The Magdalen Islands (, ) are a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

archipelago An archipelago ( ), sometimes called an island group or island chain, is a chain, cluster, or collection of islands. An archipelago may be in an ocean, a sea, or a smaller body of water. Example archipelagos include the Aegean Islands (the o ...

in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Since 2005, the 12-island archipelago is divided into two municipalities: the majority-francophone Municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine and the majority-anglophone Municipality of Grosse-Île, in the

Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine () is an administrative region of Quebec consisting of the Gaspé Peninsula () and the . It lies in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence at the eastern extreme of southern Quebec. The predominant economic activities are fishing, forestry and tourism. ...

region,

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

Geography

The Magdalen Islands are the jagged remains of a vanished part of the mainland. Approximately in combined area, they form a string of islands and beaches in the southeastern part of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. The rocks that make up the island massifs are of three kinds: horizontal and soft

sandstone Sandstone is a Clastic rock#Sedimentary clastic rocks, clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of grain size, sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate mineral, silicate grains, Cementation (geology), cemented together by another mineral. Sand ...

s, of a blood-red color, which give the archipelago a distinctive character. These red sandstones are juxtaposed with harder, grey sandstones, which also form

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff or rock face is an area of Rock (geology), rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. ...

s in some places. Finally, volcanic actions created rounded, symmetrical domes like breasts, which were given the name of Demoiselles (or "young ladies"), though this is disputed. Where volcanic effusions have come into contact with sandstones, large masses of

gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate Hydrate, dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk ...

are found. A group of seven islands form the central core of the archipelago: Île du Havre Aubert (known locally as Amherst Island), Île du Cap aux Meules (known locally as Grindstone), Île du Havre aux Maisons (known locally as House Harbour), Île aux Loups (known locally as Seal Island), Grosse Île (home to most of the Islands' English-speaking community), Île d'Entrée (known locally as Entry Island, home to a small English-speaking community) and Île de la Grande-Entrée. These islands are connected together by sand spits or

tombolo A tombolo is a sandy or shingle isthmus. It is a deposition landform by which an island becomes attached to the mainland by a narrow piece of land such as a spit or bar. Once attached, the island is then known as a tied island. The word ''t ...

s. On the outskirts of the main islands are a series of islets and rocks which are remnants of marine erosion; in the lagoons separating these islands, are Île aux Goélands and the surrounding islets near Étang-du-Nord on the south-west coast of Île du Cap aux Meules (Grindstone), Île Rouge and Île Paquet (formerly Île aux Cochons) at the entrance to the lagoon of Havre aux Maisons (House Harbour), Île Shag to the east of the Dune du Sud. In the gulf north of the archipelago, cliffs of the reddish and greyish green sandstone, a few hundred feet high and relatively unmarked by sea erosion, give a fortress-like appearance to Île Brion and the

Rochers aux Oiseaux The Rochers aux Oiseaux (, ''Bird Rocks'') are an uninhabited archipelago in Quebec, Canada, located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence off the Magdalen Islands. The islands and the surrounding marine area are a migratory bird sanctuary known as the Ro ...

. Supporting the islands is a series of

shoal In oceanography, geomorphology, and Earth science, geoscience, a shoal is a natural submerged ridge, bank (geography), bank, or bar that consists of, or is covered by, sand or other unconsolidated material, and rises from the bed of a body ...

s and

reef A reef is a ridge or shoal of rock, coral, or similar relatively stable material lying beneath the surface of a natural body of water. Many reefs result from natural, abiotic component, abiotic (non-living) processes such as deposition (geol ...

s that are permanent hazards to maritime navigation. The archipelago has been considered, for more than 400 years, as one of the richest marine regions of Eastern

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

Coastal dynamics

In the Magdalen Islands, the coastal dynamics are amplified by the wind, with waves most often high breaking on the coast at a rate of four to seven seconds, depending on their height. Adding up the many bays and indentations, the coastline is inordinately long: in all, more than 60% of which is sandy beaches, often topped by a dune. The territory is constantly changing, the unconsolidated deposits are expanding at the expense of the rocky cores they connect. The red sandstone cliffs, the most widespread and friable, are rarely more than high. They are subject to rapid erosion (often more than per year) due to the action of frost, ice, waves and sea spray that make numerous openings while undermining their base. Erosion features and shapes such as caves, towers, and corbels. File: 960616 14 Cap Meules.jpg,

Grindstone A grindstone, also known as grinding stone, is a sharpening stone used for grinding or sharpening ferrous tools, used since ancient times. Tools are sharpened by the stone's abrasive qualities that remove material from the tool through friction ...

