Ontario and Northeastern Ontario. The virtually unpopulated Hudson Bay Lowlands in the north and northeast, mainly swampy. Southern Ontario which is further sub-divided into four regions, Central Ontario, Eastern Ontario, Golden Horseshoe, the highest point is Ishpatina Ridge at 693 metres above sea level located in Temagami, Northeastern Ontario. In the south, elevations of over 500 m are surpassed near Collingwood, above the Blue Mountains in the Dundalk Highlands, the Carolinian forest zone covers most of the southwestern region of the province. A well-known geographic feature is Niagara Falls, part of the Niagara Escarpment, the Saint Lawrence Seaway allows navigation to and from the Atlantic Ocean as far inland as Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario. Northern Ontario occupies roughly 87 percent of the area of the province. Point Pelee is a peninsula of Lake Erie in southwestern Ontario that is the southernmost extent of Canadas mainland, Pelee Island and Middle Island in Lake Erie extend slightly farther. All are south of 42°N – slightly farther south than the border of California. The climate of Ontario varies by season and location, the effects of these major air masses on temperature and precipitation depend mainly on latitude, proximity to major bodies of water and to a small extent, terrain relief. In general, most of Ontarios climate is classified as humid continental, Ontario has three main climatic regions
13.
Ecoregion
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An ecoregion is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than an ecozone. All three of these are less or greater than an ecosystem. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of land or water, and contain characteristic, the biodiversity of flora, fauna and ecosystems that characterise an ecoregion tends to be distinct from that of other ecoregions. Three caveats are appropriate for all bio-geographic mapping approaches, firstly, no single bio-geographic framework is optimal for all taxa. Ecoregions reflect the best compromise for as many taxa as possible, secondly, ecoregion boundaries rarely form abrupt edges, rather, ecotones and mosaic habitats bound them. Thirdly, most ecoregions contain habitats that differ from their assigned biome, biogeographic provinces may originate due to various barriers. Some physical, some climatic and some ocean chemical related, the history of the term is somewhat vague as it was used in many contexts, forest classifications, biome classifications, biogeographic classifications, etc. The concept of ecoregion of Bailey gives more importance to ecological criteria, while the WWF concept gives more importance to biogeography, there is significant, but not absolute, spatial correlation among these characteristics, making the delineation of ecoregions an imperfect science. Such transition zones are called ecotones, Ecoregions can be categorized using an algorithmic approach or a holistic, “weight-of-evidence” approach where the importance of various factors may vary. An example of the approach is Robert Bailey’s work for the U. S. The intended purpose of ecoregion delineation may affect the method used, according to WWF, the boundaries of an ecoregion approximate the original extent of the natural communities prior to any major recent disruptions or changes. WWF has identified 867 terrestrial ecoregions, and approximately 450 freshwater ecoregions across the Earth, the use of the term ecoregion is an outgrowth of a surge of interest in ecosystems and their functioning. In particular, there is awareness of issues relating to spatial scale in the study and it is widely recognized that interlinked ecosystems combine to form a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. The Global 200 is the list of ecoregions identified by WWF as priorities for conservation, Terrestrial ecoregions are land ecoregions, as distinct from freshwater and marine ecoregions. In this context, terrestrial is used to mean of land, WWF ecologists currently divide the land surface of the Earth into 8 major ecozones containing 867 smaller terrestrial ecoregions. The WWF effort is a synthesis of previous efforts to define. Many consider this classification to be decisive, and some propose these as stable borders for bioregional democracy initiatives. The eight terrestrial ecozones follow the major floral and faunal boundaries, identified by botanists and zoologists, ecozone boundaries generally follow continental boundaries, or major barriers to plant and animal distribution, like the Himalayas and the Sahara
14.
North America
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North America is a continent entirely within the Northern Hemisphere and almost all within the Western Hemisphere. It can also be considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, and to the southeast by South America and the Caribbean Sea. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers, about 16. 5% of the land area. North America is the third largest continent by area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth by population after Asia, Africa, and Europe. In 2013, its population was estimated at nearly 565 million people in 23 independent states, or about 7. 5% of the worlds population, North America was reached by its first human populations during the last glacial period, via crossing the Bering land bridge. The so-called Paleo-Indian period is taken to have lasted until about 10,000 years ago, the Classic stage spans roughly the 6th to 13th centuries. The Pre-Columbian era ended with the migrations and the arrival of European settlers during the Age of Discovery. Present-day cultural and ethnic patterns reflect different kind of interactions between European colonists, indigenous peoples, African slaves and their descendants, European influences are strongest in the northern parts of the continent while indigenous and African influences are relatively stronger in the south. Because of the history of colonialism, most North Americans speak English, Spanish or French, the Americas are usually accepted as having been named after the Italian explorer Amerigo Vespucci by the German cartographers Martin Waldseemüller and Matthias Ringmann. Vespucci, who explored South America between 1497 and 1502, was the first European to suggest that the Americas were not the East Indies, but a different landmass previously unknown by Europeans. In 1507, Waldseemüller produced a map, in which he placed the word America on the continent of South America. He explained the rationale for the name in the accompanying book Cosmographiae Introductio, for Waldseemüller, no one should object to the naming of the land after its discoverer. He used the Latinized version of Vespuccis name, but in its feminine form America, following the examples of Europa, Asia and Africa. Later, other mapmakers extended the name America to the continent, In 1538. Some argue that the convention is to use the surname for naming discoveries except in the case of royalty, a minutely explored belief that has been advanced is that America was named for a Spanish sailor bearing the ancient Visigothic name of Amairick. Another is that the name is rooted in a Native American language, the term North America maintains various definitions in accordance with location and context. In Canadian English, North America may be used to refer to the United States, alternatively, usage sometimes includes Greenland and Mexico, as well as offshore islands
15.
Adirondack Mountains
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The Adirondack Mountains /ædᵻˈrɒndæk/ form a massif in the northeast of Upstate New York in the United States. Its boundaries correspond to the boundaries of Adirondack Park, the mountains form a roughly circular dome, about 160 miles in diameter and about 1 mile high. The current relief owes much to glaciation, the earliest written use of the name, spelled Rontaks, was in 1724 by the French missionary Joseph-François Lafitau. He defined it as tree eaters, in the Mohawk language, Adirondack means porcupine, an animal that may eat bark. The Mohawks had no written language at the time so Europeans have used various phonetic spellings, an English map from 1761 labels it simply Deer Hunting Country and the mountains were named Adirondacks in 1837 by Ebenezer Emmons. People first arrived in the following the settlement of the Americas around 10,000 BC. The Algonquian peoples and the Mohawk nation used the Adirondacks for hunting and travel, european colonisation of the area began with Samuel de Champlain visiting what is now Ticonderoga in 1609, and Jesuit missionary Isaac Jogues visited the region in 1642. In 1664 the land came under the control of the English when New Netherland was ceded to The Crown, after the American Revolutionary War, the lands passed to the people of New York State. Needing money to war debts, the new government sold nearly all the original public acreage about 7 million acres for pennies an acre. Lumbermen were welcomed to the interior, with few restraints, resulting in massive deforestation, for the history of the area since industrialization, see The History of Adirondack Park. In 1989, part of the Adirondack region was designated by UNESCO as the Champlain-Adirondack Biosphere Reserve, the rocks of the mountains originated about two billion years ago as 50,000 feet deep sediments at the bottom of a sea near the equator. Because of continental drift these collided with Laurentia in a mountain building episode known as the Grenville orogeny, during this time the sedimentary rock was changed into metamorphic rock. It is these Proterozoic minerals and lithologies that make up the core of the massif, such minerals of interest include, wollastonite, mined near Harrisville magnetite and hematite, formerly mined at the Benson Mines, Lyon Mountain, Mineville, Tawahus, and Witherbee. Graphite, mined near Hague and Ticonderoga, garnet, mined at the Barton Mine, north of Gore Mountain. Anorthosite, visible in road cuts on the New York State Route 3 between Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake, marble zinc, The Balmat-Edwards district on the northwest flank of the massif also in St. Lawrence County was a major zinc ore deposit titanium was mined at Tawahus. Around 600 million years ago the area began to be pulled apart, as Laurentia drifted away from Baltica, faults developed, running north to north east which formed valleys and deep lakes. Examples visible today include the grabens Lake George and Schroon Lake, by this time the Grenville mountains had been eroded away and the area was covered by a shallow sea. Several thousand feet of sediment accumulated on the sea bed, trilobites were the principal life-form of the sea bed, and fossil tracks can be seen in the Potsdam sandstone floor of the Paul Smiths Visitor Interpretive Center
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Saint Lawrence Lowlands
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The Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowland is a bowl-shaped area located near to the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes basin area became a lake after the ice sheet melted. However, due to the presence of a deep faultline, all of water was eventually siphoned into the ocean. Thus, the primary defining historic feature of the lowlands the presence of deep soils within the watershed, the lowlands are split into these sub-regions by intrusions from adjacent physiographic regions. The next notable pinching occurs at Quebec City, where again the Shield meets the shore, anticosti and Newfoundland, both being islands, are separated by stretches of open salt water. There are animals such as warblers, wolves, snowshoe hares, blue birds, white-tailed deer, red-winged black birds, coyotes, frogs, eagles, and beavers. Even though the St. Lawrence Lowlands is the smallest landform region in Canada, it has a dense population, the Lowlands are abundant with agriculture, commerce, recreation locations, and transportation hubs. The St. Lawrence Lowlands is the most heavily industrialized landform in Canada and it is 70% of Canadas manufacturing systems and also 70% farm land. The soil is good for agricultural uses. It has the most fertile top soil in Canada
