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NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



to the southward is underlain by Car- 

 boniferous sandstone, shale, dolomite, 

 etc. This region extends from the Bay 

 of Chaleur along the east coast well 

 into Nova Scotia. The Cambrian and 

 Silurian formations are distinctive of 

 the region which borders the Bay of 

 Fundy. 



Physiography and soils 



In a rough manner the province may 

 be divided into four physiographic 

 units which may be termed the North- 

 ern Pateau, the Central Highlands, the 

 Eastern Plain, and the Southern High- 

 lands. The region known as the North- 

 ern Plateau and the watershed of the 

 Restigouche river and its branches 

 coincide almost exactly. The Central 

 Highlands include the watersheds of 

 the Tobique and Nepisguit rivers 

 together with a short stretch of the 

 watershed of the St. John above the 

 fork of this river with the Tobique. 

 The east coast from the mouth of the 

 Nepigsuit to Nova Scotia and the 

 greater portion of the large central area 

 drained by the Miramichi River make 

 up a unit which in some situations is 

 flat and in others is low and rolling. 

 For the want of a better name this may 

 be known as the Eastern Plain. Along 

 the Bay of Fundy the land again becomes 

 relatively high and hilly for about 40 

 mi. inland and forms the Southern 

 Highlands. 



The great continental ice sheets left 

 in a marked manner their imprint both 

 upon the topography and the soils of 

 this region. The glacial accumulations 

 were laid down in no regular way; as a 

 result the soils show a diversified com- 

 position and due to this, different 

 properties. By far the greater propor- 

 tion of the soil ia of glacial origin. With 

 such soils, however, are often inter- 

 mingled rather large included areas of 

 local sands, residual clays, and clayey 

 loams. 



Flora 



Despite the fact that the province 

 lies at the northern edge of the transition 



belt between the deciduous and co- 

 niferous types of tree vegetation, there 

 is a comparatively great diversity of 

 species. The predominant trees of the 

 vast forests are black spruce {Picea 

 mariana), red spruce (Picea rubra), 

 white spruce (Picea canadensis), balsam 

 fir (Abies balsamea), white pine (Pinus 

 strobus), beech (Fagus grandijolia), 

 sugar maple (Acer saccharum), yellow 

 birch (Betula lutea), and paper birch 

 (Betula papyrifera). The climax type 

 of tree growth in the region is a mixed 

 forest of spruce, fir, beech, maple, and 

 birch. The bryophytes, on the whole, 

 are well represented as are also many 

 of the herbaceous flowering plants. 

 Thus far little has been done in regard 

 to the study of the botany of the region, 

 so that the extent and range of the plant 

 species is not completely known. This 

 fact, together with the exceptional 

 opportunity for study in the vast ever- 

 green and hardwood forests, marshes, 

 barrens, tundra formations, and muskegs 

 should be an inducement for much more 

 work in the future. In a very few 

 localities — not all of which have been 

 definitely located — are patches of virgin 

 timber containing some good examples 

 of old growth spruce, fir, beech, maple, 

 and birch. 



Fauna 



The term "the Sportsman's Paradise" 

 has long been applied to New Brunswick. 

 It was not far in the past that the numer- 

 ous species of game and fur-bearing 

 animals ranged practically the entire 

 province. Yet, to give an example, 

 there are more moose (Alces americanus) 

 here to the square mile than in any other 

 part of the continent of North America, 

 in spite of years of constant attack by 

 large numbers of visiting and native 

 hunters who have greatly reduced the 

 numbers of these magnificent animals. 

 Other mammals still continue to be 

 somewhat plentiful although the wood- 

 land caribou (Rangifer caribou) which 

 were formerly found in large herds on 

 some of the northern barrens have 

 almost disappeared. Great numbers 



