Lancaster Sound
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Lancaster Sound, Nunavut, Canada. |
Lancaster Sound () is a body of water lying between
Devon Island and
Baffin Island in
Nunavut,
Canada, forming the eastern portion of the
Northwest Passage. East of the sound lies
Baffin Bay; to the west lies
Viscount Melville Sound. Further west a traveller would enter the
McClure Strait before heading into the
Arctic Ocean.
Ice cover, both
land-fast ice and
pack ice, is common for nine months of the year. A
shore lead system ensures there is ice-free water areas.
Wildlife is rich and varied, with an immense amount of
Arctic cod (30,000 tons worth) known to exist there. The Arctic cod is also part of the diet for many of the birds in Lancaster Sound and marine mammals. Many
narwhal,
beluga,
bowhead whale (an endangered species),
ringed,
bearded and
harp seals,
walrus,
polar bears,
thick-billed murres, black-legged
kittiwakes, northern
fulmars,
black guillemots,
arctic terns,
ivory gulls and
snow geese all occupy the area.
This area is not yet represented in the Canadian national marine conservation areas systems even though an attempt to do so at the request of local
Inuit was made in 1987.
*
Lancaster Sound on the
Parks Canada website.
