Gulf of St. Lawrence and Bay of Fundy

Where the Appalachians Meet the Sea

Map boundaries: 40 to 50 degrees North; 55 to 66 degrees West

Countries: Canada (New Brunswick (part), Newfoundland and Labrador (part), Nova Scotia (part), Prince Edward Island, Quebec (part); France (St.-Pierre and Miquelon).

Overview

The map area includes the Canadian provinces bordering the Gulf of St. Lawrence—New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and Quebec—and the French islands of St.-Pierre and Miquelon. Islands within or bordering the Gulf of St. Lawrence include Anticosti Island, Cape Breton, Magdelan Islands, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Miscou, and Lameque. Also included are the shallow banks and islands off the Atlantic Coast, including Browns Bank, Sable Island Bank, Banquereau, and St. Pierre Bank. Ecologically, this is the transition from deciduous hardwood forests to boreal forests. Because the area is mountainous, tundra is found at some higher elevations. The numerous sandy beaches interspersed with rocky headlands provide scenery and seabird breeding areas. Historically, this region was the site of early British and French settlement in North America, with historic sites commemorating intact examples of early villages and the removal of the Acadians from Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Geologically, this northernmost extension of the Appalachian Mountains is a geologic Galapagos, with oceanic crust rocks that provide evidence of continental drift, a coal age forest containing fossils of the earliest reptiles, and the world’s highest tides in the Bay of Fundy.

Ecoregions and Provinces/Political Subdivisions

Nearctic Biome

Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests

• NA 408, Gulf of St. Lawrence lowland forests. Found in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island,and Quebec (Magdelan Islands). Mixed hardwoods with red spruce, balsam fir, hemlock, white pine, maples, birch, and beech.


• NA 410, New England-Acadian Forests. Found in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Quebec. Northern hardwoods and spruce, a transitional region between deciduous and boreal forest. Common species are red spruce, red pine, maple, beech, and birch.

Boreal Forests/Taiga

• NA 605, Eastern Canadian forests. Found in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Quebec, and St. Pierre and Miquelon. This maritime-influenced area contains forests of balsam fir and black spruce with hardwoods such as birch and aspen.


• NA 611, Newfoundland Highland forests. Found in Newfoundland and Labrador. Wet, mossy boreal forests of higher elevations with spruce-fir and Kalmia.


• NA 615, South Avalon-Burin oceanic barrens. Found in Newfoundland and Labrador. Racomitrivia heath plants with scattered balsam fir.

Marine Ecoregions of the World

Temperate North Atlantic Realm, Cold Temperate Northwest Atlantic Province

37. Gulf of St. Lawrence—Eastern Scotian Shelf. Found offshore of Anticosti, Gaspe, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Magdelan Islands, and Cape Breton Island south to continental shelf.

38. Southern Grand Banks—South Newfoundland. Found south of Newfoundland to the continental shelf

39. Scotian Shelf. Found south of Nova Scotia to the continental shelf edge

40. Gulf of Maine—Bay of Fundy. Found in Bay of Fundy and Georges Bank

Arctic Realm, Arctic Province

5. Northern Grand Banks—Southern Labrador. Found on northern coast of Newfoundland.

Freshwater Ecoregions of the World

North America, Temperate Coastal Rivers

115. Canadian Atlantic Islands. Includes Anticosti, Prince Edward Island, Magdalen, Newfoundland, St. Pierre and Miquelon.

118. Northeast U.S. and Southeast Canada Atlantic Drainages. Includes Gaspe Peninsula and New Brunswick. The fauna is dominated by saltwater-tolerant freshwater fishes such as sturgeons, shads, smelts, and eel. Many species exhibit diadromy.

119. Scotia-Fundy. Includes Nova Scotia and Cape Breton Island. Bras d’Or has minimal tidal exchange with the ocean and is lower in salinity than the ocean. The margaree-Lake Ainslie system is known for waterfalls and deep pools.

UNESCO World Heritage Sites

• Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland and Labrador. Flat-topped mountains overlooking fjords with 700-m cliffs. Rock formations 1.25 billion years old contributed to the understanding of plate tectonics, as deep ocean crust lies exposed in a rare example of continental drift. Tablelands area is of periodotite rock, inhospitable to plants. Ecoregions 605 and 611.


• Joggins Fossil Cliffs, Nova Scotia. World’s thickest and most comprehensive record of Pennsylvanian strata, containing fossils of earliest reptiles. Coal age trees stand where they grew.


• Old Town Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. The best surviving example of a planned British colonial settlement, dating to 1753, with original layout, and retaining its original appearance. Bank Fishery National Historic Site, sailboat fishing 1500-1930. Ecoregion 410.

