Geology & Landscape | Soils | Coastal Wetlands | Plants Animals | Cultural Environment | Sites of Interest Topics & Habitats

Geology and Landscape Development
Between Voglers Cove (at the mouth of Voglers Brook) and Aspotogan, the South Shore of Nova Scotia is characterized by the presence of many drumlins with a predominantly northwest-southeast alignment. They occur inland, where they are cleared and farmed, and offshore, where they form wooded islands with rounded profiles. In the southern part of the area, promontories and islands of slate bedrock are found.

Blue Rocks, Lunenburg County, after storm Click to enlarge

The drumlins are the coastal and offshore equivalents of the Kejimkujik Drumlins (Unit 433) and Lunenburg Drumlins (Unit 434). The former are composed of grey-brown clay till derived from local slate, and the latter of red-brown sandy till from Carboniferous and Triassic deposits more than 100 km to the north. The slate-till drumlins are characteristically not found far beyond the slate belts. The red Lunenburg Drumlins commonly form islands, especially north and east of Cape LaHave.

The variable quantity and texture of the coastal sediment supply has built up a range of shoreline deposits which vary from extensive sandy beaches to small shale beaches to cobble beaches. Most of the sediment appears to be of local origin and comes from glacial tills. Crescent Beach is a sand bar connecting some of the Cape LaHave islands to the mainland.

Coastal Wetlands
There are few lakes or streams, and most of the wetlands are tidal. The LaHave estuary is very wide when it crosses into this coastal Unit. There are many small, scattered tidal marshes.

Soils
Drumlin soil parent materials are of two main types. To the west of the LaHave River, drumlins are derived from slate on which shale loam soils of the Bridgewater series have developed. Soils between the drumlins are derived from the same material but are shallow and often poorly drained. To the east the drumlin materials are finer-textured, reddish, sandy clay loams. These Wolfville soils are similar to those found throughout District 430, east of the LaHave River. They may have originated in New Brunswick. Most of the islands have Wolfville soils, the main exception being Cape LaHave Island, which is mostly Rockland.

Plants
White Spruce and Balsam Fir are the dominant species along the coast, with some maple and birch intermixed in more sheltered locations. Pure stands of White Spruce are found on some drumlins and on oldfields. Further inland, spruce, fir, and pine forest occurs. Salt marshes and Eelgrass beds are common.

Animals
This Unit provides a diversity of coastal habitats: rocky shores, cobble beaches, extensive sand beaches, tidal flats, and salt marshes. The area around Cape LaHave Island to Rose Bay, and the western shore of Mahone Bay at Blue Rocks, are locally important as waterfowl and shorebird habitat. In spring, fall, and early winter, waterfowl numbers are low. Black Duck, Common Goldeneye, and Oldsquaw may occur, and Scoter are sometimes present in significant numbers. The Red-necked Grebe overwinters in this area. From early August through September, shorebirds congregate at Crescent and Cherry Hill beaches in moderate numbers. Piping Plovers breed at Cherry Hill and Kingsburg beaches, and at East Iron-bound Island. Pearl Island (a provincial wildlife management area) is regionally important because it provides breeding habitat for the Atlantic Puffin, Leach's Storm-petrel, Razorbill, and Black Guillemot. Gulls, cormorants, terns, and the Great Blue Heron breed on other islands along the coast.

Sheltered inlets support a southern mix of marine fauna, while exposed rocky shores support a more northern fauna. The major rivers provide distinct estuarine conditions for brackish water species. Periodic slope-water incursions bring in warm-water species such as seahorses, Blue Crabs, and sharks.

Cultural Environment
Small farms are found on many of the LaHave Drumlins. In the early 1600s an Acadian settlement was established at LaHave but was later abandoned. The Lunenburg area was favoured by the Mi'kmaq and there were several confrontations between the Mi'kmaq and the Germans who settled here in the 1750s. Lunenburg was built on a peninsula with a front and back harbour ideal for fishing and seafaring. Fishing dominates most of this coastline, and access to offshore fishing banks results in prosperous fishing industries. Lunenburg has been one of the most important fishing communities in the province, with large offshore fishing fleets and local processing plants. Drumlin forests were exploited to supply timber for the flourishing nineteenth-century shipbuilding industry. Built in Lunenburg, the Bluenose schooner is a symbol of the province's seafaring tradition. A whaling station once operated out of Blandford but closed in the early 1970s when opposition to whaling led to a Canadian ban. The LaHave Drumlins area is a popular tourist and recreational destination. The Fisheries Museum in Lunenburg documents aspects of the area's fishing history.

Sites of Special Interest

• Blue Rocks - blue-grey slates and sandstones of the Halifax Formation
• Ovens Natural Park - gold has been mined from steeply inclined sandstones and slate strata; sea caves have developed through erosion of the softer layers
• Kingsburg - coastal exposures of Goldenville Formation sandstones and siltstones; Piping Plovers
• Pearl Island - provincial wildlife management area
• Tancook Island - metamorphosed Ordovician Meguma slate with rare trilobite fossils; graptolites also occur rarely in the Meguma

Associated Topics T3.3 Glaciation, Deglaciation and Sea-level Changes T3.4 Terrestrial Glacial Deposits and Landscape Features T11.4 Birds of Prey T11.6 Shorebirds T11.7 Seabirds

Associated Habitats H2 Coastal H5.2 Oldfield H6.2 Softwood Forest (Spruce, Fir, Pine Association; White Spruce Association) Associated Offshore Region 911 Atlantic