Taiga Cordillera

This ecozone is very sparsely populated, with only a few hundred inhabitants who rely on subsistence living and the tourism industry. Most of the area's population consists of members of the Vuntut Gwitchin First Nation in the community of Old Crow, located on the Porcupine River.

Geography

To the south is the Boreal Cordillera, to the east are the Taiga Plains, and its northern extent is defined by Yukon's coastline, at which it abuts the Southern Arctic ecozone.

The northernmost area is an arctic tundra which is beyond the tree line, so is characterised by small plants and shrubs. These transition to alpine tundra and lowland taiga in a southeastern arc across the zone. To the northwest are rolling hills, throughout which are found broad wetlands reaching the coast of the Beaufort Sea. The interior, comprising the Selwyn Mountains and Mackenzie Mountains, is primarily steep, mountainous terrain with sharp, narrow valleys.

Ecoprovinces

This ecozone can be further subdivided into four ecoprovinces:

• Mackenzie-Selwyn Mountains
• Northern Yukon Mountains
• Ogilvie Mountains
• Old Crow-Eagle Plains