Anticosti () is an island located between the

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 ...

and Honguedo Straits, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in L'Île-d'Anticosti (Municipality), Minganie MRC,

Côte-Nord Côte-Nord (Region 09) (, ; ) is an List of regions of Quebec, administrative region of Quebec, on the Quebec-Labrador peninsula, Quebec-Labrador Peninsula, Canada. The region runs along the St. Lawrence River and then the Gulf of St. Lawrence, ...

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, ...

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 ...

UNESCO's World Heritage

On September 19, 2023, Anticosti was inscribed on

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

's World Heritage List. It is recognized for its exceptional

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

assemblage representing the first global mass extinction of animal life on Earth. Located within protected areas free from any industrial activity, the site is endowed with exceptionally well-preserved, abundant and diverse fossil fauna. This Anticosti fauna represents the first mass extinction of animal life on a global scale, 447 – 437 million years ago, at the end of the

Ordovician The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and System (geology), system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era (geology), Era, and the second of twelve periods of the Phanerozoic Eon (geology), Eon. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years f ...

period. File: Chute Vauréal - Anticosti.jpg, Cliff wall, fall and Vauréal River File:Anticosti_fossiles_001.jpg,

Fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserve ...

tabulate coral Tabulata, commonly known as tabulate corals, is a class of extinct corals. They are almost always colonial, forming colonies of individual hexagonal cells known as corallites defined by a skeleton of calcite, similar in appearance to a honeycomb. ...

, in the gravel, at the foot of the wall File:Anticosti_fossiles_006.jpg, Fossil to be identified, in the gravel, at the foot of the wall The Vauréal River, with its source in Lake Vauréal, flows 25 km, south then northeast, in the eastern part of the island. The salmon go up the river to the Vauréal Falls, 13 km from the coast, crossing the Vauréal canyon where the river is enclosed between two

limestone Limestone is a type of carbonate rock, carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material Lime (material), lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different Polymorphism (materials science) ...

walls.

Toponymy

Anticosti has had several First Nations names: Natigôsteg, “advanced land” in

Mi'kmaq The Mi'kmaq (also ''Mi'gmaq'', ''Lnu'', ''Mi'kmaw'' or ''Mi'gmaw''; ; , and formerly Micmac) are an Indigenous group of people of the Northeastern Woodlands, native to the areas of Canada's Atlantic Provinces, primarily Nova Scotia, New Bru ...

; Natashquan, “where we catch bears”, in Innu. In 1535,

wrote: "the said island which we have named the island of Assumption", after having written Antiscoti (1612) and Antiscoty (1613),

Samuel de Champlain Samuel de Champlain (; 13 August 1574#Fichier]For a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see #Ritch, RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December ...

spelled the name of this island Enticosty (1625) and Antycosty (1632). The name in French is ''Île d’Anticosti''.

Geography

Anticosti Island is located in the Gulf of St. Lawrence at the edge of Estuary of St. Lawrence, St. Lawrence River estuary. At in size, the island has a length of 222 km and a maximum width of 56 km, its highest peak rises to 306 m. It is the 90th largest island in the world and 20th largest island in Canada. Anticosti Island is separated on the north from the Côte-Nord region of Quebec (the

Labrador Peninsula The Labrador Peninsula, also called Quebec-Labrador Peninsula, is a large peninsula in eastern Canada. It is bounded by Hudson Bay to the west, the Hudson Strait to the north, the Labrador Sea to the east, Strait of Belle Isle and the Gulf of ...

) by the Jacques Cartier Strait, and on the south from 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 ...

by the Honguedo Strait. Anticosti Island is larger than

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

but sparsely populated (218 people in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

), with most of the permanent population in the village of Port-Menier on the western tip of the island; this population once consisted chiefly of the keepers of the

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

erected by the Canadian government. The entire island constitutes one municipality known as L'Île-d'Anticosti. Due to more than 400 shipwrecks off its coasts, Anticosti Island is sometimes called the "Cemetery of the Gulf".<

Anticosti Island is part of the eastern St. Lawrence lowlands. It is long and has a maximum breadth of — times as large as the province of