, coast between L'Étang-du-Nord and Fatima. File: 023_022_Corps_Mort.jpg, Corps-Mort, uninhabited rock, from the island of Havre-Aubert at low tide. File:024_119_Sandy_Hook.jpg, Sandy Hook Dune, a hook-shaped sand spit about , Havre Aubert island File:024 Ile Madeleine 098.jpg,

Fatima Fatima bint Muhammad (; 605/15–632 CE), commonly known as Fatima al-Zahra' (), was the daughter of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his wife Khadija. Fatima's husband was Ali, the fourth of the Rashidun caliphs and the first Shia imam. ...

, Butte du Vent (Hills) File:960618_16a_Anse_Cabane.jpg,

Lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

of L'Anse-à-la-Cabane (hamlet), former name Millerand (hamlet), Île du Havre Aubert (island) File:023_019_Havre_Aubert.jpg, Shoreline erosion on a beach on Île du Havre Aubert (island) File:022_127_Pointe_aux_Loups.jpg, Dune du Nord (dune), between Pointe-aux-Loups (hamlet) and Grosse-Île

Piping plover (''Charadrius melodus'')

In the 21st century, the islands' beaches provide a habitat for the

endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching, inv ...

piping plover (''Charadrius melodus''). Many of the piping plover's nesting areas are subject to human disturbance or other threats, and it is now considered an endangered or threatened species in all parts of its range. During courtship, males perform display flights over breeding territory, with slow wingbeats and piping call notes. On the ground, males approach females, stand upright with neck stretched, and rapidly stamp their feet with an odd high-stepping gait. Usually, the nest has four eggs, sometimes two or three, and rarely five; the eggs are pale buff, spotted with black and dark brown. Their incubation period lasts 26 to 28 days. The plover's diet includes insects, marine worms, and

crustacean Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquatic arthrop ...

s; the young feed themselves. At first, both parents brood their young during cool weather, and within a few days, female birds depart, leaving males to care for young. File:960528 17 nid pluvier.jpg, Nest of the

piping plover The piping plover (''Charadrius melodus'') is a small sand-colored, Passerellidae, sparrow-sized wader, shorebird that nests and feeds along coastal sand and gravel beaches in North America. The adult has yellow-orange-red legs, a black band acro ...

on a beach of Île de la Grande-Entrée File:Piping Plovers (23072794576).jpg, Adult and chicks File:14th Place - Piping Plover on the Fly (7488340326).jpg, On the fly File:Piping Plover (12776646935).jpg, Adult

Rochers aux Oiseaux (Bird Rocks)

The

() include the Bird Rock and the Margaulx Rock; these rocks emerge in the Gulf of St. Lawrence about from Grosse-Île. On June 25, 1534,

Jacques Cartier Jacques Cartier (; 31 December 14911 September 1557) was a French maritime explorer from Brittany. Jacques Cartier was the first Europeans, European to describe and map the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and the shores of the Saint Lawrence River, wh ...

discovered these rocks, which he named the Îles de Margaulx because of the myriad

gannet Gannets are seabirds comprising the genus ''Morus'' in the family Sulidae, closely related to boobies. They are known as 'solan' or 'solan goose' in Scotland. A common misconception is that the Scottish name is 'guga' but this is the Gaelic n ...

s (),

razorbill The razorbill (''Alca torda'') is a North Atlantic colonial seabird and the only extant member of the genus ''Alca (bird), Alca'' of the family Alcidae, the auks. It is the closest living relative of the extinct great auk (''Pinguinus impennis' ...

s, and

great auk The great auk (''Pinguinus impennis''), also known as the penguin or garefowl, is an Extinction, extinct species of flightless bird, flightless auk, alcid that first appeared around 400,000 years ago and Bird extinction, became extinct in the ...

s (now extinct) that were found there. In 1919 Brother

Marie-Victorin Brother Marie-Victorin, F.S.C. (; April 3, 1885 – July 15, 1944), was a Canadian member of Brothers of the Christian Schools and a noted botanist in Quebec, Canada. Marie-Victorin gained worldwide fame as the author of Flore laurentien ...

used the name Rochers aux Oiseaux during his visit to the Rocks; since 1974, the

Canadian Wildlife Service The Canadian Wildlife Service or CWS (), is a Branch of the Department of Environment and Climate Change Canada, a department of the Government of Canada. Founded in 1947 as Dominion Wildlife Service, it is Canada's national wildlife agency resp ...

has made them a

Migratory Bird Sanctuary Migratory Bird Sanctuaries are created in Canada under the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994. They are administered by the Canadian Wildlife Service. The first sanctuary in North America, Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary, was created by f ...