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Lake Ontario
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Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Ontario, Canadas most populous province, was named for the lake, in the Wyandot language, ontarío means “Lake of Shining Waters”. Its primary inlet is the Niagara River from Lake Erie, the last in the Great Lakes chain, Lake Ontario serves as the outlet to the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence River. Lake Ontario is the easternmost of the Great Lakes and the smallest in surface area and it is the 14th largest lake in the world. When its islands are included, the lake has a shoreline that is 712 miles long. As the last lake in the Great Lakes hydrologic chain, Lake Ontario has the lowest mean elevation of the lakes at 243 feet above sea level,326 feet lower than its neighbor upstream. Its maximum length is 193 statute miles and its width is 53 statute miles. The lakes average depth is 47 fathoms 1 foot, with a depth of 133 fathoms 4 feet. The lakes primary source is the Niagara River, draining Lake Erie, the drainage basin covers 24,720 square miles. As with all the Great Lakes, water levels both within the year and among years. These water level fluctuations are a part of lake ecology. The lake also has an important freshwater fishery, although it has negatively affected by factors including over-fishing, water pollution. Baymouth bars built by prevailing winds and currents have created a significant number of lagoons and sheltered harbors, mostly near Prince Edward County, Ontario, perhaps the best-known example is Toronto Bay, chosen as the site of the Upper Canada capital for its strategic harbour. Other prominent examples include Hamilton Harbour, Irondequoit Bay, Presquile Bay, the bars themselves are the sites of long beaches, such as Sandbanks Provincial Park and Sandy Island Beach State Park. These sand bars are associated with large wetlands, which support large numbers of plant and animal species. Presquile, on the shore of Lake Ontario, is particularly significant in this regard. The lake basin was carved out of soft, weak Silurian-age rocks by the Wisconsin ice sheet during the last ice age, the action of the ice occurred along the pre-glacial Ontarian River valley which had approximately the same orientation as todays basin. As the ice sheet retreated toward the north, it still dammed the St. Lawrence valley outlet and this stage is known as Lake Iroquois
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Georgian Bay
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Georgian Bay is a large bay of Lake Huron, located entirely within Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula, to its northwest is the North Channel. Georgian Bay is surrounded by the districts of Manitoulin, Sudbury, Parry Sound and Muskoka, as well as the more populous counties of Simcoe, Grey, the Main Channel separates the Bruce Peninsula from Manitoulin Island and connects Georgian Bay to the rest of Lake Huron. The shores and waterways of the Georgian Bay are the domain of the Anishinaabeg First Nations peoples to the north. The bay was thus a major Algonquian-Huron trade route, Samuel de Champlain, the first European to explore and map the area in 1615–1616, called it La Mer douce, also a reference to the bays freshwater. It was named Georgian Bay by Lieutenant Henry Wolsey Bayfield of the Royal Navy in 1822, Georgian Bay is about 190 kilometres long by 80 kilometres wide. It covers approximately 15,000 square kilometres, making it nearly 80% the size of Lake Ontario. If Georgian Bay were considered a lake in its own right, it would be the fourth largest lake located entirely within Canada after Great Bear Lake, Great Slave Lake and Lake Winnipeg. Eastern Georgian Bay is part of the edge of the Canadian Shield, granite bedrock exposed by the glaciers at the end of the last ice age. The granite rock formations and windswept eastern white pine are characteristic of the islands, the rugged beauty of the area inspired landscapes by artists of the Group of Seven. The western part of the bay, from Collingwood north, and including Manitoulin, Drummond, Cockburn and St. Joseph islands, there are tens of thousands of islands in Georgian Bay. Most of these islands are along the east side of the bay and are known as the Thirty Thousand Islands. Manitoulin Island, lying along the side of the bay, is the worlds largest island in a freshwater lake. The Trent–Severn Waterway connects Georgian Bay to Lake Ontario, running from Port Severn in the corner of Georgian Bay through Lake Simcoe into Lake Ontario near Trenton. Further north, Lake Nipissing drains into Georgian Bay through the French River, in October 2004, the Georgian Bay Littoral was declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. Archeological records reveal an Aboriginal presence in the regions of the Canadian Shield dating from 11,000 years ago. Evidence of later Paleo-Indian settlements have found on Manitoulin Island. At the time of European contact, the Ojibwe and Ottawa First Nations, the Huron and Tionontati inhabited the lands along the southern coast, having migrated from the northern shores of Lake Ontario
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Lake Huron
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Lake Huron is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is shared on the north and east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the south, the name of the lake is derived from early French explorers who named it for the Huron people inhabiting the region. The Huronian glaciation was named due to evidence collected from Lake Huron region, the northern parts of the lake include the North Channel and Georgian Bay. Across the lake to the southwest is Saginaw Bay, the main inlet is the St. Marys River and the main outlet is the St. Clair. By volume however, Lake Huron is only the third largest of the Great Lakes, being surpassed by Lake Michigan, when measured at the low water datum, the lake contains a volume of 850 cubic miles and a shoreline length of 3,827 mi. The surface of Lake Huron is 577 feet above sea level, the lakes average depth is 32 fathoms 3 feet, while the maximum depth is 125 fathoms. It has a length of 206 statute miles and a greatest breadth of 183 statute miles. Cities with over 10,000 people on Lake Huron include Sarnia, the largest city on Lake Huron, and Saugeen Shores in Canada and Bay City, Port Huron, a large bay that protrudes northeast from Lake Huron into Ontario, Canada, is called Georgian Bay. A notable feature of the lake is Manitoulin Island, which separates the North Channel and it is the worlds largest freshwater island. Major centres on Georgian Bay include Owen Sound, Wasaga Beach, Midland, Penetanguishene, Port Severn, a smaller bay that protrudes southwest from Lake Huron into Michigan is called Saginaw Bay. Historic High Water The lake fluctuates from month to month with the highest lake levels in October and November, the normal high-water mark is 2.00 feet above datum. In the summer of 1986, Lakes Michigan and Huron reached their highest level at 5.92 feet above datum, the high-water records began in February 1986 and lasted through the year, ending with January 1987. Water levels ranged from 3.67 to 5.92 feet above Chart Datum, historic Low Water Lake levels tend to be the lowest in winter. The normal low-water mark is 1.00 foot below datum, in the winter of 1964, Lakes Michigan and Huron reached their lowest level at 1.38 feet below datum. As with the records, monthly low-water records were set each month from February 1964 through January 1965. During this twelve-month period, water levels ranged from 1.38 to 0.71 feet below Chart Datum, the Great Lakes Circle Tour is a designated scenic road system connecting all the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. Lake Huron has the largest shore line length of any of the Great Lakes, Lake Huron is separated from Lake Michigan, which lies at the same level, by the 5-mile-wide, 20-fathom-deep Straits of Mackinac, making them hydrologically the same body of water. Aggregated, Lake Huron-Michigan, at 45,300 square miles, is technically the worlds largest freshwater lake, when counted separately, Lake Superior is 8,700 square miles larger than Huron and higher
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Frontenac Axis
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The Algonquin to Adirondacks region, which includes the Frontenac Axis or Arch, is a critical linkage for biodiversity and resilience, and one with important conservation potential. The axis separates the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the Great Lakes Lowlands and it has many distinctive plant and animal species. It is one of four ecoregions of the Mixedwood Plains, the Thousand Islands in the Saint Lawrence River have a distinctive flora and fauna and are a part of the biological corridor. The bedrock is mostly gneiss, granite and marble, more than a years old. The Frontenac terrain is the youngest of the Ontario portions of the arch and these rocks were once part of a large mountain chain of the ancient supercontinent of Rodinia. There is also a crater near Holleford, where the shield meets the limestone plains of southeastern Ontario. The area is distinctive for having tree species typically found further south, shallow soils and recurring fire have also produced unusual fire barren communities. These provide habitat for plants, such as bear oak and deerberry, as well as rare animals, such as the five-lined skink. There is high diversity, including the cerulean warbler, considered nationally endangered owing to the destruction of forests. Although the most important factor producing the fauna and flora is likely the bed rock, also, some northern species extend their range south, drawn by the rugged granite landscapes of the Canadian Shield. The basic ecosystem type of the area is deciduous forest. The area has a history of logging, which has depleted these forests of larger trees. Settlement tends to have occurred in the areas of deeper soil, reference to the forest descriptions of early surveyors has documented decline in species such as hemlock, which were preferentially removed for leather tanning. Criteria for restoring these forests have been established, and include increased tree size, spring ephemeral abundance, pollen cores from Lanark County provide information about longer term trends in forest cover. There is an array of wetlands, ranging from larger marshes along the St. Lawrence river, to smaller marshes and bogs along water courses. The cycles in vegetation in beaver ponds contribute to further wetland diversity, depending upon the amount of activity, there may be open water, marsh. Some lakes in the area, such as Bobs Lake, also support species of turtles, such as the map turtles. Where there is marble bedrock, or other sources of calcium and these often have unusual calcium dependent wetland plants
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Niagara Escarpment
