Geology | Fresh Water | Soils | Plants | Animals Cultural Environment | Sites of Interest | Topics & Habitats

This Unit has two subdivisions:
(a) Tangier River
(b) Moser River

Geology and Landscape Development
Unit 435 is underlain by interfolded greywacke and slate, which form a series of wide bands oriented east-west. These are overlain by a thin quartzite till (averaging three metres in thickness), and in the Moser River area by a mixture of quartzite and Lawrencetown Tills called Red Till. Above these are drumlins of red, sandy Lawrencetown Till. The latter is derived from the Carboniferous Lowlands to the north and contains fragments of rock from the Cobequid Hills and the Pictou-Antigonish Highlands.

The Moser River watershed contains several deposits of outwash sands and gravels. The largest ones fringe Necum Teuch Bay.

The relief in the Tangier and Moser river areas is low, with most of the visual variety being provided by the drumlins (see Figure 11). The average elevations are different in the two areas, however. At Moser River the hills rarely exceed 80 m, whereas in the Tangier River area the hills average 100-130 m.

Fresh Water
The drainage in both areas is deranged, with many irregularly shaped small to medium-sized lakes and many streams and brooks. Scattered raised and flat bogs are associated with flat fens. Conductivity is low and pH levels average 6.3 in the lakes and 5.2 in the larger streams.

Soils
Tangier River (sub-Unit 435a)
The drumlins are mantled in medium-textured Wolfville loam over sandy clay loam till containing Carboniferous material. Between the drumlins, the soil is mostly imperfectly drained Danesville sandy loam, derived from quartzite, with some better-drained Bridgewater soil, derived from slate.

Moser River (sub-Unit 435b)
The drumlins are also covered with Wolfville soil. Between them the soil is mostly Danesville to the east where the topography is flatter, and better-drained Halifax to the west - both are derived from quartzite. Patches of Aspotogan soil and peat occur in depressions.

Plants
Shade-intolerant species (Red Maple and White Birch) are found on the better-drained drumlin tops, with Black Spruce, White Spruce, Balsam Fir, and larch growing on the wetter sites in between. Red Spruce occurs on the drumlins more frequently in the Tangier River sub-Unit.

C.D. Howe noted the prominence of these hardwood ridges in his 1912 survey: "One is impressed by the predominance of yellow birch and paper birch on the hills around the lakes. In some places the former makes up four-fifths of the stand and pure stands of the latter are frequent."

Animals
Little information is recorded on the terrestrial fauna of this Unit. Common fish species include White Sucker, Gaspereau, Golden Shiner, sticklebacks, Banded Killifish, Lake Chub, and Brook Trout. The Moser River contains one of the largest populations of sea-run Brook Trout in the province.

Cultural Environment
Forest exploitation has characterized land use in this sparsely populated area. Gold was once mined at the Caribou Gold Mines. This Unit contains one of two viable peat-moss sites in Halifax County.

Sites of Special Interest

• Necum Teuch Bay - large outwash deposit of sand and gravel

Provincial Parks and Park Reserves

• Judds Pool

Proposed Parks and Protected Areas System includes Natural Landscape 36b and Candidate Protected Area 18 Boggy Lake.

Associated Topics T2-2 The Avalon and Meguma Zones T3-3 Glaciation, Deglaciation and Sea-level Changes T3-4 Terrestrial Glacial Deposits and Landscape Features T12.3 Geology and Resources T12.10 Plants and Resources

Associated Habitats H3.1 Freshwater Open-Water Lotic H3.2 Freshwater Open-Water Lentic H6.1 Hardwood Forest (Maple, Oak, Birch Association) H6.2 Softwood Forest (Black Spruce, Larch Association; Pine Association)