Montane Cordillera
| Montane Cordillera | |
|---|---|
humid continental and subarctic |
The Montane Cordillera Ecozone, as defined by the
Okanagan Valley. Primarily a mountainous region, it consists of rugged ecosystems such as alpine tundra, dry sagebrush and dense conifer forests.[2] The interior plains are encircled by a ring of mountains.[3] The area has a mild climate throughout the year, with typically dry summers and wet winters.[4]
The corresponding name in the United States for this ecozone, where it is classed as a Level I ecoregion by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which is identical though differently-named than the CEC system, is the Northwestern Forested Mountains ecoregion.
Geography
It contains the headwaters for the Fraser and Columbia rivers and many of their tributaries, notably the Thompson and Kootenay.
It is bordered to the west by the
Prairies Ecozone
.
Ecoprovinces
This ecozone can be further subdivided into four ecoprovinces:[5]
- Central Montane Cordillera
- Columbia Montane Cordillera
- Northern Montane Cordillera
- Southern Montane Cordillera
Conservation
National parks
Seven
national parks
have been established in this ecozone:
- Banff National Park
- Glacier National Park
- Jasper National Park
- Kootenay National Park
- Mount Revelstoke National Park
- South Okanagan-Similkameen National Park Reserve(proposed)
- Waterton Lakes National Park
- Yoho National Park
Provincial parks
Dozens of provincial parks have been established in this ecozone. Some of the largest and most notable ones include:
- Itcha Ilgachuz Provincial Park
- Kakwa Provincial Park
- Mount Robson Provincial Park
- Purcell Wilderness Conservancy Provincial Park
- Tweedsmuir South Provincial Park
- Wells Gray Provincial Park
See also
References
- Environment Canada. Archived from the originalon March 21, 2004.
- ^ "Montane Cordillera". Evergreen Native Plants Database. Archived from the original on December 16, 2007.
- ^ "Montane Cordillera Ecozone" (PDF). Parks Canada. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 5, 2011.
- ^ Bernhardt, Torsten. "Montane Cordillera". Canada's Ecozones, Canadian Biodiversity project. McGill University, Redpath Museum. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ Secretariat, Treasury Board of Canada. "National Ecological Framework for Canada - Open Government Portal". open.canada.ca. Retrieved January 7, 2020.
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