. * Bird Rock is long by wide and high, and forms a kind of red

citadel that is practically inaccessible but inhabited by thousands of birds and a lighthouse that is now automated. * Margaulx Rock is to the northwest, and refers to three small cays. File: 960616 24 Rochers aux Oiseauxaa.jpg,

, keepers' house, and outbuildings File: 960618 01a Rochers aux Oiseaux aa.jpg, Red sandstone citadel File: 960618 02a Rochers aux Oiseauxa.jpg, Support one of the six

Northern gannet The northern gannet (''Morus bassanus'') is a seabird, the largest species of the gannet family, Sulidae. It is native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, breeding in Western Europe and Northeastern North America. It is the largest seabird in t ...

colonies in North America

Pointe de l'Est National Wildlife Area

The Pointe de l'Est National Wildlife Area is located on La Grosse Île and the reserve occupies an area of in the village of the same name. It offers landscapes characteristic of the Islands: a reddish rocky core, coastal belts reshaped by the wind into dunes, moors, huge beaches and freshwater, saltwater or brackish water ponds. The reserve has six hiking trails from in length: L'Échouerie, Le Rabougri, La Camarine, La Lande, Le Mitan, Le Bol-à-Soupe. File:960624 27 7 8a Echouerie.jpg,

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...

s and

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from Rock (geology), rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle beach, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological s ...

es File:Vaccinium_macrocarpon_960627_19aa.jpg, ''

Vaccinium macrocarpon ''Vaccinium macrocarpon'', also called large cranberry, American cranberry and bearberry, is a North American species of cranberry in the subgenus '' Oxycoccus''. The name cranberry comes from shape of the flower stamen, which looks like a cran ...

'' - Large cranberry. File:Abies_balsamea_960627_24a.jpg, ''

Abies balsamea ''Abies balsamea'' or balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada (Newfoundland (island), Newfoundland west to central Alberta) and the northeastern United States (Minnesota east to Maine, and south in the Ap ...

'' - Balsam fir. File:Sarracenia_purpurea_960530_05a_001.jpg, ''

Sarracenia purpurea ''Sarracenia purpurea'', the purple pitcher plant, northern pitcher plant, turtle socks, or side-saddle flower, is a carnivorous plant in the family Sarraceniaceae. Taxonomy The species is further divided into two subspecies, ''S. purpurea'' subsp. ...

'' - Purple pitcher plant.

Nomenclature

Owing to the succession of French and English influences, it is not surprising that each of the islands has several names. The names used by the

Acadians The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French colonial empire, French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern Americ ...

of the archipelago are as follows: Grande-Entrée island (Coffin), Boudreau island, Cap de l'Est island, Grosse-Île, Pointe-aux-Loups island, Havre-aux-Maisons island (Alright or House Harbour),

Cap-aux-Meules Cap-aux-Meules (, "Grindstone") is a List of former municipalities in Quebec, former village, now a sector of the municipality of Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, Quebec. It is located on Cap aux Meules Island (Grindstone Island), part of the Magdal ...

(Grindstone) island, Havre-Aubert island (Amherst), Corps-Mort island (Deadman), and Entrée islands. Uninhabited islets as Bird Rocks and Brion Island complete the archipelago.

Geography

While the Îles de la Madeleine are a land area of in the province of

Québec Quebec is Canada's largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, New Brunswick to the southeast and a coastal border ...

, they are in fact closer to the

Maritime provinces The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of ...

and

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

than to the

Gaspé Peninsula The Gaspé Peninsula, also known as Gaspesia (, ; ), is a peninsula along the south shore of the St. Lawrence River that extends from the Matapedia Valley in Quebec, Canada, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence. It is separated from New Brunswick on it ...

on the Québec mainland. The Mi'kmaq consider the islands a part of the Epegwitg aq Pigtug district of

Mi'kma'ki Mi'kma'ki or Mi'gma'gi is composed of the traditional and current territories, or country, of the Mi'kmaq people, in what is now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and eastern Quebec, Canada. It is shared by an Non-governmental ...

—the traditional territory of the

Mi'kmaq Nation The Mi'kmaq Nation (formerly the Aroostook Band of Micmacs) is a US federally recognized tribe of Mi'kmaq people, based in Aroostook County, Maine. Their autonym is Ulustuk. Of the 28 bands of Mi'kmaq people, the Mi'kmaq Nation is the only one i ...

—and call the islands Menagoesenog. Administratively, the islands are part of the

region in the Canadian province of

. The islands form the

territory equivalent to a regional county municipality An equivalent territory (, ), formally known as territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (), is a territorial unit used by Statistics Canada and the Institut de la statistique du Québec. Quebec is divided into 87 regional county m ...

