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Polar Bear Pass is a 262,400 hectare wetland and mountain pass on Bathurst Island within Qikiqtaaluk, Nunavut, Canada. The pass is on federal Crown land.^[1]

Fauna and flora

The wetland exists within a tundra desert in the high Arctic. It is a staging area for migratory birds, as well as a breeding area for numerous bird species. The large insect population is an ample food source for these birds.

Various water features are located throughout the site, including lakes, tundra ponds and meadows. Vegetation consists primarily of "grasses, sedges, mosses and lichens"^[2], as well as a diversity of flowering plants.

An ecological research station is located on the site. Various studies have been conducted in the area, including those on the endangered Peary Caribou by the Canadian Wildlife Service. Currently, the territorial government is funding studies on muskoxen and caribou in the region.

Its name is derived from the polar bears that migrate through the region between March and November each year.^[2]

Conservation

Polar Bear Pass is an International Biological Program site. It was designated a Ramsar site on May 24, 1982.^[1] Polar Bear Pass National Wildlife Area received its designation in 1985.^[3]

References