2.2 Canada’s Landform Regions
Identify the Landform Regions using color. Also, write the name of the landform
region in the space provided. (pp. 27)
Yellow:
______________________________
Blue:
_______________________________
Purple:
_______________________________
Grey:
_______________________________
Orange:
_______________________________
Brown:
_______________________________
Red:
_______________________________
Green:
_______________________________
Canadian Shield
Has the oldest rock in Canada! (About 4 billion years old)
Most of the shield has thin, acidic soil called podzols
The soil here is fine for coniferous forests (evergreens!) but
not suitable for agriculture (farming)
The Canadian Shield covers a lot of Canada! Parts of
Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Labrador,
Northwest Territories, and Nunavut are all covered to some
degree by the Shield.
Appalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains are approximately 375 million
years old
The mountains have been worn down by ice and water to
produce a landscape of rolling hills and broad valleys
The forest vegetation of the region is mixed coniferous and
deciduous trees, with more coniferous trees in the northern
regions
The Appalachian region includes most of Atlantic Canada
Western Cordillera
The Western Cordillera is made up of a series of parallel
mountain ranges – the Coast, Columbia, and Rocky
Mountains
The Rockies are described as ‘young’ mountains, many of
which are over 3000 meters high!
In some regions, good soil has developed where rivers have
deposited sand and silt
The Western Cordillera includes British Columbia, Yukon,
and parts of Alberta.
Innuitian Mountains
Located in the Far North of Canada
The mountains are over 2000m high with steep-sided valleys
The region includes Ellesmere Island
It is too cold for trees to survive
Arctic Lowlands
A region of upland plateau surfaces and lowland plains
It is a region of tundra (a treeless plain with a cold, dry
climate and poorly drained soil)
It has a short growing season which means only sparse (little)
vegetation can grow
Most of the Arctic Lowlands region is found in Nunavut
Interior Plains
Located between the Shield and Western Cordillera, this is an
extensive area of plain (fertile, flat land)
Erosion carved out these plains, and as a result it has very
rich, moist and well-drained soil called black earth or
chernozem
The Southern Coastal area is semi-desert with sparse
vegetation that includes cactus plants
The Interior Plains covers most of Alberta, and large sections
of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and the Northwest Territories.
Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Lowlands
It is another regions of plains (flat, fertile land), south of the
Shield.
This area has experienced considerable faulting, fracturing,
and volcanism
Due to deposits of sand and clay (left by the Ice Age), very
fertile soil remained called Brown Eart
This area stretches from southwestern Ontario along the
Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River to the mouth of the
Saguenay River in Quebec.
Hudson Bay Lowlands
It is located within the Canadian Shield
It is mainly flat and poorly drained land
The soil in this area is a mix of tundra and podzols, leading to
the development of swamp forests
It is located in Northern Ontario and Manitoba
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