. Its coastline is long, and is rocky and dangerous, offering little shelter for ships except in Gamache, Ellis, and Fox Bays. There are large

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 to the south. The largest lake on the island is Lake Wickenden, which feeds the Jupiter River. There are numerous rivers on Anticosti, many of which flow through deep gorges and canyons to the north and south shores. Topographically, Anticosti Island can be divided into three distinct regions: two lowland areas, rarely exceeding in elevation, in the eastern and western thirds of the island linked along the coast; and a central highland forming a plateau that rises to just over . This plateau is an unidirectional structure slightly tilted to the south, and is characterized by rolling

cuesta A cuesta () is a hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the other. In geology, the term is more specifically applied to a ridge where a harder sedimentary rock overlies a softer layer, the whole being tilted somew ...

s. The rocks exposed on the island form a continuous sedimentary stratum more than thick. These are the most complete strata in eastern North America of the

and

Silurian The Silurian ( ) is a geologic period and system spanning 23.5 million years from the end of the Ordovician Period, at million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Devonian Period, Mya. The Silurian is the third and shortest period of t ...

periods. The main rivers are: South shore of Anticosti Island (from west to east): *

Plantain River The Plantain River (''French: Rivière Plantain'') is a tributary of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, flowing in the municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti, in the Minganie Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Côte-Nord, in prov ...

Rivière aux Plats The rivière aux Plats (''English: Flat River'') is a tributary of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, flowing in the municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti, in the Minganie Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Côte-Nord, North Shore, i ...

* Pavillon River ** Pavillon East River *

Ferrée River (Anticosti Island) Ferrée River (or rivière Ferrée (in French)) may refer to: * Ferrée River (lac des Eaux Mortes), in Lac-des-Eaux-Mortes, La Mitis Regional County Municipality, Bas-Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Canada * Ferrée River (Montmorency River tributary), in ...

* Maccan River (Anticosti Island) * Bilodeau River * Little Chaloupe River * Chaloupe River (Anticosti Island) * Dauphiné River * Bell River (Anticosti Island) * Petite rivière de la Loutre * Loups Marins River (Anticosti Island) * Cormoran River * La Petite Rivière (Anticosti Island - Eastern part) North shore of Anticosti Island (from west to east): * Huile River * Patate River *

Observation River Observation in the natural sciences is an act or instance of noticing or perceiving and the acquisition of information from a primary source. In living beings, observation employs the senses. In science, observation can also involve the perception ...

* Vauréal River * Des Petits Jardins River *

Rivière de l'Ours The rivière de l'Ours, also known as Bear River, is a tributary of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, flowing in the municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti, in the Minganie Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Côte-Nord, in the p ...

* Natiscotec River * Métallique River *

Rivière aux Saumons (Anticosti Island) The rivière aux Saumons (''English: Salmon River'') is a stream flowing into Gulf of St. Lawrence, flowing in the municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti, Quebec, L'Île-d'Anticosti, in the Minganie Regional County Municipality, in the administrative ...

* Schmitt River * Prinsta River * Renard River (Anticosti Island)

Climate

Anticosti Island has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfc''), affected by the maritime influence of the Gulf of St. Lawrence which reduces seasonal temperature variation. The average annual temperature is . The month of July is the warmest with an average temperature of . Conversely, February is the coldest month, averaging . Snowfall is abundant, usually accumulating over in the western and central parts.

History

Indigenous history

For thousands of years, Anticosti Island was the territory of the indigenous peoples who lived on the mainland and used it as a hunting ground. The

Innu The Innu/Ilnu ('man, person'), formerly called Montagnais (French for ' mountain people'; ), are the Indigenous Canadians who inhabit northeastern Labrador in present-day Newfoundland and Labrador and some portions of Quebec. They refer to ...

called it ''Notiskuan'', translated as "where bears are hunted" and the

called it ''Natigôsteg'', meaning "forward land".

Colonisation and settlement

The French explorer

sailed along its shore in the summer of 1534. He provided its first written description and named it ''Isle de l'Assomption'', because he reached it on the Day of the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of w ...

