In terms of land area, Canada is the second largest country in the world. It spans across five marine ecozones, the largest being the Arctic Archipelago, and seventeen terrestrial ecozones, the largest being the Boreal Shield. The Arctic Archipelago covers over 1,400,000 square kilometers and includes all of Hudson and James Bay. This region contains over 36,000 islands, one being Baffin Island, the fifth largest in the world. The Arctic Archipelago is spread over two Canadian territories; Northwest Territories and Nunavut, but has a combined population of less than 20,000 people. The Boreal Shield stretches from Saskatchewan to Newfoundland and has an area of 1,800,000 square kilometers. It contains 20% of the Canadian landmass and 10% of the nation’s fresh water. Being remote and sparsely populated, these two ecozones offer an abundant variety of flora and fauna.
