5+Prairies

=__**Introducing The Prairies**__=

The location that our group got was the Praries. It is located in the south of Alberta, Maintoba and Saskatchewan. Glaciation has left a toll on the Prairies, leave the landscape flat and leaving deposits from inland seas left behind by the melting glaciers. These deposits are the plains that are largely defined as the Breadbasket of Canada. Almost 95% of the Prairies have been converted into farmland.You will find a vast amount of vegetation, especially wheat, hence it is called the Breadbasket of Canada. Despite the amount of land given to farming, only 10% of the population are farmers. There are 3 main types of grasslands: tall grass prairie, mixed prairie, and fescue praire. In this presentation, we will be talking about the Land form Regions, the Rocks and Minerals, the Vegetation and Soil, the Climate and Climograph and their relationship with humans. And yes, there will be a trivia in the end too.



__Landform Regions__
The landform region that the prairies eco zone is mostly apart of is The Interior Plains. The interior plains were formed when sediments from the Canadian Shield and the Rocky Mountains surrounding the low inland seas that are now the prairies. When the sediments collected, the upper layers that followed on top compressed them into sedimentary rock. From those inland seas were rich coral reefs from the time that Canada was near the equator. The reefs are now thousands of metres below the surface and are providing much of the gas and oil that the interior planes are known for. Many believe that the prairies are mostly flat but due to a type of erosion called differential erosion which caused the three levels of elevation---the Alberta plain, the Saskatchewan plain, and the Manitoba lowland. These levels are separated by sharp escarpments and in each level long rolling hills cover most of the region. No significant folding or faulting occurred in this eco zone.

__Rocks and Minerals __
Alberta and Saskatchewan (which are part of the prairies) are home to most of the oil and gas produced from the reefs produced from the inland seas in the Palaeozoic era. Also during the Mesozoic era shallow seas covered all of the region that is now Saskatchewan, once these seas evaporated layers of calcified mineral deposits left behind healthy reserves of Potash and the swamps from those seas changes into coal that is still being mined today. Also deep below the surface from the years of the build up of sediments from the Rocky Mountains and the Canadian Shield have produced rich deposits of sedimentary rock. The rocks you will find here are mostly Sedimentary rocks. = = =__**Climate**__= The prairies are located in the Great Plains and it is a continental climate. It has a humid climate with short, hot summers and long, cold winters. Average temperature in the summer is about 18 degrees Celsius and -15 degrees in the winter, which is a 28 degree Celsius temperature range. The prairies are quite dry year round with 250 to 750mm of precipitation. It has a dryer climate because the nearby Rocky Mountains block the cold, wet air masses coming in form the west. The wind is actually quite fast too because the prairies are so flat that there are very few mountains or forests to block the oncoming wind. With wind speeds of 18 - 21 km/h it is noticeably faster than Toronto's 16 km/h winds or Vancouver's 12 km/h winds.

RED = Temperature High BLUE = Temperature Low

__ **Soil and Vegetation** __

__**Soil**__
 The Prairies is part of the Dry Climate Soil Region. The soil in the prairies is very rich and perfect for farming. The soils are full of nutrients and are very rich in color too. The soil is good for grassland and other small vegetation. The places for growing, is where the soil is black, brown, or dark grey. These types of soils can be found where mixed grass is grown. Since the soil is so fertile here it is known as "Canada's Breadbasket". Since almost 95% of the land has been turned into farmland I think that nickname is perfect for the Prairies. The growing season is about 4 months long.

=__ Vegetation __= The Prairies is a part of the Grassland Vegetation Region. There are many different native forms of vegetation in the prairies, yet there is still very little vegetation in total. In the dryer areas, short grass is very common and in wetter areas, longer grass is more abundant. The most common types of grass are Spear Grass, Wheat Grass, and Blue Grama Grass. The Northern edge of the prairies is actually covered in forests consisting mainly of trembling aspen and balsam poplar while pretty much the rest of the prairies are all grassland and other forms of low vegetation. The areas near the lakes and wetlands have the most vegetation. Trees found in the prairies includes White Spruce, Black Spruce, Balsam Fir, Tamarack, Water Birch, Bebb Willow, and Peachleaf Willow. The different types of shrubs and grass found here are Spear Grass, Wheat, Blue Grama Grass, Sagebrush, Yellow Cactus, Prickly Pear, Buckbrush, and Chokecherry. There is high forestry in the northern region but low amounts of forestry in the southern part because it is mostly grassland there. Wheat is the main thing harvested in the Prairies.

=__**Relationship With Humans**__=

== Canadians can use the rocks and minerals to their economic benefit because, with the amount of oil, gas and coal, that they can get from Prairies, not only the eco-zone benefit, Canada will benefit greatly too. With the landscape, climate and weather, and soil and vegetation, the Prairies have the ability to grow a lot livestock and vegetation; hence why the area is mostly dedicated to farming. The Prairies are very, very flat, with rich brown, black or dark grey soils, has perfect weather for the crops to grow, it is almost too good for farming. We think this has impacted the environment because, as we said before, almost 95% of the land has been dedicated to farming; which means a lot of ecosystems and habitats have been destroyed, and, this area is rich in oil, coal and gas, therefore polluting the other 5% of land that is available to nature, when being mined. Tourism can help this region by, showing Canadians how farming is valuable to us, and the tourism of the Rocky Mountains will and is right now effecting to it's economy, in a good way (as in money). We think the future of this ecozone maybe that, it will eventually run out of its natural gases, therefore loosing a lot of money, in consequence, the Prairies have to mainly depend on farming as an income. Everything else we think everything would basically stay the same.

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=__Fun__ __Facts__=
 * __ Did You Know? __**

-In Manitoba, a town named Gladstone goes by the nickname "Happy Rock" because of its big, monumental rock with a happy face on it.

-In certain places at certain times, you can see the Northern Lights from the Prairies.

-If you head north to Churchill, Manitoba, you can participate in a polar bear expedition, but, it will take you nearly 50 hours to get there by train.

-100 to 60 million years ago, the Prairies were once an inland ocean, in the late Cretaceous Period, prehistoric sea creatures mingled and chilled with land creatures such as dinosaurs crocodiles, birds, etc.

-There are actually venomous snakes in Canada, and their in the Prairies. They are called "Prairie Rattlesnakes".

-The oldest influence on Prairie culture were the First Nations.

-The Prairies is our most highly modified and least protected Ecosystems.

-Some of the world's oldest fossil were found in the Alberta Badlands. The fossils are located in the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology

= = =__Trivia__= 1. About how much land is being used for farming in the Prairies? (95% percent)

2. There are venomous snakes in the Prairies, True or False? (True.)

3. There Are Only 3 Provinces in the Prairies, True or False? (True.)

4. Who were oldest influence on the Prairies culture? (The First Nations.)

5. Why is farming technically bad for the Environment?

6. What are the Prairies known as? (Canada's Breadbasket.)

=__Sources__= Natural Resources of Canada, atlas.nrcan,gov.ca, 2009 Clark, Bruce, John Wallace, Kim Earle, Making Connections Canads Geography 2nd ed. Don Mills, Ontario Pearson Education Canada, 2006-118-75 Print.

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