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The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in the United States and Canada that runs predominantly east/west from New York, through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Illinois. The escarpment is most famous as the cliff over which the Niagara River plunges at Niagara Falls, the Niagara Escarpment is the most prominent of several escarpments formed in the bedrock of the Great Lakes Basin. From its easternmost point near Watertown, New York, the escarpment shapes in part the individual basins and landforms of Lakes Ontario, Huron, in Rochester, New York, three waterfalls over the escarpment are where the Genesee River flows through the city. The escarpment thence runs westward to the Niagara River, forming a gorge north of Niagara Falls. Study of rock exposures and drillholes demonstrates that no displacement of the rock layers occurs at the escarpment, the escarpments caprock is dolomitic limestone, which is more resistant and overlies weaker, more easily eroded shale as a weathering-resistant cap. The escarpment thus formed over millions of years through a process of erosion of rocks of different hardnesses. Through time the soft rocks weather away or erode by the action of streams, the gradual removal of the soft rocks undercuts the resistant caprock, leaving a cliff or escarpment. The erosional process is most readily seen at Niagara Falls, where the river has quickened the process and it can also be seen at the three waterfalls of the Genesee River at Rochester. Also, in places thick glacial deposits conceal the Niagara Escarpment, such as north of Georgetown, Ontario. The dolostone cap was laid down as sediment on the floor of a marine environment, in Michigan, behind the escarpment, the cuesta capstone slopes gently to form a wide basin, the floor of an Ordovician-Silurian-age tropical sea. During the Silurian period, some magnesium substituted for some of the calcium in the carbonates, worldwide sea levels were at their all-time maximum in the Ordovician, as the sea retreated, erosion inevitably began. This dolostone basin contains Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Erie, the Welland Canal allows ships to traverse the escarpment between Lake Erie and Lake Ontario on the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario. In southern Ontario, the Bruce Trail runs the length of the escarpment from Queenston on the Niagara River to Tobermory on the Bruce Peninsula. Highway 401, Canadas busiest, also crosses the Niagara Escarpment, beginning its descent through rolling hills, farmland. Rock exposed on the face of the escarpment can be seen along Highway 26 from Owen Sound eastwards towards Meaford, hamilton, Ontario, is situated on the escarpment in such a way that the north end of the city is below and the south part above. Affectionately referred to as The Mountain by its residents, many roads or mountain accesses join the urban core below with the suburban expansion above. High Cliff State Park in Wisconsin shows how modern and prehistoric humans used the escarpment for not only cultural reasons, a number of different animal and geometric effigy mounds and the remains of an early 20th-century limestone quarry and kiln are within the park. The relief and exposed edge are used by wind farms stretching from Pipe, Wisconsin, to Brownsville
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Manitoulin Island
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Manitoulin Island /ˌmænᵻˈtuːlᵻn/ is a Canadian lake island in Lake Huron, in the province of Ontario. It is the largest freshwater island in the world. The current name of the island is the English version, via French, of the historic Odawa name Manidoowaaling and it was named for an underwater cave where a powerful spirit was said to live. By the 19th century the Odawa l was pronounced as n, the same word with a newer pronunciation is used for the town Manitowaning, which is located on Manitoulin Island near the underwater cave where legend has it that the spirit dwells. The modern Odawa name for Manitoulin Island is Mnidoo Mnis, Manitoulin Island contains a number of lakes of its own. In order of size, its three most prominent lakes are Lake Manitou, Lake Kagawong and Lake Mindemoya, each of these three lakes in turn have islands within them, the largest of these being Lake Mindemoyas 82-acre Treasure Island, located in the centre of Manitoulin. The island is the site of the office of the Sheshegwaning First Nations band government. The island has an area of 2,766 km2, making it the 172nd largest island in the world, the island separates the larger part of Lake Huron to its south and west from Georgian Bay to its east and the North Channel to the north. Manitoulin Island itself has 108 freshwater lakes, some of which have their own islands, in turn several of these islands within islands have their own ponds. Lake Manitou, at 104 km2, is the largest lake in an island in the world. Motors are prohibited on boats on Nameless Lake, the island also has four major rivers, the Kagawong, Manitou River, Blue Jay Creek in Michaels Bay and Mindemoya rivers, which provide spawning grounds for salmon and trout. The Manitoulin Streams Improvement Association was formed in 2000 and incorporated in 2007, the organization rehabilitates streams, rivers and creeks on Manitoulin Island to improve water quality and the fisheries resource. The Manitoulin Streams Improvement Association has conducted enhancement strategies for the Manitou River, the association has rehabilitated 17 major sites on the Manitou River and three major sites on Blue Jay Creek, it has completed work on Bass Lake Creek and Nortons Creek. The organization plans to work on the Mindemoya River in 2010. The island consists mainly of dolomite as it is a continuation of the Bruce Peninsula and this geological rock formation runs south into Niagara Falls and continues into New York. The Cup and Saucer Trail, which climbs the escarpment, provides a spectacular lookout over the island, the island, along with several smaller neighbouring islands, constitutes the Manitoulin District census division of Ontario. Year-round motor-vehicle access to the island is available via the one-lane Little Current Swing Bridge, from late May to early October, a daily passenger-vehicle ferry, the MS Chi-Cheemaun, travels between Tobermory on the tip of the Bruce Peninsula and South Baymouth. Winter ice prevents ferry service during that season, Manitoulin Islands soil is relatively alkaline, which precludes the growth of common Northern Ontario flora such as blueberries, but allows for the islands trademark hawberries
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Lake Simcoe
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Lake Simcoe is a lake in Southern Ontario, Canada, the fourth-largest lake wholly in the province, after Lake Nipigon, Lac Seul, and Lake Nipissing. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century the lake was called Ouentironk by the Wyandot people. It was also known as Lake Toronto until it was renamed by John Graves Simcoe, the lake is bordered by Simcoe County, Durham Region, and York Region. The city of Barrie is located on Kempenfelt Bay, and Orillia is located at the entrance to Lake Couchiching, the watershed draining into the lake contains a population of roughly half a million people, including the northern portion of the Greater Toronto Area. The town of Innisfil occupies the western south of Barrie. Lake Simcoe is a remnant of a bigger, prehistoric lake known as Lake Algonquin. This lakes basin also included Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, Lake Nipigon, the melting of an ice dam at the close of the last ice age greatly reduced water levels in the region, leaving the lakes of today. At the time of the first European contact in the 17th century, the Severn River, its outlet stream, was once called Rivière de Toronto which flows into Georgian Bays Severn Sound, then called the Baie de Toronto. The later French traders referred to it as Lac aux Claies and it was renamed by John Graves Simcoe in 1793, not in honour of himself, but in memory of his father, Captain John Simcoe. The lake is about 30 kilometres long,25 kilometres wide and 722 square kilometres in area and it is shaped somewhat like a fist with the index finger and thumb extended. The thumb forms Kempenfelt Bay on the west, the wrist Lake Couchiching to the north, fresh-cut saplings placed in the water and sediments would have sprouted branches and leaves, persisting for some time, leading to a place where trees stand in the water. A number of southern Ontario rivers flow, generally north, into the lake, from the east, the Talbot River, part of the Trent-Severn Waterway is the most important river draining into Lake Simcoe, connecting the lake with the Kawartha lakes system and Lake Ontario. From its connection to Lake Couchiching, the Severn River is the drainage from the lake to Georgian Bay. The canal locks of the Trent-Severn Waterway make this connection navigable, the lake is dotted with several smaller islands, including Thorah Island, Strawberry Island, Snake Island, and Fox Island. Pope John Paul II stayed on Strawberry Island for four days just before World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto. Before the completion of the Trent Severn Waterway, the level on Lake Simcoe was quite low enabling residents to cross in wagons or walk in ankle deep water to the mainland. However, when it was completed, the water increased by several feet. The lake has little activity, but sees many recreational uses
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Appalachian Mountains
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The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period and it once reached elevations similar to those of the Alps and the Rocky Mountains before naturally occurring erosion. The Appalachian chain is a barrier to east-west travel, as it forms a series of alternating ridgelines, definitions vary on the precise boundaries of the Appalachians. A common variant definition does not include the Adirondack Mountains, which belong to the Grenville Orogeny and have a different geological history from the rest of the Appalachians. The range covers parts of the islands of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, the system is divided into a series of ranges, with the individual mountains averaging around 3,000 ft. The highest of the group is Mount Mitchell in North Carolina at 6,684 feet, the term Appalachian refers to several different regions associated with the mountain range. Most broadly, it refers to the mountain range with its surrounding hills. The Ouachita Mountains in Arkansas and Oklahoma were originally part of the Appalachians as well, the name was soon altered by the Spanish to Apalachee and used as a name for the tribe and region spreading well inland to the north. Pánfilo de Narváezs expedition first entered Apalachee territory on June 15,1528, now spelled Appalachian, it is the fourth-oldest surviving European place-name in the US. After the de Soto expedition in 1540, Spanish cartographers began to apply the name of the tribe to the mountains themselves. The first cartographic appearance of Apalchen is on Diego Gutierrezs map of 1562, the name was not commonly used for the whole mountain range until the late 19th century. A competing and often more popular name was the Allegheny Mountains, Alleghenies, in the early 19th century, Washington Irving proposed renaming the United States either Appalachia or Alleghania. In U. S. dialects in the regions of the Appalachians. In northern parts of the range, it is pronounced /ˌæpəˈleɪtʃᵻnz/ or /ˌæpəˈleɪʃᵻnz/, the third syllable is like lay. There is often debate between the residents of the regions as to which pronunciation is the more correct one. Elsewhere, a commonly accepted pronunciation for the adjective Appalachian is /ˌæpəˈlætʃiən/, the whole system may be divided into three great sections, Northern, The northern section runs from the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador to the Hudson River. The Monteregian Hills, which cross the Green Mountains in Quebec, are also unassociated with the Appalachians, Central, The central section goes from the Hudson Valley to the New River running through Virginia and West Virginia. Southern, The southern section runs from the New River onwards and it consists of the prolongation of the Blue Ridge, which is divided into the Western Blue Ridge Front and the Eastern Blue Ridge Front, the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, and the Cumberland Plateau
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Laurentian Mountains
