The Atlantic Coast: A Natural History

The Atlantic Coast: A Natural History

Language: English

Pages: 336

ISBN: 1553654463

Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub


The North Atlantic coast of North America—commonly known as the Atlantic Coast—extends from Newfoundland and Labrador through the Maritime Provinces and the Northeastern United States south to Cape Hatteras. This North Atlantic region belongs to the sea. The maritime influence on climate, flora, and fauna is dominant — even far inland. Both on land and at sea, this region is where north meets south, where the great northern boreal forests intermingle with the southern coniferous-hardwood forests, and where the icy Labrador Current and the tropical Gulf Stream vie for supremacy and eventually mix. The Atlantic Coast draws upon the best and most up-to-date science on the ecology of the region as well as the author’s lifetime experience as a resident, biologist, and naturalist. The book explores the geological origins of the region, the two major forest realms, and the main freshwater and marine ecosystems, and describes the flora and fauna that characterize each habitat. It ends with a look at what has been lost and how the remaining natural heritage of the region might be conserved for the future.

Published in partnership with the David Suzuki Foundation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(1984): 1193–1201. MacPherson, Alan G. and Joyce B. MacPherson. The Natural Environment of Newfoundland, Past and Present. St. John’s, nl: Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1981. Nettleship, David N. and Tim R. Birkhead, eds. The Atlantic Alcidae: Evolution, Distribution and Biology of the Auks Inhabiting the Atlantic Ocean and Adjacent Water Areas. New York: Academic Press, 1985. Robertson, G.J., S.I. Wilhelm, and P.A. Taylor. “Population Size and Trends of Seabirds Breeding on Gull and

find a home in its many slow-moving streams and wetlands. Middle Atlantic Coastal Forest The Middle Atlantic coastal forest occupies the flat coastal plain from the eastern shore of Maryland and Delaware to just south of the Georgia–South Carolina border, giving way to the southeastern mixed forest, where the Atlantic Coastal Plain meets the edge of the Piedmont. The slow-moving blackwater rivers that snake across the flat terrain are famed for the towering bald cypress and gum trees that form

it. It is sometimes possible, however, to walk on top of this hedgelike growth, which is the result of the krummholz effect, a term derived from the German for “crooked wood.” Krummholz is also common on the highest peaks of the Appalachians, such as Mount Carleton in New Brunswick and Mount Katahdin in Maine. These trees are usually less than 3 meters (9 feet) high and sometimes less than one meter (3 feet), but their bottom whorl of branches may extend out from the central stem more than 2

most other land plants from growing in areas flooded by the tide. When most plants are exposed to excess salt, water flows out of their cells in an attempt to equalize osmotic pressure on either side of the cell membrane. As a result, the cells wither and die. Salt marsh cordgrasses cope with the increased salt concentration of seawater by actually drawing salt water into their cells and concentrating the salts there in an attempt to equalize the osmotic pressure. If they retained too much salt,

the natural wonders of its interior is Vaureal Falls, which is higher than Niagara and has carved a spectacular canyon through the limestone karst. It also boasts twenty-four rivers, which are host to Atlantic salmon. The most famous is the Jupiter, the color of jade as it courses over its limestone bed. The island is a geological relic of a sea that covered the area 60 million years ago. Today, it is littered with marine fossils and some six hundred types, including trilobites, have been

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