(TE) and the

census division Census divisions, in Canada and the United States, are areas delineated for the purposes of statistical analysis and presentation; they have no government in and of themselves. The census divisions of Canada are second-level census geographic uni ...

(CD) of Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine. Their geographical code is 01. The islands are also coextensive with the

urban agglomeration of Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine The Communauté maritime des Îles-de-la-Madeleine (), commonly designated as the Agglomeration of Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine, is located on the islands of the Magdalen Islands, Magdalen Islands archipelago, that bathes in the waters of the Gulf of ...

, which is divided into two municipalities:

Les Îles-de-la-Madeleine The Magdalen Islands (, ) are a Canadian archipelago in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. Since 2005, the 12-island archipelago is divided into two municipalities: the majority-francophone Municipality of Îles-de-la-Madeleine and the majority-angloph ...

( 2011 census pop. 12,291), the central municipality, and Grosse-Île (pop. 490). Their mayors are Gaétan Richard and Rose Elmonde Clarke, respectively. Within the area known as Dawnland, these islands were once called ''Menquit'' by the Mi'kmaw Nation, meaning "islands battered by waves." Around the mid 19th century as Mi'kmawi'simk (the Mi'kmaw language) shifted, the name changed to become ''Menagoesenog'' reflecting islands "battered by the surf." Although not a distinct district within

, the archipelago falls within the territorial bounds of the Mi'kmaw homeland.

Demographics

Population

Language

Climate

The maritime climate of the Îles de la Madeleine is markedly different from that of the mainland. The huge water masses that circle the archipelago both temper the weather and create milder conditions in each season. On the islands, winter is mild, spring is cool, summer has a few heat waves, and fall is typically warm. The Îles de la Madeleine have the least annual frost in Quebec. The warm breezes of summer persist well into September and sometimes early October. However, under the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

its climate is

humid continental Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity depe ...

(Dfb) because its winters average far below freezing by maritime standards.

Seasonal lag Seasonal lag is the phenomenon whereby the date of maximum average air temperature at a geographical location on a planet is delayed until some time after the date of maximum daylight (i.e. the summer solstice). This also applies to the minimum ...

is strong because of the freezing water and the time that it takes for the gulf to warm up again. Also, in winter,

sea ice Sea ice arises as seawater freezes. Because ice is less density, dense than water, it floats on the ocean's surface (as does fresh water ice). Sea ice covers about 7% of the Earth's surface and about 12% of the world's oceans. Much of the world' ...

occasionally forms, impeding offshore communications and activities. The highest temperature ever recorded was on 31 July 1949. The lowest temperature ever recorded was on 14 February 1891. The Îles de la Madeleine have warmed 2.3 °C (4 °F) in the late 19th century, twice the global average. As a result, the residents are facing a growing number of problems, as extreme climate change transforms the land and water around them. The sea ice that used to encase and protect the islands from most winter storms is shrinking at a rate of about annually. Parts of the shoreline have eroded into the sea at a rate as much as per year in the 2010s. Important roads are at risk of washouts, and important infrastructure, including the hospital and city hall, sit near deteriorating cliffs. Recently the sea has been rising at a rate of per decade, threatening to contaminate freshwater aquifers.Dennis, B
''The ice used to protect them. Now their island is crumbling into the sea.''
Washington Post, 31 October 2019.

Erosion

Several news articles in 2019 pointed out that erosion of the coastline had already become a significant issue. Researchers have found that the amount has doubled since 2005, and was averaging per year. Recent events that added to the problem included a significant windstorm in November 2018 and the post-tropical storm Dorian that hit the islands in September 2019. A report in ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' in late October 2019 also indicated that increasing temperatures have led to reduced ice cover over the years, leading to less protection from winter storms. "That ice has been disappearing ... nd thesea-level rise, have caused the islands to crumble into the sea". Researchers have found that the rise in sea levels has been approximately double that of the global norm and that the sea ice is shrinking at approximately 12% per decade. A November 2019 report from ''The Washington Post'' provided these specifics about the effects of erosion:

"Some parts of the shoreline have lost as much as per year to the sea over the past decade. Key roads face perpetual risk of washing out. The hospital and the city hall sit alarmingly close to deteriorating cliffs. Rising waters threaten to contaminate aquifers used for drinking water ... Nearly a dozen homes on the islands have been relocated, and most everyone expects that number to grow."

The sole benefit has been the increase in lobster yields on the islands, at least double what was the norm in the past.