. This name had fallen into disuse by 1656. About 1586, the historian André Thevet wrote that "the savages named tNaticousti", while

spelled it Antiscoti (1612), Antiscoty (1613), Enticosty (1625) and Antycosty (1632). From that time on, France had officially incorporated the island into its French colonial empire, colonial empire. The island's first European settlers arrived in 1680 when

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

gave

Louis Jolliet Louis Jolliet (; September 21, 1645after May 1700) was a French-Canadian explorer known for his discoveries in North America. In 1673, Jolliet and Jacques Marquette, a Jesuit Catholic priest and missionary, were the first non-Natives to explore ...

the

Seigneury A seigneur () or lord is an originally feudal system, feudal title in Ancien Régime, France before the French Revolution, Revolution, in New France and British North America until 1854, and in the Channel Islands to this day. The seigneur owne ...

of the Mingan Archipelago and Anticosti Island as compensation for reconnoitring the

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

and

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

. Louis Jolliet erected a fort on Anticosti and in the spring of 1681 settled there with his wife, four children and six servants. His fort was captured and occupied during the winter of 1690 by some of the

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

troops of

William Phips Sir William Phips (or Phipps; February 2, 1651 – February 18, 1695) was the first royally appointed governor of the Province of Massachusetts Bay, and the first native-born person from New England to be knighted. Phips was famous in his lifeti ...

during their retreat after an unsuccessful attempt to capture

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

. After Jolliet's death in 1700, the island was divided among his three sons and the Jolliet family retained ownership until 1763 when the island became part of

British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestown, ...

under the terms of the Treaty of Paris that ended the

Seven Years' War The Seven Years' War, 1756 to 1763, was a Great Power conflict fought primarily in Europe, with significant subsidiary campaigns in North America and South Asia. The protagonists were Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of Prus ...

. That same year, the island was annexed to

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 ...

until 1774 when it was returned to

Lower Canada The Province of Lower Canada () was a British colonization of the Americas, British colony on the lower Saint Lawrence River and the shores of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence established in 1791 and abolished in 1841. It covered the southern portion o ...

and annexed again to Newfoundland from 1809 to 1825. It became a part of Quebec (as Lower Canada came to be called) at the

Canadian Confederation Canadian Confederation () was the process by which three British North American provinces—the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick—were united into one federation, called the Name of Canada#Adoption of Dominion, Dominion of Ca ...

in 1867. During these years the island property changed hands several times, its owners generally using it for the harvesting of timber; otherwise no real development took place. For example, the French Canadian Gabriel-Elzéar Taschereau owned it among other seigneuries and made money from them. In 1874, it was bought by the Anticosti Island Company and they founded the villages at English Bay and Fox Bay. Most of the inhabitants, however, continued to be the few keepers of the island's many lighthouses. Because of the number of shipwrecks around the island, stores of provisions were also maintained around the island for sailors who might be washed ashore. In 1882, the Parish of Notre-Dame-de-l'Assomption was founded, a term referring to Cartier's name for the island. In 1884, the island became property of the Stockwell brothers who formed a forestry company two years later. But they were unsuccessful and the company lasted only five years. By the 1890s, the fish and wildlife of the island had been almost eradicated through the new locals' indiscriminate slaughter. In 1895, Anticosti was sold for $125,000 to French chocolate maker

Henri Menier Henri Émile Anatole Menier (; July 14, 1853 – September 6, 1913) was a French businessman and adventurer and a member of the Menier family of chocolatiers. Born in Paris, he was the son of Émile-Justin Menier and grandson to Antoine Brutus ...

who also leased the shore fishing rights. Menier named the island's high Vauréal Falls after the town of

Vauréal Vauréal () is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise, created in the 1960s. French chocolate maker Henri Menier (1853–1913) had a château in Vaur ...

in France where he owned a home. He constructed the entire village of Port-Menier, built a cannery for packing fish and

lobsters Lobsters are malacostracans decapod crustaceans of the family Nephropidae or its synonym Homaridae. They have long bodies with muscular tails and live in crevices or burrows on the sea floor. Three of their five pairs of legs have claws, in ...