Ramsar Sites

• Chignecto. Found in Nova Scotia. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Grand Codroy Estuary. Found in Newfoundland. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37


• Malpeque Bay. Found adjacent to Prince Edward Island. Large shallow bay enclosed by a long coastal sand spit; 9 islands, 7 of which are forested. Beaches noted for piping plover and islands for double-crested cormorants. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Mary’s Point. Found in New Brunswick near Fundy National Park. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Musquodoboit Harbor. Found in Nova Scotia. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 39.


• Shepody Bay. Found in New Brunswick, upper northwest arm of Bay of Fundy. Hemispheric shorebird reserve, known for sandpipers. Ecoregions 408 and 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Southern Bight-Minas Basin. Found in Nova Scotia, east arm of Bay of Fundy. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Tabusintec Lagoon. Found in New Brunswick. Piping plover area. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.

Other points of interest by location

Anticosti Island, Quebec. Heavily wooded, cliff-edged island with waterfalls, canyons, rivers, and caves. Part of the island is a Quebec national park (Parc national d’Anticosti), created in 2001. Falaise aux Goelands and Pointe de l’est are national wildlife reserves with kittiwakes, cormorants and eiders. Ecoregion 605.

Brion Island, Quebec. Ecological reserve in Gulf of St. Lawrence with breeding cormorants. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.

Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia.

• Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. Commemorates Bell’s inventions of the telephone, aircraft, hydrofoil, and in deaf education. Ecoregion 410.


• Basque Islands and Michaud Point. Four low rocky islets off of Cape Breton, home of great cormorants and gray seals. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Bird Islands. Two long narrow islands with 20-m cliffs, home of great cormorants, kittiwakes, razorbills and puffins. Important bird area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Bras d’Or. An enormous saltwater lake, known for eagles and puffins. Ecoregion 410.


• Cape Breton Highlands National Park. Extensive park with tablelands and deep gorges, woodland, tundra with taiga-like wetlands, 1000-foot deep river gorges, canyons, and sea views. The scenic Cabot Trail provides access to the eastern, northern, and western areas.. Ecoregion 605 and 410.


• Cape Mabou. Highlands contain a network of trails along coast. Ecoregion 410.


• Cape St. Lawrence. Known for views of pilot whales in sea. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Fortress of Louisbourg National Historic Site. Site of French settlement in 1740s, 50 buildings restored. Ecoregion 410.


• Glace Bay. Coastal lagoon enclosed by barrier beach; important bird area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Madame Islands. Wooded islands between Cape Breton and Nova Scotia. Ecoregion 410.


• Marconi National Historic Site, Glace Bay. Site of first wireless message to Europe, 1902. Wireless Hall of Fame. Ecoregion 410.


• St. Peters Canal National Historic Site. Constructed in 1854, an 800-m canal connects Bras d’Or Lake with the sea. Ecoregion 410.


• Scatarie Island. Rich and diverse population of seabirds, including Leach’s storm petrels. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 37.

Gaspe Peninsula, Quebec

• Bonaventure Island and Pierced Rock (Quebec national park: Parc national de I’ile-Bonaventure-et-du-Rocher-Perce). The island contains one of the world’s largest gannet nesting colonies, kittiwakes, and murre; the offshore rock contains a natural arch. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Bonaventure River. Noted canoe river with Grotte de St. Elzear cave nearby. Ecoregion 410.


• Chic Chocs Wildlife Reserve. Spruce-fir forest and tundra; caribou, moose, and white-tailed deer. Bicknell’s thrush breeding area. Agates common in mountain range. Ecoregion 605


• Espoir. Sea ducks, cormorants and gulls. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Forillon National Park. Where the Appalachians meet the sea. Sea cliffs to 225 m, seabirds, whales, seals. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Gaspe Bay. Important Bird Area with seaducks. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Grande Vallee. Strata-lined cliff faces. Ecoregion 605


• Malbaie. Lagoon near tip of Gaspe with geese and ducks; breeding yellow rail. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Port-Daniel Wildlife Reserve. Trout lakes and a salmon river. Ecoregion 605.


• Shigawake-Newport. Small bays, cliffs and rocky points noted for sea ducks. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 37.

International Appalachian Trail. Extends from Maine to end of Gaspe Peninsula at Forillon National Park; extension planned along Long Range Mountains of Newfoundland. Ecoregions 605 and 611.

Magdalen (Madeleine) Island, Quebec. Forests on sand spits and red cliffs. Beaches are breeding area for piping plover, terns, great cormorant. Ecoregion 408.

• Point East National Wildlife Area. Piping plover and horned grebes; seals. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 408


• Entry Island. Seal interpretive center. Ecoregion 408


• Le Corps Mort. Rocky island noted for great cormorant breeding. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.

