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by George Ferguson
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The wondrous and unparalleled tides of Fundy are the engine which powers not only a constant and repetitious erosion mechanism, but one which fuels, nurtures and supports one of the great natural ecosystems of the world. Many have ranked the Bay above Australia's Great Barrier Reef when examining the extensive and exceptional pyramid of the marine food-chain it has created, and as a consequence, the broad and diverse range of creatures it attracts. |
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Of ultimate verification is the congregation of the world's largest marine mammals - the whale. At least eight species of whales are to be found in the Bay of Fundy, including the Minke, Humpback, Baleen and the endangered Right Whale (so named because of its massive size and slow speed, for hundreds of years whalers referred to them as the "right" whale to kill). Whales common to the Bay can be up to 16m (52 ft) in length and can weigh up to 40,000 kilograms (88,000 lbs). It is estimated that between the Gulf of Maine and the Bay of Fundy, the whale population ranges between three and four hundred at any one time (Thurston, 1994).
With the powerful tides that ceaselessly flush and churn the rich nutrients along the coastline, the whales feast on the enormous amounts of krill, squid and schools of young herring, pollock and mackerel that abound here. Further, the Bay of Fundy is a preferred location for whales to give birth, both for the abundant food and for the protection that the Bay provides (Thurston, 1994).
In recent years, Whale Watching has become an extremely popular day adventure for thousands of tourists visiting the Fundy region. From boats hugging the coastlines, visitors can view at close range the spectacular acrobatics of the whales, as these massive mammals breech, lunge and cavort as they feed, play or just show-off. These whale watching tours also offer a front row seat to life here in its myriad marine forms - shrimp, herring, seals, seabirds and whales.
Descending the remarkable succession of species we encounter the smaller toothed-whales, including playful porpoises and dolphins, seals, several varieties of sharks, and a plethora of fish (including shad, flounder, tuna, sea sturgeons, salmon, cod, herring, pollack, hake, haddock and halibut) as well as lobsters, crabs, scallops, shrimp and sea urchins. All of the smaller forms of sea life are drawn and held to the Bay by the rich abundance of algae, plankton and krill - the veritable foundation and substructure of the remarkable biological chain (Smith and Smith, 1998).
Little wonder that the Fundy fishery generates more than 200 million dollars annually, making it the most affluent fishery region in Atlantic Canada. As such, the commercial fishing stocks are monitored by Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans to ensure sustainability of this remarkable resource (Thurston, 1994).
References:
Pinet, P.R. 1998. Invitiation to Oceanogoraphy, web enhanced ed. Jones and Bartlett Publishers. Boston, Ma.
Burzynski, M. and Marceau, A. 1984. Fundy: Bay of the Giant Tides, 3rd ed. The Fundy Guild Publishing, Alma, New Brunswick.
Cutnell, J. D. and Johnson. 1995. Physics, 3rd ed. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. New York
Dolgoff, A. 1998. Physical Geology, Updated version. Houghton Mifflin Co. New York
Randall, D., Burggren, W. and French, K, 1998. Animal Physiology: Mechanisms and Adaptations, 3rd ed. W.H. Freeman and Co. New York.
Smith, R.L. and Smith, T.M. 1998. Elements of Ecology, 4th ed. Benjamin - Cummings Publishing Co. Menlo Park, Ca.
Thurston, H. and Horner, S. 1998. Tidal Life. Nimbus. Toronto.
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