, and attempted to develop its resources of lumber,

peat Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most ...

and minerals. Many of the original houses still stand today. Furthermore, he converted the island into a personal game preserve and introduced nonindigenous animals for this purpose, including a herd of 220

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known Common name, commonly as the whitetail and the Virginia deer, is a medium-sized species of deer native to North America, North, Central America, Central and South America. It is the ...

. The deer thrived and today the population exceeds 160,000 while the island's moose population is about 1,000. It has been reported that black bears, which rely on berries to bulk on for the winter, had lived on the island until the introduction, but have disappeared perhaps because of the deer eating the berry bushes bare.''Parc national d'Anticosti - Park Journal 2008-2009 Edition'', Parcs Québec Henri Menier died in 1913 and his brother Gaston became the owner of Anticosti Island. He used and maintained it for a time but eventually decided it was not an economically viable operation and sold it to the Wayagamack Pulp and Paper Company in 1926 for $6,000,000. For the next five decades, the island was used almost exclusively by forestry companies which harvested timber and built some infrastructure, mainly roads, but abandoned the villages at English Bay and Fox Bay. Wayagamack's timber production was successful until the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

when the paper market collapsed. The island property was taken over by Consolidated Paper Corporation Limited in 1931, but they showed little interest in it and put it up for sale. Offers came from Canadian, American, British, French and Belgian parties. In July 1937, an offer was received from a consortium of

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

capitalists who intended to build a sulphite mill and wanted a steady supply of pulpwood and access to Canadian capital. In the autumn of that year, a team of German surveyors travelled to the island to examine its timber and export potential. When this story broke in the ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'' of 2 December 1937, it caused an immediate controversy since the story claimed that the survey team was really made up of

Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...

's agents and that most were naval, military and fortifications experts. Despite the substantial offer, the promise of thousands of new jobs, and the fact that there were no legal methods to block the sale, the suspicions remained. A committee was set up to investigate the affair but concluded that "there was no evidence to indicate that the project has other than a commercial purpose". However, when the deadline to purchase the island passed on 15 September 1938, the offer expired and controversy died out. In 1974, the government of Quebec purchased the island from the forestry company Consolidated Bathurst Ltd. for $23,780,000. Anticosti was placed under management by the Ministry of Recreation, Hunting and Fishing (''ministère du Loisir de la Chasse et de la Pêche'') and in 1983 the process began to set up a working municipal structure. Today, about 60% is under management by Sépaq and since April 2001, has been designated as a national conservation park. With its 24 rivers and streams bountiful with salmon and trout, the island is now a tourist destination for anglers and hunters, particularly from the United States and Canada, as well as for

paleontologists Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geolo ...

, bird watchers and hikers. In 2023, the perimeter of Anticosti Island, with two rivers, was made a

UNESCO World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

, for its abundance of fossils. The World Heritage Site includes the entire coastline of the island (except for the region around the village of Port-Menier), and the banks of the Jupiter and Vauréal rivers. A one-kilometer buffer zone extends inland from the coasts and riverbanks.

Municipality of L'Île-d'Anticosti

Access and transportation

Access to the island is either by boat or plane. From April to mid-January, the commercial shipping company Relais Nordik services Port-Menier twice weekly with a passenger and cargo vessel. The

Port-Menier Airport Port-Menier Airport is located east of Port-Menier, Quebec, 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 ...

is serviced by Air Liaison which provides regular scheduled flights to Sept-Îles and Havre-St-Pierre. There are two other aerodromes on the island, both towards the eastern end. Rivière-aux-Saumons (CTH7) is located on the northern side of the island and was paved in July 2010; Rivière Bell (CRB5) is gravel and is located on the southern side. These are used by

outfitter An outfitter is a shop or person that sells specialized clothes (an '' outfit'' is a set of clothing). More specifically, it is a company or individual who provides or deals in equipment and supplies for the pursuit of certain activities. In Nort ...

s and charter companies that provide private air services during the tourist season. The Henri-Menier Road or Transanticostienne Road, the island's unpaved main road, stretches from Port-Menier to the eastern tip, with numerous forest roads branching off to provide access to various tourist locations and logging concessions. Car rental is available in Port-Menier.

