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NORTH AMERICAN PARKS
By Pam Choate
UNITED STATES – EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK
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The Everglades, located in southern Florida, was made a National Park in 1947. Over the years the size of the park has
changed due to the addition of acreage by conservation groups. Today the park is 1,399,078 acres. It is the third largest
national park in the lower 48 states.
The landscape includes rocks that were formed six million years ago, but today it is referred to as Tamiami Formation. On top of
the Tamiami Formation are the waters known as Big Cypress Swamp.
Pine forests can be found along the Atlantic Coastal Ridge as well as the tropical hardwood hammocks, cypress grow in the
wetter areas at the end of the ridge, sawgrass prairies appear south of the ridge, and mangroves dot the southeast coast.
Animals of the Everglades include amphibians, birds, fish, mammals, and reptiles. Best known for the home of the American
alligator and crocodile. There are also four venomous snakes that live in the Everglades. Frogs, toads, and newts along with
350 different species of birds, 300 different species of fish, and forty species of mammals have made the Everglades their
home.
There are 25 different types of trees that grow in the Everglades. Including the Black Mangrove, White Ironwood, and Royal
Palm. Different types of lichen can be found on most tress in the Everglades.
The absolute location for the Everglades National Park is: 25° 17' N / 80° 53' W
Distinctive features: wet, wild, open
UNITED STATES – GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS
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The Great Smoky Mountain National Park was established in 1934 and is located in the eastern section of Tennessee. The
total acreage of the park is 521,621.
Tectonic plate movements for billions of years has given the Great Smoky Mountains its “great thickness, variety, and
distribution of rocks”. The mountains are said to have come from the break of North America from Africa, also known as the
supercontinent of Pangaea. The waterfalls in the park are said to have been formed “where downcutting streams encountered
ledges of very resistant metasandstone” (National Park Service 2011).
There are 100 species of trees to include the flowering dogwood, which attracts millions of visitors to the park every spring.
There are 1500 flowering plant species. Ninety-five percent of the park is still forested.
There are 200 species of bird, 66 different types of mammals to include the 1500 black bears, 50 fish species, 39 different
reptiles and 43 species of amphibians including the lungless salamander.
The absolute location is: 35° 36' N / 83° 32' W
Distinctive features: high, low, cloudy
CANADA – GEORGIAN BAY ISLANDS NATIONAL PARK
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The Georgian Bay Islands National Park of Canada lies on the edge of the Canadian Shield in the province of Ontario. The park
consists of 59 islands and is 12 square kilometers in size (2965 acres). The park was established in 1929 and quickly became
one of the most well known vacation spots in Canada.
The landscape is “barren, glacier-scraped rock and windswept pines” on the Northern edge with “thicker soils and rich
hardwood forests” on the Southern edge (Parks Canada Agency 2010). The dark blue water against the light blue sky in the
summer, shows off the pinkish colored rocks of the Canadian Shield.
The black tern as well as the snowy owl are two rare animals to be seen in this area. The Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake is
the only poisonous snake in the Ontario province, can also be seen in this park. The park has 33 different species of reptiles
and amphibians that live along its shoreline and inter island ponds.
The plant life include: lichens, white pines, junipers, red oak, sugar maple, and beech.
The absolute location is: 44° 44' N / 79° 53' W
Distinctive features: rocky, untouched, wet, clean
CANADA – YOHO NATIONAL PARK
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Yoho National Park was established 125 years ago in 1886. Located in the province of Alberta, the park includes “the western
slopes of the Canadian Rocky Mountains” (Parks Canada Agency 2010), . The park is 1310 square kilometers or 838,400
acres. The park is named after a First Nation (Native Americans) Cree word meaning awe.
The landscape of Yoho National Park includes “rock walls, waterfalls, glacial lakes, snow-topped mountain peaks, roaring rivers
and silent forests” (Parks Canada Agency 2010). There is a natural rock bridge and “balanced boulders on tall pillars of glacial
till called Hoodoos. There are 28 mountains peaks that are higher then 9842 feet, the third largest waterfall drop of 833 feet,
and 248 miles of hiking trails.
Animals in the park include the Canada lynx, grizzly bears, moose, and wolfs. The Whitebark Pine is one of the most important
tree species in Yoho, but is it declining over much of the park. This tree “helps stabilize steep slopes, influences the rate of
snow melt, and provides food, cover and shelter for may species of wildlife” Parks Canada Agency 2010). Mushrooms and wild
flowers can be found sprouting in the spring time.
The absolute location is: 51° 20' N / 116° 27' W
Distinctive features: cold, fresh, snowy.
CITED WORK
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Black Bear. Archive New Media. 01 Jan. 1970. eLibrary. Web. 26 Sep. 2011.
http://elibrary.bigchalk.com/elibweb/elib/do/document?urn=urn:bigchalk:US%3BBCLib%3Bdocument%3B30465349
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National Park Service. 2011. 20 September 2011 http://www.nps.gov/index.htm.
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Parks Canada. 2010. 20 September 2011 http://www.pc.gc.ca/eng/index.aspx.
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World Atlas: Explore Your World. 2011. 20 September 2011
http://www.worldatlas.com/aatlas/latitude_and_longitude_finder.htm.