Economy

Tourism

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure, and the Commerce, commercial activity of providing and supporting such travel. World Tourism Organization, UN Tourism defines tourism more generally, in terms which go "beyond the common perception of tourism as ...

is a major component of the islands' economy, as they have many kilometres (miles) of white sand beaches and steadily-eroding sandstone cliffs. Also, they are a destination for

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

camping,

sea kayaking A sea kayak or touring kayak is a kayak used for the sport of Watercraft paddling, paddling on open waters of lakes, bays, and oceans. Sea kayaks are seaworthy small boats with a covered deck and the ability to incorporate a spray deck. They trad ...

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gain ...

, and

kitesurfing Kiteboarding or kitesurfing is a sport that involves using wind power with a large power kite to pull a rider across a water, land, snow, sand, or other surface. It combines the aspects of paragliding, surfing, windsurfing, skateboarding, snow ...

. During the winter months, beginning in mid-February, ecotourists visit to observe newborn and young

harp seal The harp seal (''Pagophilus groenlandicus''), also known as the saddleback seal or Greenland seal, is a species of earless seal, or true seal, native to the northernmost Atlantic Ocean and Arctic Ocean. Originally in the genus '' Phoca'' with a ...

pups on the

pack ice Pack or packs may refer to: Music * Packs (band), a Canadian indie rock band * ''Packs'' (album), by Your Old Droog * ''Packs'', a Berner album Places * Pack, Styria, defunct Austrian municipality * Pack, Missouri, United States (US) * ...

in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, which surrounds the islands. However the ice cover has reduced recently and the observation "season" has been cancelled several times.

Industry

The island is home to Canadian Salt Company Seleine Mines, which produces

road salt Road salt (also known as de-icing salt, rock salt, or snow salt) is a salt used mainly as an anti-slip agent in winter road conditions, but also to prevent dust and snow build-up on roads. Various kinds of salts are used as road salt, but calciu ...

for use in

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (), is the list of regions of Canada, region of Eastern Canada comprising four provinces: New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. As of 2021, the landma ...

and the United States' eastern seaboard. Opened in 1982, the salt mine and plant is located in Grosse-Île and extracts salt from an underground mine below Grande-Entrée Lagoon. It produces of salt, and employs 200 people. Although fishing is a traditional occupation,

lobster Lobsters are Malacostraca, malacostracans Decapoda, decapod crustaceans of the family (biology), family Nephropidae or its Synonym (taxonomy), synonym Homaridae. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on th ...

have become a more lucrative local business. It was once common for lobstermen to haul in during a nine-week season that begins each spring, but now it is not unusual to bring home twice that amount, or more. This may be due to

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

that has warmed the surrounding waters to some extent, yielded increasing lobster harvests. An identification guide for marine fishes of the estuary and northern Gulf of St. Lawrence was completed in 2008.

Energy

The islands currently generate electricity at the Cap-aux-Meules oil-fired thermal power plant. The 67 MW plant generates 125,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases per year, or about 40% of

Hydro-Québec Hydro-Québec () is a Canadian Crown corporations of Canada#Quebec, Crown corporation public utility headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. It manages the electricity generation, generation, electric power transmission, transmission and electricity ...

's direct emissions. Hydro-Québec plans to build an undersea

HVDC A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating current (AC) transmission systems. Most HVDC links use voltages betwe ...

cable from the mainland 225 km (140 miles) away, connecting the islands to the main grid upon completion in 2027. The plan will cost $2.3 billion over 40 years, saving approximately 12%, and reduce emissions by 94%.

References

Notes

External links

The Wabanaki Confederacy
Willard Walker, 1998, Part of the Indigenous Studies Commons, p. 31
Histoire des Îles-de-la-Madeleine
Fortin, Jean-Charles, Larocque, Paul, 2003, 407 p, Collections de BAnQ (French).
Bird Watching
The maritime regions of Quebec are home to hundreds of species of birds
Municipalité des Îles-de-la-Madeleine
official site
Municipalités et villes de la Gaspésie

Magdalen Islands tourist association

The official tourist site of the islands

including a map (with the French names)

official site {{Authority control Archipelagoes of Canada Archipelagoes of the Atlantic Ocean Canada geography articles needing translation from French Wikipedia Coastal islands of Quebec Landforms of Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine Territories equivalent to a regional county municipality Census divisions of Quebec

Geography

Coastal dynamics

Piping plover (''Charadrius melodus'')

Rochers aux Oiseaux (Bird Rocks)

Pointe de l'Est National Wildlife Area

Nomenclature

Geography

Demographics

Population

Language

Climate

Erosion

Economy

Tourism

Industry

Energy

See also

References

Notes

External links