Flora

Every summer from 1924 to 1928, Brothers

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 ...

and Rolland-Germain explored the Anticosti-Minganie, the tw
botanists
made many discoveries, including Sececio pseudo-arnica var. rollandii or Senecio rollandii as well as the Mingan thistle Cirsium minganense and Botrychium minganense. The botanists explored the coasts of Anticosti Island aboard a refurbished old

fishing vessel A fishing vessel is a boat or ship used to fishing, catch fish and other valuable nektonic aquatic animals (e.g. shrimps/prawns, krills, coleoids, etc.) in the sea, lake or river. Humans have used different kinds of surface vessels in commercial ...

, the Virginia. The archives of the University of Montreal present on Flickr: Anticosti, a land of immense spaces, the sea all around and a social world of the 1920s gone forever, series of photos by Marie-Victorin: Brother Kirouac (1885-1944). In 2004, the island's vascular flora was estimated at 700 species. Rare Plants of the Mingan Archipelago, Parks Canada 2023, said that nearly a tenth of Anticosti Island's flora are rare plants, most of which colonize open habitats associated with rivers (

cliffs In geography and geology, a cliff or rock face is an area of 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. Cliffs are com ...

, taluses or pebbled surfaces) and mineral bogs. Anticosti Island is home to the rare orchid, Cypripedium arietinum Ait. f. — Cypripède tête-de-bélier. — (Ram's Head Lady's Slipper). While populations are declining elsewhere in eastern North America, the orchid flourishes here abundantly, making Anticosti a refuge for this plant. File:Cypripedium arietinum - Flickr 003.jpg,

Cypripedium arietinum ''Cypripedium arietinum'', the ram's head lady's slipper, is a rare terrestrial orchid that grows in lightly to heavily shaded areas with calcareous soils. It is characteristic of the alvars around the Great Lakes in North America]. In Canada, it ...

Ait. f. File:EtangCastor.jpg, Taiga, Boreal forest File:Pinguicula_vulgaris_002.jpg, Pinguicula vulgaris L. — Grassette vulgaire. — (Common butterwort).

Carnivorous plant Carnivorous plants are plants that derive some or most of their nutrients from trapping and consuming animals or protozoans, typically insects and other arthropods, and occasionally small mammals and birds. They have adapted to grow in waterlo ...

, Mc Donald River bank File:Dryas_drummondii_950707_18a.jpg,

Dryas drummondii ''Dryas drummondii'' is a species of flowering plant in the rose family known by the common names yellow mountain-avens, yellow dryas, or yellow dryad.

Richardson. – Dryade de Drummond. – (Drummond's mountain-avens), Trans-Anticosti Route, km 144, secteur

File:Draba incana 014.jpg, Draba incana L. — Drave blanchâtre. — (Twisted whitlow grass), pebbles and

rocks, shore at Baie-Sainte-Claire File:Orchis_rotundifolia_004.jpg, Orchis rotundifolia Banks. — Orchis à feuille ronde. — (Small Round-leaved Orchid), Mc Donald River bank The forests of Anticosti Island are typical

boreal forest Taiga or tayga ( ; , ), also known as boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by pinophyta, coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruces, and larches. The taiga, or boreal forest, is the world's largest land biome. I ...

, with common species such as White spruce, Balsam fir, and Black spruce. It is distinguished by some minor stands of American white birch and Trembling aspen. *

Picea glauca ''Picea glauca'', the white spruce, is a species of spruce native to the northern temperate and boreal forests in Canada and United States, North America. ''Picea glauca'' is native from central Alaska all through the east, across western and s ...

(Moench) Voss. — Épicéa glauque. — Épinette blanche. — (White spruce). *

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 ...

(Linné) Miller. — Sapin baumier. — Sapin. — (Balsam fir). *

Picea mariana ''Picea mariana'', the black spruce, is a North American species of spruce tree in the Pinaceae, pine family. It is widespread across Canada, found in all 10 provinces and all 3 Canadian Arctic Lands, territories. It is the official tree of Newfo ...

(Miller) BSP. — Épicéa marial. — Épinette noire. — (Black spruce). *

Betula papyrifera A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech- oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contain ...