Miquelon Island, St.-Pierre and Miquelon. Trails to lookout and waterfalls. Ecoregion 605.

New Brunswick (eastern)

• Boishebert and Beaubears Island Shipbuilding National Historic Site. Sites associated with Acadian settlement of northeast New Brunswick after their removal from Nova Scotia and southern New Brunswick, as well as site of 19^th century shipbuilding industry. Ecoregion 408.


• Bouctouche Bar. Barrier dune and estuary area, noted for salt marsh copper and short-tailed swallowtail butterflies. Breeding piping plover and shorebirds. Major hiking area. Ecoregion 408.


• Cape Jourimain. National Wildlife Area at Confederation Bridge. Ecoregion 408.


• Escuminac Beaches. Breeding piping plover, Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 408.


• Fort Beausejour-Fort Cumberland National Historic Site. A 1751 French fort overlooks a sweeping vista of marshlands. Ecoregion 410.


• Fundy National Park, Fundy Trail Parkway/Fundy Footpath, and Cape Enrage Marsh. The last coastal wilderness in North America. World’s highest tides; sandstone cliffs; forested Caledonia Highlands. The Fundy Footpath traverses 23 miles along rocky gorges and shoreline. The Dobson Trail connects Fundy National Park with Moncton. At Cape Enrage, towering cliffs overlook a salt marsh. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Hopewell Rocks Provincial Park. Unusual eroded sea stack formations in upper Bay of Fundy. Ecoregion 410.


• Kennebecasis River valley. A bucolic agricultural valley. Ecoregion 410.


• Kouchibouguac National Park. Beaches, lagoons, sand dunes, forests and salt marsh. Sand Islands have second largest tern colony in North America. Ecoregion 410.


• Lameque Island. Birding area off of New Brunswick. Ecoregion 408.


• Miramichi River Valley System. Largest producer of Atlantic salmon in world. The Southwest Miramichi River is known for canoeing. Ecoregion 408.


• Miramichi Bay. Neguac sandspit has broadest dune system in Canada, piping plover and tern nesting. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Miscou Island. Birding area piping plover and shorebirds off of New Brunswick. Ecoregion 408.


• Pokemouche and Grand Passage. System of beaches, barrier dunes, and bays supporting piping plover, black duck, black-crowned night heron colony. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Pokeshaw Rock. Sea stack with nesting double-crested cormorants. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Quaco Bay. Semipalmated plovers and least sandpipers on Bay of Fundy. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.

Newfoundland, Newfoundland and Labrador

• Barachois Pond Provincial Park, Newfoundland. Glacial-carved valley and trail to Erin Mountain. Ecoregion 605


• Bay du Nord Wilderness Reserve. Rugged countryside with glacial erratics, peat, barrens, lakes, rapids, and waterfalls. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 605.


• Big Barasway Provincial Wildlife Reserve. Beaches with piping plover. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 605.


• Blow Me Down Provincial Park. Sea vistas and caribou. Ecoregion 605


• Cape Ray. Archaeological site and hiking terminous of Cormack Trail. Ecoregion 605.


• Cheeseman Provincial Park. Beaches with piping plover; important bird area. Ecoregion 611.


• Codroy Valley and Estuary. Boreal woodlands with red crossbill, ovenbird, and waterfowl. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 605.


• Corbin Island. Important bird area known for Leach’s storm petrel. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 38.


• Fortune Head Ecological Reserve, Burin Peninsula. Ecoregions 605 and 615. Precambrian to Cambrian era fossils, trails.


• Grand Falls. Salmonid Interpretation Centre. Ecoregion 605.


• Green Island and Middle Lawn Island. Islands between Burin Peninsula and Miquelon with Leach’s storm petrel and shearwaters. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 605 and marine ecoregion 38.


• Gros Morne National Park. See World Heritage Site list above.


• Main River. Canadian Heritage River, known for canoeing. Ecoregion 605 and 611.


• Port au Port Peninsula. Isolated French-speaking settlement with secluded beaches. Ecoregion 605.

Nova Scotia (New Scotland)

• Annapolis Royal. A 1635 French settlement at Fort Anne National Historic Site overlies Charles Fort National Historic Site, a Scottish settlement from 1629. Melanson Settlement National Historic Site contains archaeological remains of dykeland agriculture as practiced by an Acadian community. Also a tidal power project since 1984. Ecoregion 410 and 408.


• Annapolis Valley. Known for apples and produce. Ecoregion 408.


• Birchtown. Black loyalist area settled by freed slaves. Ecoregion 410.


• Bon Portage Islands. Two drumlins covered with spruce-fir; home of Leach’s storm petrel. Important bird area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 39.


• Cape Chignecto Provincial Park. Old growth forests and 600-foot sea cliffs. Backpacking area along Bay of Fundy. Ecoregion 410.