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The Gatineau, LAssomption, Lièvre, Montmorency, Nord and St. Maurice rivers rise in lakes in this mountain range. Across the U. S. border to the south, the Adirondack Mountains in New York State, although Laurentides is one of Quebecs official regions, the mountain range of the same name runs through four other regions, Capitale-Nationale, Outaouais, Lanaudière, and Mauricie. Extending into central Ontario, the foothills of the Laurentian range are known as the Opeongo Hills, the Laurentian Mountain range is one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world. It contains rocks deposited before the Cambrian Period 540 million years ago, the Laurentians are the central part of the Grenville orogeny dating back to around a billion years
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Eastern Canadian forests
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The Eastern Canadian forests is an ecoregion of Canada as defined by the World Wildlife Fund categorization system. The climate is cool and wet and the coast is subject to heavy fog, the Central Canadian Shield forests ecoregion lies inland to the west and has more black spruce than the balsam fir that are the dominant tree in this ecoregion. Other plants include mosses and coastal heath shrubs, sheltered areas within the mountains, such as the valley around Lac St. Jean have a different woodland pattern. This coast is a ground for large colonies of eiders. Mammals include moose, American black bear, Canada lynx, red fox, snowshoe hare and this coast has long been inhabited and the forest much altered especially by logging. Mining has also damaged habitats in areas such as Matamec
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Taiga
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Taiga also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces and larches. The taiga is the worlds largest biome apart from the oceans, in North America it covers most of inland Canada and Alaska as well as parts of the extreme northern continental United States, where it is known as the Northwoods or North woods. However, the tree species, the length of the growing season. Hoffman discusses the origin of this use in North America. Although at high elevations taiga grades into alpine tundra through Krummholz, it is not an alpine biome only like subalpine forest, Taiga is the worlds largest land biome, and makes up 29% of the worlds forest cover, the largest areas are located in Russia and Canada. The taiga is the terrestrial biome with the lowest annual average temperatures after the tundra, extreme winter minimums in the northern taiga are typically lower than those of the tundra. The lowest reliably recorded temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere were recorded in the taiga of northeastern Russia, the taiga or boreal forest has a subarctic climate with very large temperature range between seasons, but the long and cold winter is the dominant feature. This climate is classified as Dfc, Dwc, Dsc, Dfd and Dwd in the Köppen climate classification scheme, meaning that the summer lasts 1–3 months. In Siberian taiga the average temperature of the coldest month is between −6 °C and −50 °C, the mean annual temperature generally varies from -5 °C to 5 °C, but there are taiga areas in eastern Siberia and interior Alaska-Yukon where the mean annual reaches down to -10 °C. According to some sources, the boreal forest grades into a mixed forest when mean annual temperature reaches about 3 °C. The winters, with temperatures below freezing, last five to seven months. Temperatures vary from −54 °C to 30 °C throughout the whole year, the summers, while short, are generally warm and humid. In much of the taiga, -20 °C would be a winter day temperature and 18 °C an average summer day. In Canada, Scandinavia and Finland, the season is often estimated by using the period of the year when the 24-hour average temperature is +5 °C or more. For the Taiga Plains in Canada, growing season varies from 80 to 150 days, some sources claim 130 days growing season as typical for the taiga. Other sources mention that 50–100 frost-free days are characteristic, data for locations in southwest Yukon gives 80–120 frost-free days. The closed canopy boreal forest in Kenozersky National Park near Plesetsk, Arkhangelsk Province, Russia, the longest growing season is found in the smaller areas with oceanic influences, in coastal areas of Scandinavia and Finland, the growing season of the closed boreal forest can be 145–180 days. High latitudes mean that the sun not rise far above the horizon
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Temperate deciduous forest
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Temperate deciduous forests or temperate broad-leaf forests are dominated by trees that lose their leaves each year. They are found in areas with warm, moist summers and mild winters, the three major areas of this forest type occur in the Northern Hemisphere, eastern North America, East Asia, and Europe. Smaller areas occur in Australasia and southern South America, the diversity of tree species is higher in regions where the winter is milder, and also in mountainous regions that provide an array of soil types and microclimates. One of the worlds great protected examples of this forest type is found in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the principal factor operating in these forests is the seasonal appearance and disappearance of the canopy. Shade from the limits the growth of many kinds of plants. Many species that are typical of these forests time their growth and flowering to the period just before the canopy opens. Most spring ephemerals are insect-pollinated, and the seeds themselves are transported by ants. There are a number of species able to grow under the canopy. The average yearly precipitation is 30 -60 inches, temperate deciduous forests have a great variety of plant species. Most have three levels of plants, lichen, moss, ferns, wildflowers and other small plants can be found on the forest floor. Shrubs fill in the level and hardwood trees like maple, oak, birch, magnolia, sweet gum. Birds like broad-winged hawks, cardinals, snowy owls, and pileated woodpeckers are found in this biome. Mammals include white-tailed deer, raccoons, opossums, porcupines and red foxes, animals that live in the temperate deciduous forest must be able to adapt to the changing seasons. Many understory plants have leaf adaptions to cope with low levels. A few, such as Indian pipe and Corallorhiza orchids, have adapted to the shade by parasitism, the trees similarly are controlled by shade. Most tree seedlings require small gaps when trees fall and make space in order to regenerate, a few require larger gaps such as those produced by windstorms. Gradients of soil moisture, soil depth, elevation and aspect control the distribution of trees, shrubs. Some require unusual conditions such as slopes, infertile soil
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Tsuga canadensis
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It is the state tree of Pennsylvania. The eastern hemlock grows well in shade and is long lived, with the oldest recorded specimen, found in Tionesta, Pennsylvania. The tree generally reaches heights of about 31 meters, but exceptional trees have been recorded up to 53 meters, the diameter of the trunk at breast height is often 1.5 meters, but again, outstanding trees have been recorded up to 1.75 meters. The trunk is straight and monopodial, but very rarely is forked. The crown is conic, while the brownish bark is scaly and deeply fissured. The twigs are a yellow-brown in colour with darker red-brown pulvini, the buds are ovoid in shape and are very small, measuring only 1.5 to 2.5 mm in length. These are usually not resinous, but may be slightly so, the leaves are typically 15 to 20 mm in length, but may be as short as 5 mm or as long as 25 mm. They are flattened and are typically distichous, or two-ranked, the bottom of the leaf is glaucous with two broad and clearly visible stomatal bands, while the top is a shiny green to yellow-green in colour. The leaf margins are slightly toothed, especially near the apex. The seed cones are ovoid in shape and typically measure 1.5 to 2.5 cm in length and 1 to 1.5 cm in width. The scales are ovate to cuneate in shape and measure 8 to 12 mm in length by 7 to 10 mm in width, the apex is more or less rounded and is often projected outward. Twenty-four diploid chromosomes are present within the trees DNA, the wood is soft, coarse-grained, and light buff in color. Air-dried, a cubic foot weighs 28 lbs, the lumber is used for general construction and crates. Because of its power of holding spikes, it is also used for railroad ties. Untreated, the wood is not durable if exposed to the elements, as a fuel, it is low in value. The wood is also a source of pulp for paper manufacturing, T. canadensis occurs at sea level in the north of its distribution, but is found primarily at elevations of 600–1,800 metres. It ranges from northeastern Minnesota eastward through southern Quebec and into Nova Scotia, disjunct populations occur in the southeastern Piedmont, western Ohio and into Illinois, as well as eastern Minnesota. In Canada, it is present in Ontario and all provinces to the east except Newfoundland, in the USA, it is found in all states east of and including Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama, but excluding Florida
30.
Pine
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A pine is any conifer in the genus Pinus, /ˈpiːnuːs/, of the family Pinaceae. Pinus is the genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The Plant List compiled by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accepts 126 species names of pines as current, together with 35 unresolved species, the modern English name pine derives from Latin pinus, which some have traced to the Indo-European base *pīt- ‘resin’. Before the 19th century, pines were often referred to as firs, the genus is divided into three subgenera, which can be distinguished by cone, seed, and leaf characters, Pinus subg. Pinus, the yellow, or hard pine group, generally harder wood. Ducampopinus, the foxtail or pinyon group Pinus subg, strobus, the white, or soft pine group, generally with softer wood and five needles per fascicle Most regions of the Northern Hemisphere host some native species of pines. One species crosses the equator in Sumatra to 2°S, in North America, various species occur in regions at latitudes from as far north as 66°N to as far south as 12°N. Various species have been introduced to temperate and subtropical regions of both hemispheres, where they are grown as timber or cultivated as ornamental plants in parks, a number of such introduced species have become invasive and threaten native ecosystems. Pine trees are evergreen, coniferous trees growing 3–80 m tall. The smallest are Siberian dwarf pine and Potosi pinyon, and the tallest is a 81.79 m tall ponderosa pine located in southern Oregons Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, the bark of most pines is thick and scaly, but some species have thin, flaky bark. The branches are produced in regular pseudo whorls, actually a very tight spiral, the spiral growth of branches, needles, and cone scales are arranged in Fibonacci number ratios. The new spring shoots are sometimes called candles, they are covered in brown or whitish bud scales and point upward at first, then turn green. These candles offer foresters a means to evaluate fertility of the soil, pines are long-lived, and typically reach ages of 100–1,000 years, some even more. The longest-lived is the Great Basin bristlecone pine, Pinus longaeva, one individual of this species, dubbed Methuselah, is one of the worlds oldest living organisms at around 4,600 years old. This tree can be found in the White Mountains of California, an older tree, now cut down, was dated at 4,900 years old. It was discovered in a grove beneath Wheeler Peak and it is now known as Prometheus after the Greek immortal, pines have four types of leaf, Seed leaves on seedlings, born in a whorl of 4–24. Juvenile leaves, which follow immediately on seedlings and young plants, 2–6 cm long, single, green or often blue-green and these are produced for six months to five years, rarely longer. Scale leaves, similar to bud scales, small, brown and non-photosynthetic, needles, the adult leaves, are green and bundled in clusters called fascicles
31.