Marshall. — Bouleau à papier. — Bouleau blanc, Bouleau à canot. — (Canoë birch, American white birch). *

Populus tremuloides ''Populus tremuloides'' is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, one of several species referred to by the common name aspen. It is commonly called quaking aspen,

Michaux. — Peuplier faux-tremble. — Tremble. — (Aspen). Balsam fir is slowly being replaced with White spruce because of intensive grazing done by White tail deer and by periodic outbreaks of Hemlock looper and

Spruce budworm ''Choristoneura'' is a genus of moths in the family Tortricidae. Several species are serious pests of conifers, such as spruce and are known as spruce budworms. Species *'' Choristoneura adumbratanus'' (Walsingham, 1900) *'' Choristoneura afri ...

. About a quarter of the island is covered by

lands.

Fauna

In Anticosti Island, the wildlife is characteristic of an isolated marine environment. Of the 24 mammal species, 14 or 15 of these are marine mammals that include Grey Seal and Harbor Seal. *

Halichoerus grypus The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or "earless seals". The only species classified in the genus ''Halichoerus'', it is found on both shores of the Nort ...

. — Phoque gris. — (Grey Seal). * Phoca vitulina. — Phoque commun. — (Harbour Seal). Even large

whale Whales are a widely distributed and diverse group of fully Aquatic animal, aquatic placental mammal, placental marine mammals. As an informal and Colloquialism, colloquial grouping, they correspond to large members of the infraorder Cetacea ...

s ply the nearby cold waters, thirteen species of cetaceans frequent the waters of the

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

and the gulf of the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawren ...

Hyperoodon ampullatus The northern bottlenose whale (''Hyperoodon ampullatus'') is a species of beaked whale in the ziphiid family, being one of two members of the genus '' Hyperoodon''. The northern bottlenose whale was hunted heavily by Norway and Britain in the 1 ...

. — Hypéroodon boreal, Hypéroodon arctique. — (Northern Bottlenose Whale).
2. Delphinapterus leucas. — Béluga, Bélouga, Baleine blanche, Dauphin blanc, Marsouin blanc. — (Beluga Whale).
3. Physeter macrocephalus. — Grand cachalot, Cachalot, Cachalot macrocéphale. — (Sperm whale).
4. Lagenorhynchus acutus. — Lagénorhynque à flancs blancs, Dauphin à flancs blancs. — (Atlantic white-sided dolphin).
5. Lagenorhynchus albirostris. — Dauphin à nez blanc, Dauphin à bec blanc, Lagénorhynque à bec blanc. — (White-beaked dolphin).
6.

Orcinus orca The orca (''Orcinus orca''), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. The only Extant taxon, extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'', it is recognizable by its Countershading, black-and-white- ...

. — Orque, Épaulard. — (Killer Whale).
7.

Globicephala melas The long-finned pilot whale, or pothead whale (''Globicephala melas'') is a large species of oceanic dolphin. It shares the genus '' Globicephala'' with the short-finned pilot whale (''Globicephala macrorhynchus''). Long-finned pilot whales are ...

. — Globicéphale commun, Globicéphale noir, Dauphin pilote. — (Long-Finned Pilot Whale).
8.

Phocoena Phocoena The harbour porpoise (''Phocoena phocoena'') is one of eight extant species of porpoise. It is one of the smallest species of cetacean. As its name implies, it stays close to coastal areas or river estuaries, and as such, is the most familiar ...

. — Marsouin commun, Cochon de mer, Dieu des mers. — (Harbour Porpoise).
9.

Eubalaena glacialis The North Atlantic right whale (''Eubalaena glacialis'') is a baleen whale, one of three right whale species belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena'', all of which were formerly classified as a single species. Because of their docile nature, their sl ...

. — Baleine franche de l'Atlantique nord, Baleine noire de l'Atlantique nord, Baleine de Biscaye. — (North Atlantic Right Whale).
10.

Balaenoptera acutorostrata The common minke whale or northern minke whale (''Balaenoptera acutorostrata'') is a species of minke whale within the suborder of baleen whales. It is the smallest species of the rorquals and the second smallest species of baleen whale. Althoug ...

. — Petit rorqual. — (Minke whale).
11. Balaenoptera musculus. — Baleine bleue, Rorqual bleu. — (Blue whale).
12.

