Wood Buffalo National Park
The park includes 3 major environments: fire-scarred forested uplands; a poorly drained plateau etched with meandering streams and pocked with bogs; and the Peace-Athabasca Delta, one of the world's largest inland deltas and a Ramsar site (wetland of global significance). Also present in the park are extensive salt plains - where mounds of salt can grow to 2 m high - and one of the best examples of KARST LANDFORMS in North America.
Between 1925 and 1928, 6673 bison were transported from Wainwright, Alta, to the park. This decision, well intended though it was, brought disease in the form of bovine tuberculosis and brucellosis to the park's bison population. Wood Buffalo provides excellent habitat for a variety of other wildlife such as moose, caribou, wolf and BLACK BEAR. In the wetlands, muskrat, beaver and mink thrive; in the forests, fox, lynx, weasel and red squirrel.
Waterfowl abound in the delta. Over one million ducks, geese and swans pass through on MIGRATION; many remain to nest. The park is famous as the last remaining natural nesting site for WHOOPING CRANES.
Bison
Wood Buffalo was established in 1922, largely as a home for the remnant population of bison that escaped the slaughter in the late 19th century (Corel Professional Photos).
Wood Buffalo National Park
Whooping crane habitat at Wood Buffalo National Park. The extensive wetlands provide the only remaining habitat for nesting whooping cranes in the world (photo by Cliff Wallis, courtesy Cottonwood Consultants Ltd.)
Whooping Crane Habitat
Taiga plains in Wood Buffalo National Park, habitat of the whooping crane (photo by R.O. Muir, courtesy Parks Canada).
Whooping Crane Nesting Site
Whooping crane nesting sites in Wood Buffalo National Park (courtesy Parks Canada)
Human History
The area has been inhabited by humans since the retreat of the glaciers. In recent centuries, nomadic Cree and Chipewyan bands were integral to this ecosystem. Their descendants occupy the park and carry on fishing, hunting and trapping activities, making this the park in Canada with the longest standing tradition of native subsistence use.
Facilities
Author MAXWELL W. FINKELSTEIN
Links to Other Sites
United Nations World Heritage Sites
Information about locations in Canada that have been designated United Nations World Heritage Sites. From the United Nations website.
Wood Buffalo National Park of Canada
This illustrated Parks Canada website describes the ecology, geography, and history of Wood Buffalo National Park of Canada
Four Directions Teachings
Elders and traditional teachers representing the Blackfoot, Cree, Ojibwe, Mohawk, and Mi’kmaq share teachings about their history and culture. Animated graphics visualize each of the oral teachings. This website also provides biographies of participants, transcripts, and an extensive array of learning resources for students and their teachers. In English with French subtitles.
World's Largest Beaver Dam at Home in Canada's Largest National Park
A photo and description of the world's largest Beaver Dam located in Canada's largest national park. From Parks Canada.
Wood Buffalo National Park of Canada
5 of Canada's northern national parks
A selective look at some of Canada's national parks in the North from the CBC.
The Dominion government's advertisement asked for volunteers "able to read and write either the English or French language" with "good antecedents" who were good horsemen...
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