Ch. 2 Part 2- Physiographic Regions of Canada

Climatic Processes, Types and Regionalism

Geophysical Heartland/Hinterland

Determinants of Human Settlement

Characteristics of Natural Regions

Superior Climate & Vegetational Impacts

Climatic Processes Climate

The average weather conditions of a region over a long period

Effects: Winds, oceans, latitude, longitude Global Circulation Patterns

Climatic Processes, Types and Regionalism

Atlantic climate effects are very different from environments created by Pacific, Arctic or lacustrine and riverain influences

-quantity and quality of water available

-exchange of warmer and cooler currents

-soils and waters rich in minerals and oxygen

-both lower and higher order of species more abundant

Physiographic Regions

Cordillera plateaux, mountains & valleys (16% area – young & geologically active)

Arctic plains, plateaux and mountains (10% - Platform, Plain, Innuit.)

Great Lakes-St. Law- rence lowlands (2% - Champlain sea deposits

Hudson Bay Lowlands (muskeg wetlands)

Canadian Shield (50% Paleozoic igneous)

Interior Plains (20% - inland lake deposits)

Köppen Classification

Cdn. Climate Zone General Characteristics

Marine West Coast Pacific Summers mod./Mild winters,Pptn. Year-long, winter max.

Highland Cordillera Progressively cooler north

Steppe Prairies Summers cool, winters cold,Ann. precipitation low

Humid continental Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowlands

Summers warm, humid,Short, cold winters Pptn. regular

Humid Continental, cool

Atlantic Canada Summers short, cool, Winters cool, short

Subarctic Subarctic Summers short, coolWinters long, cold Pptn. low

Tundra Arctic Summer short, cool, winterLong, very cold Pptn. low

Climatic Processes and Types

Cdn. Climate Zone Natural Vegetation Type Soil Order

Pacific Coastal rainforest Podzol (acidic, low nutritients)

Cordillera Montane & boreal forests Mountain complex

Prairies Grassland and parkland Chernozemic (mixed till)

Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Lowlands

Broadleaf and mixed forests Podzolic

Atlantic Canada Mixed and boreal forests Podzolic

Subarctic Boreal forest Podzolic

Arctic Tundra and poplar desert Cryosolic (eroded mixed)

Soil Types and Vegetation in Canadian Climate Zones

On this Regional Map, trace the major Climate Zones of Canada

On this map, situate the Capital Cities of each province & territory

correspond to political regions? Why not?

On this Physiographic Map, do the major Climate Zones of Canada

Canada’s permafrost zones impact on settlement and resource exploitation

Continuous permafrost (80% frozen) Avge. Temp >-15 0C

Discontinuous permafrost (30-80% frozen) Avge. Temp -5 -15 0C

Sporadic permafrost (<30% frozen) Avge. Temp -5 0C

How have Canada’s drainage basins impacted on settlement and resource use?

Locate the major rivers in these 5 drainage basins.

Acknowledgement of Image Sources

• Glacial images and landforms from The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2003. CD Edition, available from Petro-Canada outlets.

• Maps:

– Physiographic regions: Robert Bone. 2002. The Geography of Canada, 2nd Edition.

– Tracing the Magnetic Pole, The Canadian Encyclopedia, 2003. CD Edition

– Wisconsin Ice Sheet, Gleick, 2000: p. 70 (fig. 20)

– World map Pangea 200M years ago, and world today from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ice/continents/

• Global Core, Mathez (ed.). 2001. Earth: Inside & Out pp. 157, 156, 68 respectively.

• Erosion images, German Newspaper website http://www.sueddeutsche.de, 2002.

• Cyclone and Wave Erosion, EPA website, Great Lakes, July 2002, http://www.epa.gov/glnpo/visual.html,