Everything about Gulf Of St Lawrence totally explained
Gulf of Saint Lawrence (French:
golfe du Saint-Laurent), the world's largest
estuary, is the outlet of North America's
Great Lakes via the
Saint Lawrence River into the
Atlantic Ocean.
The river flows into the gulf through the
Jacques Cartier Strait between the
Côte-Nord region of Quebec and the north shore of
Anticosti Island, and the
Honguedo Strait between the south shore of Anticosti Island and the
Gaspé Peninsula.
The gulf is bounded on the north by the
Labrador Peninsula, to the east by
Newfoundland, to the south by the
Nova Scotia peninsula and
Cape Breton Island, and to the west by the Gaspé and
New Brunswick. It contains
Anticosti Island,
Prince Edward Island, and the
Magdalen Islands.
Besides the Saint Lawrence River itself, semi-major tributaries of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence include the
Miramichi River, the
Natashquan River, the
Restigouche River, the
Margaree River, and the
Humber River. Arms of the Gulf include the
Chaleur Bay,
Miramichi Bay,
St. George's Bay,
Bay of Islands, and
Northumberland Strait.
Cultural importance
The gulf has provided a historically important marine fishery for various
First Nations that have lived on its shores for millennia and used its waters for transportation.
The first documented voyage by a European in its waters was by French explorer
Jacques Cartier in
1534; the Cartier expedition is reported to have been the first known encounter between Europeans and First Nations inhabiting the Gulf of St. Lawrence basin, which occurred in present-day New Brunswick on
July 7,
1534.
Outlets
The gulf flows into the Atlantic through the
Strait of Belle Isle between
Labrador and Newfoundland, the
Cabot Strait between Newfoundland and Cape Breton Island, and the
Strait of Canso between Cape Breton Island and peninsular Nova Scotia. It should be noted that since construction of the
Canso Causeway in
1955, the Strait of Canso doesn't permit free-flowing exchange of waters between the gulf and the Atlantic.
Protected areas
St. Paul Island, Nova Scotia, off the northeast tip of Cape Breton Island, is referred to as the
"Graveyard of the Gulf" for its many shipwrecks; access to the island is controlled by the
Canadian Coast Guard.
Bonaventure Island on the eastern tip of the Gaspé Peninsula,
Île Brion and
Rochers-aux-Oiseaux(Bird Rock) northeast of the
Magdalen Islands are important
migratory bird sanctuaries administered by the Canadian Wildlife Service.
The Government of Canada maintains
national parks in the Gulf of St. Lawrence estuary at
Forillon on the eastern tip of the Gaspé,
Prince Edward Island on the north shore of the island,
Kouchibouguac on the northeast coast of New Brunswick,
Cape Breton Highlands on the northern tip of Cape Breton Island,
Gros Morne on Newfoundland's west coast, and a national park reserve in the
Mingan Archipelago on Quebec's
Côte-Nord.
The five provinces bordering the gulf also maintain various provincial parks, some of which preserve coastal features.
Undersea features
The Laurentian Channel is a feature of the gulf floor that was formed during previous
glaciations, where the
continental shelf was eroded by the St. Lawrence River during periods of global sealevel minimums. Over the last century, the bottom waters of the channel have become
hypoxic.
The large extension of the continental shelf southeast of Newfoundland is known as the
Grand Banks, and is the focus of fishing and oil exploration. Portions of the Grand Banks lie outside Canada's
Exclusive Economic Zone. The easternmost portion of the shelf is known as the
Flemish Cap, and it lies completely in international fishing waters.
Submarine canyons and
fans can be found off the Scotian shelf.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Gulf Of St Lawrence'.
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