Maple
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Acer /ˈeɪsər/ is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple. There are approximately 128 species, most of which are native to Asia, with a number appearing in Europe, northern Africa. Only one species, Acer laurinum, extends to the Southern Hemisphere, the type species of the genus is the sycamore maple, Acer pseudoplatanus, the most common maple species in Europe. Most maples are trees growing to 10–45 m height, others are shrubs less than 10 meters tall with a number of small trunks originating at ground level. Most species are deciduous, and many are renowned for their autumn colour, but a few in southern Asia. Most are shade-tolerant when young and are often riparian, understory, many of the root systems are typically dense and fibrous, inhibiting the growth of other vegetation underneath them. A few species, notably Acer cappadocicum, frequently produce root sprouts, maples are distinguished by opposite leaf arrangement. The leaves in most species are palmate veined and lobed, with 3 to 9 veins each leading to a lobe, a small number of species differ in having palmate compound, pinnate compound, pinnate veined or unlobed leaves. Several species, including Acer griseum, Acer mandshuricum, Acer maximowiczianum, one species, Acer negundo, has pinnately compound leaves that may be simply trifoliate or may have five, seven, or rarely nine leaflets. A few, such as Acer laevigatum and Acer carpinifolium, have pinnately veined simple leaves, the flowers are regular, pentamerous, and borne in racemes, corymbs, or umbels. They have four or five sepals, four or five petals about 1 –6 mm long, four to ten stamens about 6 –10 mm long, and two pistils or a pistil with two styles. The ovary is superior and has two carpels, whose wings elongate the flowers, making it easy to tell which flowers are female. Maples flower in winter or early spring, in most species with or just after the appearance of the leaves. Maple flowers are green, yellow, orange or red, though individually small, the effect of an entire tree in flower can be striking in several species. Some maples are a spring source of pollen and nectar for bees. The distinctive fruits are called samaras, maple keys, helicopters and these seeds occur in distinctive pairs each containing one seed enclosed in a nutlet attached to a flattened wing of fibrous, papery tissue. They are shaped to spin as they fall and to carry the seeds a considerable distance on the wind, people often call them helicopters due to the way that they spin as they fall. During World War II, the US Army developed an air drop supply carrier that could carry up to 65 pounds of supplies and was based on the Maple seed
32.
Oak
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An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 600 extant species of oaks, the common name oak also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus, as well as in those of unrelated species such as Grevillea robusta and the Casuarinaceae. North America contains the largest number of oak species, with approximately 90 occurring in the United States, the second greatest center of oak diversity is China, which contains approximately 100 species. Oaks have spirally arranged leaves, with lobate margins in many species, also, the acorns contain tannic acid, as do the leaves, which helps to guard from fungi and insects. Many deciduous species are marcescent, not dropping dead leaves until spring, in spring, a single oak tree produces both male flowers and small female flowers. The fruit is a nut called an acorn, borne in a structure known as a cupule, each acorn contains one seed and takes 6–18 months to mature. The live oaks are distinguished for being evergreen, but are not actually a distinct group, the oak tree is a flowering plant. Oaks may be divided into two genera and a number of sections, The genus Quercus is divided into the following sections, Quercus, the white oaks of Europe, Asia and North America. Styles are short, acorns mature in 6 months and taste sweet or slightly bitter, the leaves mostly lack a bristle on their lobe tips, which are usually rounded. The type species is Quercus robur, Mesobalanus, Hungarian oak and its relatives of Europe and Asia. Styles long, acorns mature in about 6 months and taste bitter, the section Mesobalanus is closely related to section Quercus and sometimes included in it. Cerris, the Turkey oak and its relatives of Europe and Asia, styles long, acorn mature in 18 months and taste very bitter. The inside of the shell is hairless. Its leaves typically have sharp tips, with bristles at the lobe tip. Protobalanus, the live oak and its relatives, in southwest United States. Styles short, acorns mature in 18 months and taste very bitter, the inside of the acorn shell appears woolly. Leaves typically have sharp tips, with bristles at the lobe tip. Lobatae, the red oaks of North America, Central America, styles long, acorns mature in 18 months and taste very bitter
33.
Albany Pine Bush
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The Albany Pine Bush, referred to locally as the Pine Bush, is one of the largest of the 20 inland pine barrens in the world. It is centrally located in New Yorks Capital District within Albany and Schenectady counties, the Albany Pine Bush was formed thousands of years ago, following the drainage of Glacial Lake Albany. By 2008 it included all parcels of the Albany Pine Bush Preserve, the properties that connect these protected parcels, the Pine Bush has been a historical, cultural, and environmental asset to the Capital District and Hudson Valley regions of New York. Pioneers moving west passed through the barrens, which later was crossed by the first passenger railroad in the United States. The Pine Bush is home to the Karner blue butterfly, a species first identified by author Vladimir Nabokov in 1944 using a type specimen from the Pine Bush. Around 10,000 years ago Native Americans moved into the Pine Bush area, the Dutch traded with both native groups from their outpost at Fort Orange, which was established in 1624. For the natives the Pine Bush was an important source of firewood, by 1640 the natives were having trouble finding enough animals in the Pine Bush to supply the growing European demand. The Mohawk referred to the settlement at Fort Orange as skahnéhtati, meaning beyond the pine plains, referring to the large area of the Pine Bush between the Hudson and Mohawk rivers. The Dutch granted a patent in 1661 under the name of Schenectady to a settlement on a bend in the Mohawk River to the west of the Pine Bush, in 1664, the Dutch surrendered their entire colony of New Netherland, including Albany and Schenectady, to the English. This area was later the site of the Dutch Fort Orange, after the founding of Schenectady, the name was used for what became a major route between the two settlements but, until the mid-18th century, it was not improved beyond a foot path. During the war from 1699 to 1707, Albany residents collected firewood from the Pine Bush for the army that was camped at Fort Frederick. Some of these immigrants named the Helderberg Escarpment and settled Schoharie County, others in 1723 settled further west in the valley, west of Little Falls on the Burnetsfield Patent. During the French and Indian Wars, the British military improved the road significantly for use by its forces, after the war it was used by numerous settlers moving west into the Mohawk Valley. The highway and the Pine Bush was a wilderness and extremely dangerous even after the end of the war. Starting in 1765, militiamen took turns escorting travelers through the area to them from outlaws, bandits, smugglers. During the American Revolutionary War, the Bush was home to Loyalists of the British Crown, rumors circulated of several murders/robberies being carried out at the tavern. Travel became easier in 1793 following the revolution, when a coach began carrying passengers between the two cities and through the Pine Bush for three cents per mile. The 19th century saw improvements in modes of transportation for traveling through the Pine Bush with better roads
34.
Alvar
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An alvar is a biological environment based on a limestone plain with thin or no soil and, as a result, sparse grassland vegetation. Often flooded in the spring, and affected by drought in midsummer, most alvars occur either in northern Europe or around the Great Lakes in North America. This stressed habitat supports a community of plants and animals. Lichen and mosses are common species, trees and bushes are absent or severely stunted. The primary cause of alvars is the exposed bedrock. Flooding and drought, as noted, add to the stress of the site, disturbance may also play a role. In Europe, grazing is frequent, while in North America, the habitat also has strong competition gradients, with better competitors occupying the deeper soil and excluding other species to less productive locations. Crevices in the limestone provide a habitat which is somewhat protected from grazing. Bare rock flats provide areas with low competition that serve as refugia for weak competitors such as Minuartia michauxii. In a representative set of four Ontario alvars, seven habitat types were described, from deep to shallow soil these were, tall grassy meadows, tall forb-rich meadows, low grassy meadows, low forb-rich meadows, dry grassland, rock margin grassland and bare rock flats. Alvars comprise a small percentage of the Earths ecosystems by land extent, more than half of all remaining alvars occur in Ontario. There are smaller areas in New York, Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin, rare plants include Kalms lobelia, Pringles aster, juniper sedge, lakeside daisy, rams-head ladys-slipper and dwarf lake iris. Also associated with alvars are rare butterflies and snails, the use of the word alvar to refer to this type of environment originated in Scandinavia. The largest alvar in Europe is located on the Swedish island of Öland, here the thin soil mantle is only 0.5 to 2.0 centimeters thick in most places and in many extents consists of exposed limestone slabs. The landscape there has been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, there are other more local names for similar landforms, such as a pavement barren although this term is also used for similar landforms based on sandstone. In the United Kingdom the exposed landform is called a limestone pavement, Estonia Alvars are distributed along the whole northern coast of Estonia from approx. The town of Paldiski to Sillamäe, wherever limestone comes to the surface near the seashore, Estonian alvars are home to 267 species of vascular plants, approximately one fifth of which are protected. There are also 142 species of bryophytes and 263 species of lichens, the Estonian government has committed itself to protect at least 9,800 hectares of the countrys alvars as part of the Natura 2000 network
35.
Thuja occidentalis
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The species was first described by Carl Linnaeus in 1753, and the binomial name remains current. Common names include, The name arborvitae is particularly used in the trade in the United States. It is Latin for tree of life - due to the medicinal properties of the sap, bark. Despite its common names, it is not a cedar in the genus Cedrus, nor is it related to the Australian white cedar. The tree is often stunted or prostrate in less favorable locations, the bark is red-brown, furrowed and peels in narrow, longitudinal strips. Northern white-cedar has fan-like branches and scaly leaves, the foliage forms in flat sprays with scale-like leaves 3–5 millimetres long. The seed cones are slender, yellow-green, ripening to brown, 9–14 millimetres long and 4–5 millimetres broad and they contain about 8 seeds each. The branches may root if the tree falls. Northern white-cedar is native to an area in the part of eastern Canada. It extends from southeastern Manitoba east throughout the Great Lakes region and into Ontario, Québec, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, in Canada, its range reaches the Arctic treeline and the southern tip of Hudson Bay. It grows mainly in places with cooler summers, with an average of 16 to 22 °C in July, northern white-cedar grows naturally in wet forests, being particularly abundant in coniferous swamps where other larger and faster-growing trees cannot compete successfully. It also occurs on sites with reduced tree competition, such as cliffs. The largest known specimen is 34 m tall and 175 cm diameter, on South Manitou Island within Leelanau County, despite their age, these very old trees are small and stunted due to the difficult growing conditions. White-cedar specimens found growing on cliff faces in southern Ontario are the oldest trees in Eastern North America and all of Canada, white-cedar is a tree with important uses in traditional Ojibwe culture. Honored with the name Nookomis Giizhik, the tree is the subject of sacred legends and is considered a gift to humanity for its uses, among them crafts, construction. It is one of the four plants of the Ojibwe medicine wheel, white-cedar foliage is rich in Vitamin C and is believed to be the annedda which cured the scurvy of Jacques Cartier and his party in the winter of 1535–1536. Due to the presence of the neurotoxic compound thujone, internal use can be harmful if used for prolonged periods or while pregnant, northern white-cedar is commercially used for rustic fencing and posts, lumber, poles, shingles and in the construction of log cabins. White-cedar is the wood for the structural elements, such as ribs and planking, of birchbark canoes
36.
