Setting

This ecoregion extends from south of the Great Slave Lake

Great Slave Lake

Great Slave Lake is the second-largest lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada , the deepest lake in North America at , and the ninth-largest lake in the world. It is long and wide. It covers an area of in the southern part of the territory. Its given volume ranges from to and up to ...

 in the Northwest Territories

Northwest Territories

The Northwest Territories is a federal territory of Canada.Located in northern Canada, the territory borders Canada's two other territories, Yukon to the west and Nunavut to the east, and three provinces: British Columbia to the southwest, and Alberta and Saskatchewan to the south...

 through most of northeastern Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

, central Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan

Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....

 and parts of west-central Manitoba

Manitoba

Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

 and consists of three main areas: the Slave River

Slave River

The Slave River is a Canadian river that flows from Lake Athabasca in northeastern Alberta and empties into Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories....

 basin in northeastern Alberta, the lowlands of the northern Manitoba plain, and the uplands south of the Canadian Shield

Canadian Shield

The Canadian Shield, also called the Laurentian Plateau, or Bouclier Canadien , is a vast geological shield covered by a thin layer of soil that forms the nucleus of the North American or Laurentia craton. It is an area mostly composed of igneous rock which relates to its long volcanic history...

 from north-central Alberta to southwestern Manitoba. This is a mixed area of lowlands and mountains up to 800m high, including areas of wetland and peat bog and mountain lakes and ponds. The area has a subhumid mid-boreal ecoclimate with short summers (average temperature 14°C) and long, cold winters (ave. -15°C) and patches of permafrost in the lowlands.

Flora

These forests, like so much of Canada at this latitude, are a mixture of conifers and deciduous trees including quaking aspen (Populus tremuloides

Populus tremuloides

Populus tremuloides is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, and Quakies,. The trees have tall trunks, up to 25 metres, with smooth pale bark, scarred with black. The glossy green leaves, dull beneath, become golden...

), balsam poplar

Balsam poplar

The balsam poplars — also known as Populus sect. Tacamahaca — are a group of about 10 species of poplars, indigenous to North America and eastern Asia, distinguished by the balsam scent of their buds, the whitish undersides of their leaves, and the leaf petiole being round in cross-section...

s, white spruce (Picea glauca), black spruce (Picea mariana) and balsam fir Abies balsamea.

Fauna

Wildlife of the area includes moose (Alces alces), American black bear (Ursus americanus), wolf (Canis lupus), Canada lynx (Lynx canadensis), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), elk (Cervus canadensis), North American beaver (Castor canadensis), muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus), snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus). The plain to the south of the lake is home to moose, coyote (Canis latrans), and eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) as well. Wood Buffalo National Park

Wood Buffalo National Park

Wood Buffalo National Park, located in northeastern Alberta and southern Northwest Territories, is the largest national park in Canada at . The park was established in 1922 to protect the world's largest herd of free roaming Wood Bison, currently estimated at more than 5,000...

 on the Slave River is the largest national park in Canada and home to the world's largest herd of American bison (Bison bison).

Birds include ducks, geese, American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos), sandhill crane (Grus canadensis), ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus), common loon (Gavia immer) while the wetlands of the region, such as Cumberland Lake

Cumberland Lake

Cumberland Lake is a glacial lake of Saskatchewan, Canada.It is located in the Cumberland Delta in East-Central Saskatchewan about 60 km from the Manitoba border. Cumberland House and Cumberland House Provincial Historic Park are located on the south shore and is accessed by Highway 123. The...

, are important refuge for migratory birds including the most important breeding populations of the endangered Whooping Crane

Whooping Crane

The whooping crane , the tallest North American bird, is an endangered crane species named for its whooping sound. Along with the Sandhill Crane, it is one of only two crane species found in North America. The whooping crane's lifespan is estimated to be 22 to 24 years in the wild...

 in North America.

Threats and preservation

Half of the natural forest remains intact, the other half having been removed by extensive logging, oil and gas exploration and mining. Blocks of intact forest include Wood Buffalo Park, the areas around Cold Lake

Cold Lake (Alberta)

Cold Lake is a large lake in Northern Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada. The lake straddles the Alberta/Saskatchewan border, and has a water area of . It is also one of the deepest lakes in Alberta with a maximum depth of . It has around 24 known species of fish in it and is a major ice fishing lake...

/Primrose Lake

Primrose Lake

Primrose Lake is a large lake in Saskatchewan and Alberta, Canada. The lake straddles the Alberta/Saskatchewan border, with most of the water surface in Saskatchewan. It is close to the better known Cold Lake, Alberta....

 and Doré Lake

Dorė Lake

Doré Lake is a lake of Saskatchewan, Canada. Doré is the Canadian French term for walleye.-References:**...

, Prince Albert National Park

Prince Albert National Park

Prince Albert National Park covers in central Saskatchewan, Canada and is located north of Saskatoon. Though declared a national park March 24, 1927, it had its official opening ceremonies on August 10, 1928 performed by Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King. The park is open all year but...

, to the north of Cumberland Lake, Riding Mountain National Park

Riding Mountain National Park

Riding Mountain National Park is a national park in Manitoba, Canada. The park sits atop the Manitoba Escarpment. Consisting of a protected area , the forested parkland stands in sharp contrast to the surrounding prairie farmland. The park is home to wolves, moose, elk, black bears, hundreds of...

, Porcupine Hills

Porcupine Hills

The Porcupine Hills refer to geographical features located in the prairie provinces of Canada.-Manitoba-Saskatchewan:A feature known as the Porcupine Hills is located in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba. They are part of the Manitoba Escarpment, which was the shoreline of the...

, Duck Mountain Provincial Park (Manitoba)

Duck Mountain Provincial Park (Manitoba)

Duck Mountain Provincial Park is a 600 square kilometre forest in western Manitoba. It is not to be confused with Saskatchewan's Duck Mountain Provincial Park, located just across the Manitoba/Saskatchewan boundary....

, Duck Mountain Provincial Park (Saskatchewan)

Duck Mountain Provincial Park (Saskatchewan)

Duck Mountain Provincial Park is a Saskatchewan Provincial Park, located 14 km east of the town of Kamsack and stretches some 12 kilometres eastward to the Saskatchewan/Manitoba boundary. It is centered near coordinates 51° 41′N, 101° 38′W...

 (near the town of Kamsack

Kamsack

-External links:* * in Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan*...

 and the Peace–Athabasca Delta on the Slave River. Other protected areas include Clearwater River (Saskatchewan)

Clearwater River (Saskatchewan)

Clearwater River is the name of a river in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta.-Course:The Clearwater River totals 295 kilometres in length and rises in northwestern Saskatchewan in the northern forest region of the Precambrian Shield. From its headwaters at Broach Lake it flows...

, Meadow Lake Provincial Park

Meadow Lake Provincial Park

Meadow Lake Provincial Park is a northern boreal forest recreational park accessed centrally through Goodsoil. The village of Goodsoil is located approximately 78 km west of Meadow Lake. The eastern entrance to the park is located north of Dorintosh. The western gateway into the Meadow...

 (near Goodsoil, Saskatchewan

Goodsoil, Saskatchewan

- See also :* List of communities in Saskatchewan* Villages of Saskatchewan-External links:* - official website...

) and Narrow Hills Provincial Park

Narrow Hills Provincial Park

Narrow Hills Provincial Park is provincial park in Saskatchewan Canada. It contains a series of recreational facilities and a variety of lakes within its boundaries...

.