NATURAL AREAS AND REGIONS 



105 



winds which come off the cold expanses 

 of Hudson Bay, and the frigid, icebound 

 islands of the Arctic Archipelago, 

 instead of being warmed by the balmy 

 winds that blow off the temperate Gulf 

 Stream, as in northwestern Europe. 



Temperature 



The temperature depends greatly on 

 the direction of the winds. During the 

 summer the prevailing winds in the 

 interior are southerly and southwesterly, 

 bringing higher temperature and cloudy 

 skies, often with drizzling rain. The 

 prevailing westerly and northwesterly 

 winds of winter are accompanied by 

 lower temperatures and clear skies. 

 The northerly and northeasterly winds 

 accompany heavy storms of rain and 

 snow, with damp, chilly weather. Clear, 

 pleasant weather usually comes with 

 easterly and southeasterly winds, though 

 fogs along the coast are then most 

 common. 



The temperature in the interior, 

 even in the southern part of the area, 

 rarely rises above 80 during the middle 

 of the day, on more than a few days 

 during the warm season. The summer 

 temperature of the Atlantic coast 

 region is considerably lower than inland, 

 or along the western coast. The lowest 

 winter temperatures inland are 55; 

 along the coast 45, at the head of 

 Ungava Bay; and at the mouth of 

 Hamilton Inlet -40. 



The interior plateau has but two 

 seasons, winter from mid-September to 

 mid-June, and summer rather spring 

 from mid-June to mid-September. The 

 summer season begins almost simulta- 

 neously throughout the interior, with 

 a suddenness that is surprising. In 

 the first two weeks of June the snow 

 disappears, the ice melts off all the 

 lakes except the larger, the temperature 

 rises rapidly every day, the trees and 

 shrubs burst into leaf and early bloom, 

 and the birds arrive to mate, and to 

 begin nesting almost immediately. Un- 

 til the first of July frosf/s are likely to 

 occur every night and flurries of snow 

 may come even later. Summer ends 



about the middle of September when the 

 first fall snow falls and the ice forms in 

 the small lakes. From early in October 

 the snow remains permanently, and all 

 the smaller lakes are solidly frozen. 



Precipitation 



The precipitation over the interior is 

 relatively light. The summer precipi- 

 tation is fairly constant though very 

 light, with few days without drizzles or 

 thunder-showers. The winter snowfall 

 varies from 3 to 6 ft., of which the most 

 is brought by the north and notheast 

 winds. Three-fourths of the winter 

 season is clear and crisp with brisk 

 northwest winds blowing. 



BIOTA 

 Plant life 



The vegetation along the coast of the 

 Labrador Peninsula is distinctly tundra, 

 with no trace of forests except at the 

 heads of the deeper inlets, while the 

 interior is more or less forested according 

 to the latitude and topography. 



The tundra of the coast is almost 

 continuous over the islands, capes, prom- 

 ontories, and forelands, being broken 

 only by ledges of outcropping rock 

 with no soil covering; pools and lakes; 

 the low depressions which form moors; 

 the high rocky summits of the coastal 

 mountains where broken masses of rock 

 (typical "Felsenmeer") constitute the 

 surface; and scattered moist sunny 

 slopes and protected niches where the 

 same plants as those of the less favored 

 localities attain a most luxuriant growth. 



In these coastal tundras, the essential 

 element is the sphagnum moss which 

 grows in all the damper portions. 

 Arctic grasse, sedges, rushes, and cot- 

 ton-grasses form turfy patches where 

 conditions are favorable. Northern Sa- 

 liceae and Ericaceae are the common 

 shrubs, all low-growing Empetrum nig- 

 rum, Vaccinium uliginosum and V. 

 Vitis-Idaea, Betula nana, Rubus cha- 

 maemorus and R. arctica, Ledum, Loise- 

 luria, Bryanthus that grow in the 

 tundra and tundra moor. Viola palus- 

 tris, Diapensia lapponica, Cerastium, 



