| Eastern Forest – Boreal Transition Forest (Canada and USA) |
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This ecoregion, also known as the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence forest, encompasses most of the southern Canadian Shield in Ontario and Quebec (from eastern Lake Superior to the St. Lawrence River Estuary), and also the Adirondack Mountains in New York State, USA. The area is underlain by massive bedrock formations; the soils, on top of the bedrock, are generally very thin, with many rock outcrops. Forest fires are an important disturbance factor. The ecoregion is characterized by the mixed forest dominated by White Pine (Pinus strobus), White Spruce (Picea glauca), Sugar Maple (Acer saccharum), Red Maple (A. rubrum), Paper Birch (Betula papyrifera), Trembling Aspen (Populus tremuloides), and Balsam Fir (Abies balsamea). Red Pine (Pinus resinosa) and Jack Pine (P. banksiana) are also present. Yellow Birch (Betula allegheniensis), Eastern Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis), Basswood (Tilia americana), and American Beech (Fagus grandifolia) are common in the south. Tamarack (Larix laricina), Eastern White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis), and Black Spruce (Picea mariana) grow in poorly drained sites, e.g., in wetlands, found throughout the region. Summers are warm and humid (mean summer temperature is ca. +15°C), and winters are cold and snowy (mean ca. -10°C). Annual precipitation is 800-1,100 mm. Some of important protected areas located in this ecoregion are Algoma Highlands Provincial Park (Ontario), Algonquin Provincial Park (Ontario), La Maurice National Park (Quebec), etc.
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