Cardinal (bird)
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Cardinals, in the family Cardinalidae, are passerine birds found in North and South America. They are also known as cardinal-grosbeaks and cardinal-buntings, the South American cardinals in the genus Paroaria are placed in another family, the Thraupidae. They are robust, seed-eating birds with strong bills, the family ranges in size from the 12-cm,11. 5-g orange-breasted bunting and up to the 25-cm, 85-g black-headed saltator. They are typically associated with open woodland, the sexes usually have distinctive appearances. The northern cardinal type species was named by colonists for the red crest. The North American buntings are known as such to distinguish them from buntings of the Old World family Emberizidae, the name cardinal-grosbeak can also apply to the Cardinalid family as a whole. Most species are rated by the IUCN as being of least concern, a study conducted in 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia on West Nile virus transmission in the United States, found that unlike other species, cardinals biologically suppress the disease upon infection. Defining a monophyletic Cardinalini, A molecular perspective
37.
Downy woodpecker
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The downy woodpecker is a species of woodpecker, the smallest in North America. Adult downy woodpeckers are the smallest of North Americas woodpeckers but there are many smaller species elsewhere, the total length of the species ranges from 14 to 18 cm and the wingspan from 25 to 31 cm. Body mass ranges from 20 to 33 g, standard measurements are as follows, the wing chord is 8. 5–10 cm, the tail is 4–6 cm, the bill is 1–1.8 cm and the tarsus is 1. 1–1.7 cm. The downy woodpecker is black on the upperparts and wings, with a white back, throat and belly. There is a bar above the eye and one below. They have a tail with white outer feathers barred with black. Adult males have a red patch on the back of the head whereas juvenile birds display a red cap, the downy woodpeckers bill is shorter than its head, whereas the hairy woodpeckers bill is approximately equal to head length. The downy woodpecker gives a number of vocalizations, including a short pik call, one may identify the woodpecker by pik-call, counting half a second between piks. The rattle-call is short burst that sounds similar to a bouncing ball, like other woodpeckers, it also produces a drumming sound(sounds like four taps Like other woodpeckers, it also produces a drumming sound with its beak as it pecks into trees. Compared to other North American species its drums are slow, why they evolved this way cannot be explained with confidence, it may be relevant that the species exploit rather different-sized foodstuffs and do not compete very much ecologically. Some taxonomic authorities, including the American Ornithological Society, continue to place this species in the genus Picoides, downy woodpeckers are native to forested areas, mainly deciduous, of North America. Their range consists of most of the United States and Canada, except for the deserts of the southwest, mostly permanent residents, northern birds may migrate further south, birds in mountainous areas may move to lower elevations. Downy woodpeckers nest in a cavity excavated by the nesting pair in a dead tree or limb. In the winter, they roost in tree cavities, downy Woodpeckers forage on trees, picking the bark surface in summer and digging deeper in winter. They mainly eat insects, also seeds and berries, in winter, especially, downy woodpeckers can often be found in suburban backyards with mature trees. There, they may feed on suet and shelled peanuts provided by mesh birdfeeders
38.
Wood duck
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The wood duck or Carolina duck is a species of perching duck found in North America. It is one of the most colorful North American waterfowl, the wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A typical adult is from 47 to 54 cm in length with a wingspan of between 66 to 73 cm and this is about three-quarters of the length of an adult mallard. It shares its genus with the Asian Mandarin duck, the adult male has distinctive multicolored iridescent plumage and red eyes, with a distinctive white flare down the neck. The female, less colorful, has a white eye-ring and a whitish throat. The males call is a whistle, jeeeeee, the females utter a drawn-out, rising squeal, do weep do weep, when flushed. Their breeding habitat is wooded swamps, shallow lakes, marshes or ponds, and creeks in eastern North America and they usually nest in cavities in trees close to water, although they will take advantage of nesting boxes in wetland locations if available. Females line their nests with feathers and other materials. Unlike most other ducks, the duck has sharp claws for perching in trees and can, in southern regions. Females typically lay between 7 and 15 white-tan eggs that incubate for an average of 30 days, after hatching, the ducklings jump down from the nest tree and make their way to water. The mother calls them to her, but does not help them in any way and they prefer nesting over water so the young have a soft landing, but will nest up to 140 m away from the shoreline. The day after they hatch, the climb to the nest entrance. The ducklings can swim and find their own food by this time and these birds feed by dabbling or walking on land. They mainly eat berries, acorns, and seeds, but also insects, the birds are year-round residents in parts of its southern range, but the northern populations migrate south for the winter. They overwinter in the southern United States near the Atlantic coast, 75% of the wood ducks in the Pacific Flyway are non-migratory. There is a feral population in Dublin. The population of the duck was in serious decline in the late 19th century as a result of severe habitat loss. By the beginning of the 20th century, wood ducks had disappeared from much of their former range
39.
Eastern screech owl
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The eastern screech owl or eastern screech-owl is a small owl that is relatively common in Eastern North America, from Mexico to Canada. Adults range from 16 to 25 cm in length and weigh 121–244 g, among the differently sized races, length can average from 19.5 to 23.8 cm. The wingspan can range from 46 to 61 cm, in Ohio, male owls average 166 g and females 194 g while in central Texas, they average 157 g and 185 g, respectively. They have either rusty or dark gray intricately patterned plumage with streaking on the underparts, mid-sized by screech-owl standards, these birds are stocky, short-tailed and broad-winged as is typical of the genus. They have a round head with prominent ear tufts, yellow eyes and a yellowish beak. Two color variations are referred to as red or rufous morphs and gray morphs by bird watchers, rusty birds are more common in the southern parts of the range, pairings of the two color variants do occur. The highest percentage of red morph are known from Tennessee and Illinois, a rarer brown morph is known, recorded exclusively in the south, which may be the occasional product of hybridation between the morphs. In the state of Florida, brown morphs are typically reported in the more humid portions of the state, a paler gray variation also exists in western Canada and the north-central United States. In the closely related western screech owl, there are not morphs, besides coloration, the western screech owl is of almost exactly the same general appearance and size as the eastern. The only reliable distinguishing features are the color, which is considerably darker in the western and olive-yellow in the eastern. Five subspecies are typically treated for the screech owl but the taxonomy in the species is considered muddled. Much of the variation may be considered clinal, as predictably, includes previously described races no longer considered valid such as M. a. carolinensis, M. a. naevius and M. a. striatus. Resident from eastern Minnesota to southwestern Quebec and southern New Hampshire south to Missouri, Tennessee, dorsal color is cold gray, red morph common. The nominates markings are coarse and sparse and its toes are densely feathered and its primary song has a terminal tremulous whinny. This is a race, measuring 14 to 18 cm in wing chord length. The owls of southern Ontario are on the end of the scale, of similar size to the relatively big owls of Colorado. Resident from central Montana, southeastern Saskatchewan, and southern Manitoba south to western Kansas. This race is similar to M. a. asio but dorsal color tends to be a paler gray, with a wing chord length of 15 to 18 cm, this is the largest race in average linear measurements
40.
American black bear
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The American black bear is a medium-sized bear native to North America. It is the continents smallest and most widely distributed bear species, Black bears are omnivores, with their diets varying greatly depending on season and location. They typically live in forested areas, but do leave forests in search of food. Sometimes they become attracted to human communities because of the availability of food. The American black bear is the worlds most common bear species, along with the brown bear, it is one of only two of the eight modern bear species not considered globally threatened with extinction by the IUCN. American black bears often mark trees using their teeth and claws as a form of communication with other bears, a behavior common to many species of bears. Despite living in North America, American black bears are not closely related to bears and polar bears. American and Asian black bears are considered sister taxa, and are closely related to each other than to other species of bear. Reportedly, the sun bear is also a recent split from this lineage. A small primitive bear called Ursus abstrusus is the oldest known North American fossil member of the genus Ursus and this suggests that U. abstrusus may be the direct ancestor of the American black bear, which evolved in North America. Although Wolverton and Lyman still consider U. vitabilis an apparent precursor to modern black bears, the ancestors of American black bears and Asiatic black bears diverged from sun bears 4.58 mya. The American black bear then split from the Asian black bear 4.08 mya, the earliest American black bear fossils, which were located in Port Kennedy, Pennsylvania, greatly resemble the Asiatic species, though later specimens grew to sizes comparable to grizzlies. From the Holocene to present, American black bears seem to have shrunk in size, the American black bear lived during the same period as short-faced bears and the Florida spectacled bear. These Tremarctine bears evolved from bears that had emigrated from Asia to North America 7–8 ma, however, both Arctodus and Tremarctos had survived several other ice ages. American black bears are reproductively compatible with several other bear species, according to Jack Hannas Monkeys on the Interstate, a bear captured in Sanford, Florida, was thought to have been the offspring of an escaped female Asian black bear and a male American black bear. In 1859, a bear and a Eurasian brown bear were bred together in the London Zoological Gardens. In the reports published since this date three species have produced young, a black bear shot in autumn 1986 in Michigan was thought by some to be a black bear/grizzly bear hybrid, due to its unusually large size and its proportionately larger braincase and skull. DNA testing was unable to determine whether it was a black bear or grizzly
41.
