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Wood Buffalo National Park
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Wood Buffalo National Park | |
|---|---|
| IUCN Category II (National Park) | |
  |
|
| Location: | Alberta & Northwest Territories, Canada |
| Nearest city: | Fort Smith |
| Coordinates: | |
| Area: | 44,807 km² |
| Established: | 1922 |
| Governing body: | Parks Canada |
| State Party |  Canada |
|
| Type | Natural | |
| Criteria | vii, ix, x | |
| Identification | #256 | |
| Region2 | Europe and North America | |
| Inscription History | ||
| Formal Inscription: | 1983 7th WH Committee Session |
|
| WH link: | http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/256 | |
|
1 Name as officially inscribed on the WH List |
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Wood Buffalo National Park, located in northeastern Alberta and southern Northwest Territories, is the largest national park in Canada at 44,807 km². The park was established in 1922 to protect the world's largest herd of free roaming Wood Bison, currently estimated at more than 2,000. It is the only known nesting site of whooping cranes.
The park ranges in elevation from 183 metres (600') at the Little Buffalo River to 945 metres (3,100') in the Caribou Mountains. The park headquarters is located in Fort Smith, with a smaller satellite office in Fort Chipewyan, Alberta. Geographically the park is important; it contains one of the world's largest fresh water deltas, formed by the Peace, Athabasca and Slave Rivers. It is also known for its karst sinkholes on the Northwest Territory side. The national park is also located directly north of the Athabasca Oil Sands.
Contents |
Wood Buffalo National Park contains a large variety of wildlife species, such as moose, black bear, wolf, lynx, brown bear, pear, snowshoe hare, sandhill crane, Wood Buffalo, ruffed grouse, and the garter snake, which form famous communal dens within the park.
Wood Buffalo Park contains the only natural nesting habitat for the critically endangered whooping crane.
This area was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for the biological diversity of the Peace-Athabasca Delta, the world's largest inland delta, as well as the massive population of wild bison.
Year-round access is available to Fort Smith by road on the Mackenzie Highway, which connects to Highway 5 near Hay River, Northwest Territories. Commercial flights are available to Fort Smith and Fort Chipewyan from Edmonton.[1] Winter access is also available using winter and ice roads from Fort McMurray through Fort Chipewyan.
 Location and extent |
 Wood Bison |
 Wood Bison |
 Marmot |
 Gros Beak Lake |
 American White Pelicans at Rapids of the Drowned (Slave River) |
 Beaver Lodge |
 Pine Lake |
| National Parks of Canada | ||
|---|---|---|
| National parks | Aulavik • Auyuittuq • Banff • Bruce Peninsula • Cape Breton Highlands • Elk Island • Forillon • Fundy • Georgian Bay Islands • Glacier • Grasslands • Gros Morne • Ivvavik • Jasper • Kejimkujik • Kluane • Kootenay • Kouchibouguac • La Mauricie • Mount Revelstoke • Point Pelee • Prince Edward Island • Pukaswa • Prince Albert • Quttinirpaaq • Riding Mountain • Sirmilik • St. Lawrence Islands • Terra Nova • Tuktut Nogait • Ukkusiksalik • Vuntut • Wapusk • Waterton Lakes • Wood Buffalo • Yoho |
 |
| National Park Reserves | Gulf Islands • Gwaii Haanas • Pacific Rim • Torngat Mountains • Mingan Archipelago • Kluane • Nahanni • Tuktut Nogait | |
| Marine Conservation | Fathom Five • Saguenay-St. Lawrence | |
