Bowman Bay Wildlife Sanctuary is a

wildlife sanctuary A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or o ...

on western

Baffin Island Baffin Island (formerly Baffin Land), in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, is the largest island in Canada and the fifth-largest island in the world. Its area is , slightly larger than Spain; its population was 13,039 as of the 2021 Canadia ...

within part of the

Great Plain of the Koukdjuak The Great Plain of the Koukdjuak is located in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut within the Canadian Arctic. It is the namesake of the Koukdjuak River in western Baffin Island on the southeastern coast of Foxe Basin. It stretches from Cory Bay t ...

Northern Canada Northern Canada, colloquially the North or the Territories, is the vast northernmost region of Canada variously defined by geography and politics. Politically, the term refers to the three Provinces_and_territories_of_Canada#Territories, territor ...

's territory of

Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' ...

. It is classified as Category IV (Habitat/Species Management Area) under the

International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...

Geography

The sanctuary is located on the eastern shore of

Foxe Basin Foxe Basin is a shallow oceanic basin north of Hudson Bay, in Nunavut, Canada, located between Baffin Island and the Melville Peninsula. For most of the year, it is blocked by sea ice (fast ice) and drift ice made up of multiple ice floes. Th ...

, north of the

Foxe Peninsula Foxe Peninsula is a peninsula found at the southern end of Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It juts out from the southerly end of the island in a southwestly direction, dividing Foxe Basin and Hudson Strait. Its western ...

. Its size is .

History and conservation

During

J. Dewey Soper Joseph Dewey Soper (May 5, 1893 – November 2, 1982) was a widely traveled Canadian Arctic ornithologist, explorer, zoologist, and prolific author. Early years Soper was raised near Rockwood, Ontario where he developed an interest in wil ...

's 1928–31 Arctic expedition in this area, he located the blue goose (''C. c. caerulescens'') nesting grounds on Bluegoose Plain by Bowman Bay. The wildlife sanctuary was established in 1957. It received national legal protection under the Wildlife Act of 2003. The sanctuary protects marine and intertidal wildlife. Industrial activities and hunting are prohibited.

References

Baffin Island Foxe Basin Parks in Qikiqtaaluk Region Wildlife sanctuaries of Nunavut {{Canada-protected-area-stub