26 



THE GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE FOREST TREES OF 



CANADA. 



In tin- reporl of tin- Geological Survey of Canada for 1880, there is a paper 

 l,\ Dr. 1!,-!1, tne Assistanl Diivetor, accompanied by a map on which the general 

 ni'i-thern limits of tlir principal forest trees of Canada east of the Rocky moun- 

 tains are represented. Dr. Hell says : 



Tin- 'ont incut of North America posesses a great variety of forest trees, 

 Al'out :;4' different species occur within the United States. All the kinds which 

 we have in Canada, amounting to about ninety, including those of the Pacific 

 ; ie, an also met \vitli in that country. Some species are not only very widely dif- 

 fuse d, Inn an' ;ilso persistent over great areas, being found almost everywhere 

 within the limits of their distribution, while others, although having an exten- 

 uive range, are nowhere very common, and are sometimes absent for a considera- 

 ble interval. Others again are confined to comparatively small tracts. As a 

 gem-nil rule, the more northern species occupy the greatest extent of country, 

 while the southern ones are progressively more and more restricted, even in a 

 more rapid ratio than would be implied by the narrowing of the continent from 

 north to south ; this is owing to the great differences experienced in climatic con- 

 ditions in going from east to west in the more southern latitudes. Along the 

 northern borders of the forests of the continent, the elevation of the land above 

 the sea is comparatively slight, and regular, and the other physical conditions 

 are tolerably uniform. As a consequence, we find the most northern group of 

 trees extending from Newfoundland into Alaska, a distance of about 4,000 miles 



An inspection of the map accompanying Dr. Bell's report show some interest- 

 ing features as to the general distribution of our forest trees, as well as regarding 

 almost every individual species of timber. For example, it will be observed 

 that there is no material change in the woods throughout the great triangular 

 area, embracing about 600,000 square miles, of which the national boundary 

 line between the Rocky Mountains and Lake Superior forms the base, and the 

 Rocky Mountains and Laurentian Hills respectively the west and east sides, 

 the apex being at the mouth of the Mackenzie River. In the southern part of 

 of this area, a number of species are added to the kinds which everywhere 

 throughout it make up the bulk of the forest ; and again, few trees of any kind 

 are found to the south of the North Saskatchewan; still, making allowance for 

 local peculiarities of condition, there is a remarkable uniformity in the timber of 

 this enormous area. It includes, however, only a few species, of which the aspen,, 

 balsam poplar, and willows are more abundant towards the western and the 

 spruces, larch, balsam, fir and Banksian pine toward the eastern side of the area 



It will be observed that the lines marking the northern limits of about a- 

 dozen species turn southward and become their western limits on reaching the 

 eastern side of the valley of Lake Winnipeg and the Red River; while the 

 boundaries of the species occurring next to the south of these also manifest a 

 tendency to turn southward in approaching the prairies of the west. The species 

 above referred to are the white cedar, black ash, white pine, red pine, sugar 

 maple, yellow birch, red oak, white ash, hemlock, beech, iron wood, red cedar (ar- 

 borescent variety) and white oak. They are to a great extent replaced by other 

 species In-fore the region of open plains is reached. Had the great forests origi- 

 nally extended further west, and been destroyed by fire or other causes, in com- 

 paratively recent times, we should have found the northern limits of these species 

 continuing their general course through the prarie regions, and ending abruptly 



