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Lancaster Sound




Lancaster Sound () is a body of water lying between Devon Island and Baffin Island in Nunavut , Canada . East of the sound lies Baffin Bay ; to the west lies Viscount Melville Sound . Further west a traveller would enter the McClure Strait before heading into the Arctic Ocean .

Ice cover, both Land-fast ice and Pack Ice , is common for nine months of the year. A Shore Lead system ensures there is ice-free water areas.

Widelife is rich and varied, with an immense amount of Arctic Cod (30,000 tons worth) known to exist there. The Arctic cod is also part of the diet for many of the birds in Lancaster Sound and marine mammals. Many Narwhal , Beluga , bow-head whale (an endangered species), ringed, bearded and harp Seals , Walrus , Polar Bears , thick-billed Murre s, black-legged Kittiwakes , northern Fulmars , black Guillemots , artic Terns , Ivory Gull s and snow geese all occupy the area.

This area is not yet represented in the Canadian national marine conservation areas systems even though an attempt to do so at the request of local Inuit was made in 1987.


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