Moose
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The moose or elk, Alces alces, is the largest extant species in the deer family. Moose are distinguished by the broad, flat antlers of the males, Moose typically inhabit boreal forests and temperate broadleaf and mixed forests of the Northern Hemisphere in temperate to subarctic climates. Hunting and other activities have caused a reduction in the size of the mooses range over time. Moose have been reintroduced to some of their former habitats, currently, most moose are found in Canada, Alaska, New England, Fennoscandia, Latvia, Estonia and Russia. Their diet consists of terrestrial and aquatic vegetation. The most common predators are the gray wolf along with bears. Unlike most other species, moose are solitary animals and do not form herds. Although generally slow-moving and sedentary, moose can become aggressive and move quickly if angered or startled and their mating season in the autumn features energetic fights between males competing for a female. Alces alces is called a moose in North American English, and that same word elk in North American English refers to a completely different species of deer, the Cervus canadensis, also called the wapiti. A mature male moose is called a bull, a female a cow. The word elk originated from Proto-Germanic languages, from which Old English evolved, the British English word elk has cognates in other Indo-European languages, for example elg in Danish/Norwegian, älg in Swedish, alnis in Latvian, Elch in German, and łoś in Polish. In the continental-European languages, these forms of the word elk almost always refer to the Alces alces, the word moose first entered English by 1606 and is borrowed from the Algonquian languages, and possibly involved forms from multiple languages mutually reinforcing one another. The term moose is a name of North American origin, the animal is known in British English as the elk. The moose became extinct in Britain during the Bronze Age, long before the Europeans discovery of America, the youngest bones were found in Scotland and are roughly 3900 years old. Dictionaries of the 18th century simply described elk as a deer that was as large as a horse, confusingly, the word elk is used in North America to refer to a different animal, Cervus canadensis, which is also called by the Algonkian indigenous name, wapiti. The British began colonizing America in the 17th century, and found two common species of deer for which they had no names, the wapiti appeared very similar to the red deer of Europe although it was much larger and was not red. The moose was a rather strange-looking deer to the colonists, the wapiti is very similar to the red deer of central and western Europe, although it is distinctly different behaviorally and genetically. Early European explorers in North America, particularly in Virginia where there were no moose, called the wapiti elk because of its size, the moose resembled the German elk, which was less familiar to the British colonists
42.
Gray wolf
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The gray wolf or grey wolf, also known as the timber wolf or western wolf, is a canine native to the wilderness and remote areas of Eurasia and North America. It is the largest extant member of its family, with males averaging 43–45 kg, like the red wolf, it is distinguished from other Canis species by its larger size and less pointed features, particularly on the ears and muzzle. Its winter fur is long and bushy, and predominantly a mottled gray in color, although pure white, red. As of 2005,37 subspecies of C. lupus are recognised by MSW3 and it is nonetheless closely related enough to smaller Canis species, such as the eastern wolf, coyote, and golden jackal to produce fertile hybrids. It is an animal, travelling in nuclear families consisting of a mated pair. The gray wolf is typically an apex predator throughout its range, with only humans and it feeds primarily on large ungulates, though it also eats smaller animals, livestock, carrion, and garbage. The gray wolf is one of the worlds best known and well researched animals, although the fear of wolves is pervasive in many human societies, the majority of recorded attacks on people have been attributed to animals suffering from rabies. The English wolf stems from the Old English wulf, which is thought to be derived from the Proto-Germanic *wulfaz. The Latin lupus is a Sabine loanword, both derive from the Proto-Indo-European root *wlqwos/*lukwos. The species Canis lupus was first recorded by Carl Linnaeus in his publication Systema Naturae in 1758, the thirty-seven subspecies of Canis lupus are listed under the designated common name of wolf in Mammal Species of the World third edition that was published in 2005. The nominate subspecies is the Eurasian wolf, also known as the common wolf, the subspecies includes the domestic dog, dingo, eastern wolf and red wolf, but lists C. l. italicus and C. l. communis as synonyms of C. l. lupus. However, the classification of several as either species or subspecies has recently been challenged, ecological factors including habitat type, climate, prey specialization and predatory competition will greatly influence the wolfs genetic population structure and cranio-dental plasticity. The domestic dog is the most widely abundant large carnivore and a descendant from one of those now-extinct wolf populations, in 2013, a genetic study found that the wolf population in Europe was divided along a north-south axis and formed five major clusters. Three clusters were identified occupying southern and central Europe in Italy, the Carpathians, another two clusters were identified occupying north-central Europe and the Ukrainian steppe. The Italian wolf consisted of a population with low genetic diversity. Wolves from Croatia, Bulgaria, and Greece formed the Dinaric-Balkans cluster, the wolves from the Carpathians were more similar to the wolves from the Pontic-Caspian Steppe than they were to wolves from north-central Europe. These clusters may have been the result of expansion from glacial refugia, an adaptation to environments, and landscape fragmentation. These six wolf ecotypes were named West Forest, Boreal Forest, Arctic, High Arctic, Baffin, the studies found that precipitation and mean diurnal temperature range were the most influential variables
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White-tailed deer
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The white-tailed deer, also known as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also introduced to New Zealand, Cuba, Jamaica, Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, Lesser Antilles, and some countries in Europe, such as Finland, the Czech Republic. In the Americas, it is the most widely distributed wild ungulate, in North America, the species is widely distributed east of the Rocky Mountains, but elsewhere, it is mostly replaced by the black-tailed or mule deer. Some taxonomists have attempted to separate white-tailed deer into a host of subspecies, genetic studies, however, suggest fewer subspecies within the animals range, as compared to the 30 to 40 subspecies that some scientists described in the last century. The Florida Key deer, O. virginianus clavium, and the Columbian white-tailed deer, in the United States, the Virginia white-tail, O. virginianus virginianus, is among the most widespread subspecies. The white-tailed deer species has tremendous genetic variation and is adaptable to several environments, several local deer populations, especially in the southern states, are descended from white-tailed deer transplanted from various localities east of the Continental Divide. Some of these populations may have been from as far north as the Great Lakes region to as far west as Texas, yet are also quite at home in the Appalachian. These deer over time have intermixed with the indigenous deer populations. Central and South America have a number of white-tailed deer subspecies that range from Guatemala as far south as Peru. This list of subspecies of deer is more exhaustive than the list of North American subspecies, however, the white-tailed deer populations in these areas are difficult to study, due to overhunting in many parts and a lack of protection. Some areas no longer carry deer, so it is difficult to assess the genetic difference of these animals, the deer can be recognized by the characteristic white underside to its tail. It raises its tail when it is alarmed to warn the predator that it has been detected, a population of white-tailed deer in New York is entirely white —not albino—in color. The former Seneca Army Depot in Romulus, New York, has the largest known concentration of white deer, strong conservation efforts have allowed white deer to thrive within the confines of the depot. White-tailed deers horizontally slit pupils allow for night vision and color vision during the day. The white-tailed deer is highly variable in size, generally following Bergmanns rule that the size is larger farther away from the Equator. North American male deer usually weigh 45 kilograms, but in rare cases, mature bucks over 180 kilograms have been recorded in the northernmost reaches of their native range, specifically, Minnesota and Ontario. In 1926, Carl J. Lenander, Jr. took a white-tailed buck near Tofte, MN, the female in North America usually weighs from 40 to 90 kg. White-tailed deer from the tropics and the Florida Keys are markedly smaller-bodied than temperate populations, averaging 35 to 50 kg, white-tailed deer from the Andes are larger than other tropical deer of this species and have thick, slightly woolly looking fur
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Coyote
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The coyote is a canid native to North America. It is smaller than its relative, the gray wolf, and slightly smaller than its other close relatives, the eastern wolf. It fills much of the ecological niche as the golden jackal does in Eurasia, though it is larger. The species is versatile and able to adapt to environments modified by humans, as human activity has altered the landscape, the coyotes range has expanded. In 2013, coyotes were sighted in eastern Panama for the first time, the coyote is more closely related to the common ancestor of wolves and other canids than the gray wolf. As of 2005,19 coyote subspecies are recognized, the average male coyote weighs 8 to 20 kg and the average female 7 to 18 kg. Their fur color is light gray and red or fulvous interspersed with black and white. It is highly flexible in organization, living either in a family unit or in loosely knit packs of unrelated individuals. The coyotes characteristic vocalization is a made by solitary individuals. Humans aside, cougars and gray wolves are the only serious enemies. Nevertheless, coyotes do sometimes mate with gray, eastern, or red wolves, Most recent studies show that most wolves contain some level of coyote DNA. As with other figures, the coyote uses deception and humor to rebel against social conventions. The animal was especially respected in Mesoamerican cosmology as a symbol of military might, after the European colonization of the Americas, it was reviled in Anglo-American culture as a cowardly and untrustworthy animal. Unlike wolves, which have undergone an improvement of their public image, Coyote males average 8 to 20 kg in weight, while females average 7 to 18 kg, though size varies geographically. Northern subspecies, which average 18 kg, tend to larger than the southern subspecies of Mexico. Body length ranges on average from 1.0 to 1.35 m, the largest coyote on record was a male killed near Afton, Wyoming, on November 19,1937, which measured 1.5 m from nose to tail, and weighed 34 kg. Scent glands are located at the side of the base of the tail and are a bluish-black color. The color and texture of the fur varies somewhat geographically
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Snowshoe hare
