By: Stephanie Paolone and Ben Clarke

There are three Ecozone regions in Ontario: Hudson Plains Boreal Shield Mixedwood Plains

Canada is made up of fifteen terrestrial ecozones Three of these ecozones are found in the Ontario Region The Boreal Shield stretches km from Newfoundland to Alberta and includes parts of six provinces It holds 20% of Canada’s land mass and 10% of its fresh water The Hudson Plains ecozone extends from northern Ontario into northeastern Manitoba and western Québec The Mixedwood Plains have become the commercial and industrial heartland of Canada interlaced with national and international transportation routes

This ecozone is centered in the northern Ontario region There are low- lying swampy plains, which are poorly drained The landscape rarely rises above 120 m in elevation Change in elevation in the belt of raised beaches where glaciers from the last ice age are rebounding the land The north has few trees due to the generally cool climate The forest is dense in the south with a sparser vegetation such as white and black spruce and tamarack Wet areas produce moss, lichen and sedges

Moderately long, cold winters to moderately short, cool summers The soils in this ecozone are poorly developed organic and permafrost The Human activities include trapping, hunting and recreation This ecozone has a very low population totaling only residents The precipitation rate ranges from 400 to 700 mm There is a growing season in this ecozone of 90 to 150 days

This ecozone covers most of the Ontario region and is the largest of the fifteen regions in Canada It is where the Canadian Shield and the Boreal Forest overlap Millions of ponds, lakes and wetlands are in this ecozone, which were left by the glaciers About 80% of the land is covered in Jack Pine, White and Black Spruce, and Balsam Fir forests Human activities include recreation, tourism, forestry and mining Soils are heavily leached, and have bare rock and swampy areas this ecozone experiences short warm summers and long cold winters, which are moderated along the Great Lakes

This ecozone is found in the south of Ontario and covers the lower Great Lakes St. Lawrence River Valley It is the smallest terrestrial ecozone in Canada This region has extensive waterways, rolling plains and leached, wet climate soils with a warm growing season Due to the Great Lakes this region has abundant fresh water resources and rainfall Cool, short winters with relatively long, mild summers

The Mixedwood Plains is part of the Deciduous and Mixed forests containing maple, birch oak elm and pine trees However, little of the original forests remain due to urbanization Some wildlife, such as squirrels, raccoons and groundhogs are able to adapt to the man-made changes Human activities in this region include manufacturing, agriculture due to fertile soils and urbanizing because of the large number of major cities in Canada This ecozone houses almost half of Canada’s population

The province of Ontario occupies three of the fifteen ecozones in Canada The Hudson Plain ecozone in the north has swampy plains and poor drainage The Boreal Shield covers most of the region with numerous ponds, lakes and wetlands left by the glacial age The Mixedwood Plains ecozone found in southern Ontario is the smallest ecozone in Canada This ecozone has fertile soil with a warm growing season Most of the the urbanization and industrialization of Ontario is found in this region