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6 . CLIMATICALLY SIGNIFICANT ECOLOGICAL ZONES IN THE
UPPER MACKENZIE RIVER AREA
The small amount of
climatic data available does not provide
adequate information for delineating climatically significant
ecological zones in the area .
The physical and biological portions
of the environment do, however, provide reliable information, making
it possible to
establish broad climatically significant ecological
zonations . In the Upper Mackenzie River basin these Zones (Figure 2)
were separated on the basis of soils,
permafrost, parent materials,
elevation and vegetation, and were designated by a number from 0 to 6 .
Above the treeline or timberline the area is designated 0 .
Areas
below the timberline are simply numbered 1 to 6 . The numbers
do not provide quantitative data concerning the climate ;
they simply
serve to separate into Zones
the physical and biological portions
of the environment showing different patterns .
The description of
these Zones in the area between the 60 ° th and 64 ° th parallels (top
of N .T .S . Sheets 950 and 95N), the area which was covered by the
southern party of the Geological Survey of Canada, is given in detail
below and is summarized in Table 3 .
Zone 2 .
This Zone covers the Dahadinni, Johnson and North Nahanni
River areas on the west side of the Mackenzie River Valley .
The
mineral soils are dominantly Cryic (frozen) Brunisols and Cryic
(frozen) Gleysols developed on the fine-textured glacial till which
is typical of this zone .
Some of the well-drained Cryic Brunisols
have a hummocky micro-topography, but without a great deal of cryoturbation
.
Cryic Gleysols also exhibit a hummocky microtopography
and very weak cryoturbation .
Cryic Fibrisols and Cryic Mesisols