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Tuktut Nogait
 Nationalpark, with rolling tundra,
wild rivers, garnde canyons, and a variety of unique wildlife and vege-
tation, Tuktut
Nogait (‘young caribou’) is one of Canada’s undiscovered gems. This remote park is located
170 kilometres north of the arctic circle and is home to the Bluenose West caribou herd, wolves,
grizzly bears, muskoxen, arctic char, and |
© Images Parks
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a high density of raptors.
The wildlife and land have supported aboriginal peoples for thousands of years, from the Copper and Thule cultures to contemporary
Inuvialuit. Tuktut Nogait protects a portion of the Tundra Hills Natural Region, a representative natural area of Canadian significance. The landscape of Tuktut Nogait consists largely of vast
expanses of tundra, broadly rolling uplands and lowlands, deep canyons,
stunning waterfalls and crystal clear rivers. |
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Park Characteristics
The north and central area of the park is mainly sedimentary rock composed of marine strata. The oldest strata are com-
posed of shale, or siltstone, which are ov-
erlain by
dolomites, poorly bedded sand-
stone and quartzite, and massive buff dolomite. These units outcrop along the shoreline of Amundsen Gulf and in the Melville Hills. South of the Little Hornaday River and west of the Hornaday River, sandstone, shale, siltstone
and mudstone predominate. Cryosols (soil that occurs
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where permanently frozen material exists within 1 to 2 m of the surface) are the dominant soils. They are underlain by continuous permafrost with active layers that are usually moist throughout the summer.
The park is drained by three main rivers: the Hornaday, Brock and Roscoe. All three follow the northwest slope of the land, flowing from interior areas to Amundsen Gulf. Where they leave the uplands, the three rivers have carved deep and precipitous canyons. The largest river is the Hornaday, which is 360 km long and has a drainage basin of 14,900 km². Peak flow is usually during the first week of June, when water levels rise dramatically. A few large lakes are found along the eastern park boundary, with smaller lakes found in the valleys of the main rivers
and northern part of the park. Few lakes are present in the central Melville Hills. |
Wildlife In The Park
A wide variety of
mammals are found in the park, including caribou, muskoxen, grizzly bears, wolves, red foxes,
wolverines, arc-
tic ground squirrels and collared lemmings. The park encompas-
ses most of the core
calving, and post-calving grounds of the Bluenose West caribou herd.
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| | In mid-June, the herd's 85,000 animals return to the park to give birth.
Tuktut Nogait is a major breeding and nesting ground for a wide variety of migratory birds. Raptors such as peregrine falcons, rough legged hawks, gyrfalcons and golden eagles nest along the steep walls of the river canyons. Other notable bird species include: tundra swans, sandhill cranes, lapland longspurs, horned larks, jaegers, golden plovers, and both arctic and red throated loons.
Mammals and birds are most concentrated along the park's river corridors. The park's waters are home to arctic char, grayling, lake trout and whitefish. The Hornaday River supports an important subsistence fishery of arctic char for the residents of Paulatuk. |
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Vegetation In The Park
Most of the park is continuous arctic tundra and is entirely above the treeline. Extensive sparsely vegetated or barren areas exist as well, especially in areas where bedrock is exposed, and in the central Melville Hills.
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| | From late June until the end of July the tundra is carpeted with showy wildflowers, such as arctic lupine, moss campion, purple saxifrage, mountain avens, siberian phlox, lapland roseberry, oxytropis, cinquefoil, hedysarum, and river beauty. |
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NORTHWEST TERRITORIES CANADA 
Nahanni National Park