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The snowshoe hare, also called the varying hare, or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name snowshoe because of the size of its hind feet. The animals feet prevent it sinking into the snow when it hops. Its feet also have fur on the soles to protect it from freezing temperatures, for camouflage, its fur turns white during the winter and rusty brown during the summer. The snowshoe hare is also distinguishable by the tufts of fur on the edge of its ears. Its ears are shorter than those of most other hares, hares are carnivorous under the availability of dead animals, and have been known to eat dead rodents such as mice due to low availability of protein in a herbivorous diet. It can sometimes be seen feeding in small groups and this animal is mainly active at night and does not hibernate. The snowshoe hare may have up to four litters in a year which average three to eight young, males compete for females, and females may breed with several males. A major predator of the hare is the lynx. In the Pacific Northwest, snowshoe hares occupy diverse habitats, including conifers, immature conifers, alder /salmonberry, Sitka spruce /salal. In western Oregon, snowshoe hares were present in patches of vine maple, willows, rhododendrons. In Utah, snowshoe hares used Gambel oak in the portion of the Gambel oak range. In Minnesota, snowshoe hares use jack pine uplands, edges, tamarack bogs, black spruce bogs, and sedge, alder, Snowshoe hares also use shrub swamps dominated by buttonbush, alders, and silky dogwood. Further details on plant communities used by snowshoe hares in different regions are in Bittner, Snowshoe hares are crepuscular to nocturnal. They are shy and secretive and spend most of the day in shallow depressions, called forms, scraped out under clumps of ferns, brush thickets and they occasionally use the large burrows of mountain beavers as forms. Diurnal activity level increases during the breeding season, juveniles are usually more active and less cautious than adults. The breeding season for hares is stimulated by new vegetation and varies with latitude, location, breeding generally begins in late December to January and lasts until July or August. In northwestern Oregon, male peak breeding activity occurs in May and is at the minimum in November, in Ontario, the peak is in May and in Newfoundland, the peak is in June
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Eastern chipmunk
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The eastern chipmunk is a chipmunk species found in eastern North America. It is the sole living member of the chipmunk subgenus Tamias, the name chipmunk comes from the Ottawa word ajidamoonh or the Ojibwe word ajidamoo, which translates literally as one who descends trees headlong. A small species, it reaches about 30 cm in length including the tail, and it has reddish-brown fur on its upper body and five dark brown stripes contrasting with light brown stripes along its back, ending in a dark tail. It has lighter fur on the part of its body. It has a stripe that runs from its whiskers to below its ears. It has two fewer teeth than other chipmunks and four each on the front legs, but five on the hind legs. The eastern chipmunk lives in wooded areas and urban parks throughout the eastern United States. It prefers locations with rocky areas, brush or log piles and it can climb trees well, but constructs underground nests with extensive tunnel systems, often with several entrances. To hide the construction of its burrow, the eastern chipmunk carries soil to a different location in its cheek pouches and it also lines the burrow with leaves, rocks, sticks, and other material, making it even harder to see. It has several bird-like or chattering calls, one is a trill at the rate of 130 vibrations per minute and another is a lower-pitched and it is mainly active during the day, spending most of its day foraging. It prefers bulbs, seeds, fruits, nuts, green plants, mushrooms, insects, worms, like other chipmunks, it transports food in pouches in its cheeks. The eastern chipmunk defends its burrow and lives a solitary life, females usually produce one or two litters of three to five young. The two breeding seasons are from February to April and from June to August, during the winter, the chipmunk may enter long periods of torpor, but does not truly hibernate. Predators of the eastern chipmunk include hawks, foxes, raccoons, weasels, snakes, bobcats, lynx, on average, eastern chipmunks live three or more years in the wild, but in captivity they may live as long as eight years. Media related to Tamias striatus at Wikimedia Commons Data related to Tamias striatus at Wikispecies Earthwatch
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American red squirrel
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The American red squirrel is one of three species of tree squirrel currently classified in the genus Tamiasciurus, known as the pine squirrels. American red squirrels are also referred to as squirrels, North American red squirrels, boomers. They are medium-sized diurnal mammals that defend a year-round exclusive territory, the diet of these tree squirrels is specialized on the seeds of conifer cones. As such, they are distributed across North America wherever conifers are common, except on the Pacific coast. Recently, American red squirrels have been expanding their range to include primarily hardwood areas, the specific epithet hudsonicus refers to Hudson Bay, Canada, where the species was first catalogued by Erxleben in 1771. A recent phylogeny suggests the squirrels as a family can be divided into five major lineages, red squirrels fall within the clade that includes flying squirrels and other tree squirrels. There are 25 recognized subspecies of red squirrels, red squirrels can be easily distinguished from other North American tree squirrels by their smaller size, territorial behavior and reddish fur with a white venter. Red squirrels are somewhat larger than chipmunks and these species ranges do not overlap. American red squirrels are widely distributed across the North American continent and their range includes most of Canada, the southern part of Alaska, coastal British Columbia, and the Rocky Mountains and boreal forests east to the Atlantic coast. American red squirrels are abundant and not of concern throughout much of their range. However, a population of red squirrels in Arizona has experienced considerable declines in population size. In 1987, this portion of the population was listed as an endangered species, American red squirrels are primarily granivores, but incorporate other food items into their diets opportunistically. White spruce cones mature in late July and are harvested by red squirrels in August and these harvested cones are stored in a central cache and provide energy and nutrients for survival over the winter and reproduction the following spring. The fallen scales from consumed seed cones can collect in piles, called middens, white spruce exhibits two- to six-year masting cycles, where a year of superabundant cone production is followed by several years in which few cones are produced. American red squirrel territories may contain one or several middens, American red squirrels eat a variety of mushroom species, including some that are deadly to humans. American red squirrels are spontaneous ovulators, females enter estrus for only one day, but venture from their territory prior to ovulation, and these exploratory forays may serve to advertise their upcoming estrus. On the day of estrus, females are chased by males in an extended mating chase. Males compete with one another for the opportunity to mate with the estrous female, estrous females will mate with 4 to 16 males
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Eastern gray squirrel
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Sciurus carolinensis, common name eastern gray squirrel or grey squirrel depending on region, is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus. It is native to eastern North America, where it is the biggest, in Europe it is regarded as an invasive species. Sciurus carolinensis is native to the eastern and midwestern United States, the native range of the eastern gray squirrel overlaps with that of the fox squirrel, with which it is sometimes confused, although the core of the fox squirrels range is slightly more to the west. The eastern gray squirrel is found from New Brunswick to Manitoba, south to East Texas, breeding eastern gray squirrels are found in Nova Scotia, but whether this population was introduced or came from natural range expansion is not known. It has also introduced into Ireland, Britain, Italy, South Africa. Eastern grey squirrels in Europe are a concern because they have displaced some of the native squirrels there and this squirrel has also been introduced to Vancouver Island in Western Canada in 1966 in the area of Metchosin and has spread widely from there. The squirrels are considered invasive and a threat to both the local ecosystem and the native red squirrel. A prolific and adaptable species, the gray squirrel has been introduced to. The gray squirrel is a species in Britain, it has spread across the country and has largely displaced the native red squirrel. In Ireland, the red squirrel has been displaced in several counties, though it still remains common in the south. That such displacement might happen in Italy is of concern, the generic name, Sciurus, is derived from two Greek words, skia, meaning shadow, and oura, meaning tail. This name alludes to the sitting in the shadow of its tail. The specific epithet, carolinensis, refers to the Carolinas, where the species was first recorded, in the United Kingdom and Canada, it is simply referred to as the grey squirrel. The eastern gray squirrel has predominantly gray fur, but it can have a brownish color and it has a usual white underside as compared to the typical brownish-orange underside of the fox squirrel. It has a bushy tail. Particularly in urban situations where the risk of predation is reduced, the melanistic form, which is almost entirely black, is predominant in certain populations and in certain geographic areas, such as in large parts of southeastern Canada. Genetic variations within these individuals with black tails and black-colored squirrels with white tails. The head and body length is from 23 to 30 cm, the tail from 19 to 25 cm, and the adult weight varies between 400 and 600 g
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Montreal
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Montreal, officially Montréal, is the most populous municipality in the Canadian province of Quebec and the 2nd-most populous in Canada as a whole. Originally called Ville-Marie, or City of Mary, it is believed to be named after Mount Royal, the city has a distinct four-season continental climate, with warm-to-hot summers and cold, snowy winters. In 2016, Montreal had a population of 1,704,694, Montreals metropolitan area had a population of 4,098,927 and a population of 1,958,257 in the urban agglomeration, with all of the municipalities on the Island of Montreal included. Legally a French-speaking city,60. 5% of Montrealers speak French at home,21. 2% speak English and 19. 8% speak neither, Montreal is one of the most bilingual cities in Quebec and Canada, with 56% of the population able to speak both official languages. Montreal is the second-largest primarily French-speaking city in the world after Paris, historically the commercial capital of Canada, it was surpassed in population and economic strength by Toronto in the 1970s. It remains an important centre of commerce, aerospace, finance, pharmaceuticals, technology, design, education, culture, tourism, gaming, film, Montreal was also named a UNESCO City of Design. In 2009, Montreal was named North Americas leading host city for international events, according to the 2009 preliminary rankings of the International Congress. According to the 2015 Global Liveability Ranking by the Economist Intelligence Unit, in the 2017 edition of their Best Student Cities ranking, Quacquarelli Symonds ranked Montreal as the worlds best city to study abroad. Also, Montreal has 11 universities with 170,000 students enrolled, the Greater Montréal region has the highest number of university students per capita among all metropolitan areas in North America. It is the only Canadian city to have held the Summer Olympics, currently, the city hosts the Canadian Grand Prix of Formula One, the Montreal International Jazz Festival and the Just for Laughs festival. In 2012, Montreal was ranked as a Beta+ world city, in Kanien’kéha, or Mohawk language, the island is called Tiohtià, ke Tsi or Ka-wé-no-te. In Anishinaabemowin, or Ojibwe language, the land is called Mooniyaang, though the city was first named by French colonizers Ville Marie, or City of Mary, its current name comes from Mount Royal, the triple-peaked hill in the heart of the city. The most popular theory is that the name derives from Mont Réal, Cartiers 1535 diary entry, naming the mountain, according to the Commission de toponymie du Québec and the Geographical Names Board of Canada, Canadian place names have only one official form. Thus, Montreal is officially spelled with an accent over the e in both English and French. In practice, this is limited to governmental uses. English-speaking Montrealers, including English-language media, regularly omit the accent when writing in English, archaeological evidence demonstrates that First Nations native people occupied the island of Montreal as early as 4,000 years ago. By the year AD1000, they had started to cultivate maize, within a few hundred years, they had built fortified villages. Archeologists have found evidence of their habitation there and at locations in the valley since at least the 14th century