• Cape George. Scenic views of Cape Breton Island. Ecoregion 410.


• Cape Sable Island. Birding area with piping plover, semipalmated sandpipers, and other waterbirds. Ecoregion 401 and marine ecoregion 39.


• Cobequid Mountains and Bay. Hikes to waterfalls, canyons, and Five Islands. During low tides, up to 2 million shorebirds feed on mud flats of the bay. Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 40.


• Fort McNab National Historic Site, Halifax. A harbor island used for defense 1888-1940. Ecoregion 410.


• Georges Island National Historic Site, Halifax. A harbor island used as a naval base. Ecoregion 410.


• Goose Island and Country Islands. Nesting area for roseate terns. Important bird area. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 39.


• Grand Pre National Historic Site. Site of deportation of French Acadians to Louisiana starting in 1755. Ecoregions 408 and 410.


• Grassy Island Fort and Canso Islands National Historic Site. 1720 British fort and center of fishery in 18^th century. Ecoregion 410.


• Halifax Citadel National Historic Site, Halifax. An 1856 British fort that was principal naval station in British empire. Ecoregion 410.


• Kejimkujik National Park. Glacial geology with lakes and forests for hiking and canoeing. A seaside adjunct contains a rugged peninsula with harbor seals and piping plovers. Ecoregion 410.


• Mahone Bay. More than 100 islands, known for kayaking, whale, and puffin watching. Ecoregion 410 and marine ecoregion 39.


• Maitland. Rafting in Shubenacadie River at Bay of Fundy tides. Ecoregion 410.


• Malagash Peninsula. Birdwatching and seal-watching area. Ecoregion 408.


• Parrsboro. Fundy Geological Museum. Ecoregion 410.


• Pennant Point. Hiking trail through barrens, bogs and boulders. Ecoregion 410


• Port Royal National Historic Site. First European settlement north of Florida, 1605. Ecoregion 410.


• Prince of Wales Tower National Historic Site, Halifax. Constructed in late 1700s. Ecoregion 410.


• Raddall, Thomas Provincial Park. Rocky headlands known for birdwatching. Ecoregion 410.


• Scots Bay and Blomidon Provincial Park. Hiking area high above Bay of Fundy and Minas Basin; sea cliffs to 600 feet. Agates found along beach.


• Tancook Island. Trails. Ecoregion 410.


• Taylor Head Provincial Park. Part of eastern shore islands important bird area known for waterfowl. Trails, wildflowers and rugged coastline. Ecoregion 410.


• Windsor. Fort Edward National Historic Site. Protected road between Halifax and Annapolis Valley. Ecoregion 408 and 410.


• York Redoubt National Historic Site, Halifax. 1793 fort operated until 20^th century. Ecoregion 410.

Prince Edward Island. Ecoregion 408

• Bedeque Bay. Marshy estuary; important bird area. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Cascumpec Bay and Alberton Harbor. Barrier islands and estuaries adjoining peat lands; important bird area. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Lennox Island. Mikmaq cultural center


• Malpeque Bay. Large shallow bay enclosed by long coastal sand spit, 9 islands, 5 of which are forested. Piping plover and double crested cormorant colony. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• North Cape. Tide pools can be viewed at low tide in shallow gulf up to 800 m from shore.


• Northumberland Provincial Park. Known for clam digging.


• Orwell Bay. River estuaries, important bird area. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.


• Panmure Island. Oldest wooden lighthouse, sand dunes, grazing horses.


• Prince Edward Island National Park. Dunes and red standstone bluffs. Nearby is the house of Green Gables, home of Lucy Maud Montgomery. Gulf Shore Parkway, bicycling and hiking trails. Greenwich unit has large sand dunes. Canavoy area is nesting area for piping plover.


• Port La Joye-Fort Amherst National Historic Site, Charlottetown. 1720 French settlement.


• Province House National Historic Site, Charlottetown. Birthplace of Canada in 1864.

Rochers aux Oiseaux, Quebec. Sandstone rocks with 30 m cliffs; northern gannet colony, Important Bird Area. Ecoregion 408 and marine ecoregion 37.

Sable Island, Nova Scotia. Isolated sand spit 42 km in length in Atlantic Ocean 160 km to the south of Nova Scotia, known for its free-ranging population of horses. The temperate oceanic climate is milder than other parts of Nova Scotia. A meteorological station is operated by Environment Canada. Offshore, Thebaud platform is a natural gas processing facility. Ecoregion 410.

St-Pierre, St.-Pierre and Miquelon. Ecoregion 605.

Trans-Canada Trail. A 21,500 km recreational trail through every province and territory, shown on this map on Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick. Includes 357-km Confederation Trail on Prince Edward Island. Ecoregions 408 and 410.

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