Megaptera novaeangliae The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hum ...

. — Rorqual à bosse, Baleine à bosse. — (Humpback whale).
13.

Balaenoptera physalus The fin whale (''Balaenoptera physalus''), also known as the finback whale or common rorqual, is a species of baleen whale and the second-longest cetacean after the blue whale. The biggest individual reportedly measured in length, wi ...

. — Rorqual commun. — (Fin whale).
Gulf of St. Lawrence"> File:Rorqual_070.jpg, Whale Research Expeditions with Mingan Island Cetacean Study (MICS), File:Rorqual_122.jpg,

Humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the monotypic taxon, only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh u ...

s, females and cubs, Whale Research Expeditions with Mingan Island Cetacean Study (MICS) File:Rorqual_126.jpg,

s, dorsals, pectoral fins, Whale Research Expeditions with Mingan Island Cetacean Study (MICS) Originally, there were probably only seven indigenous species of land mammals, the Martes americana and Ursus americanus have now been

extirpated Local extinction, also extirpation, is the termination of a species (or other taxon) in a chosen geographic area of study, though it still exists elsewhere. Local extinctions are contrasted with global extinctions. Local extinctions mark a chan ...

: *

Vulpes vulpes The red fox (''Vulpes vulpes'') is the largest of the true foxes and one of the most widely distributed members of the order Carnivora, being present across the entire Northern Hemisphere including most of North America, Europe and Asia, plus ...

. — Renard roux. — (Red fox). * Lontra canadensis. — Loutre de rivière. — (River otter). *

Peromyscus maniculatus ''Peromyscus maniculatus'', the eastern deermouse, is a rodent native to eastern North America. It is a species of the genus ''Peromyscus'', a closely related group of New World rats and mice, New World mice often called "deermice". When former ...

. — Souris sylvestre, Souris du soir. — (Deer mouse). *

Martes americana The American marten (''Martes americana''), also known as the American pine marten, is a species of North American mammal, a member of the family Mustelidae. The species is sometimes referred to as simply the pine marten. The name "pine marten" ...

. — Martre d'Amérique. —(American marten). *

Ursus americanus The American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), or simply black bear, is a species of medium-sized bear which is endemic to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. It is an omnivore, with a diet v ...

. — Ours noir. — (Black Bear). * Myotis lucifugus. — Petite chauve-souris brune. — (Littlebrown bat). *

Eptesicus nilssonii The northern bat (''Eptesicus nilssonii'') is the most abundant species of bat in northern Eurasia occurring from France to Hokkaidō and south to Kazakhstan. Description The northern bat is dark brown or black with some gold touched at the tip ...

. — Sérotine de Nilsson, Sérotine boréale. — (Northern bat). *

Melanistic Melanism is the congenital excess of melanin in an organism resulting in dark pigment. Pseudomelanism, also called abundism, is another variant of pigmentation, identifiable by dark spots or enlarged stripes, which cover a large part of the bod ...

foxes have been seen on the island. Anticosti cerf Virginie 950710 19

In order to make Anticosti Island a hunter's "paradise", several animal species have been introduced; starting in 1896, the island became an unprecedented biological experiment. In all, sixteen introduced species have been attempted, with six proving to be unsuccessful, namely

bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...

caribou The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only represe ...

elk The elk (: ''elk'' or ''elks''; ''Cervus canadensis'') or wapiti, is the second largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. ...

mink Mink are dark-colored, semiaquatic, carnivorous mammals of the genera ''Neogale'' and '' Mustela'' and part of the family Mustelidae, which also includes weasels, otters, and ferrets. There are two extant species referred to as "mink": the A ...

and fisher. However, for ten species, it has been a beneficial introduction; six species of terrestrial mammals (

moose The moose (: 'moose'; used in North America) or elk (: 'elk' or 'elks'; used in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is the world's tallest, largest and heaviest extant species of deer and the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is also the tal ...

beaver Beavers (genus ''Castor'') are large, semiaquatic rodents of the Northern Hemisphere. There are two existing species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers are the second-large ...

snowshoe hare The snowshoe hare (''Lepus americanus''), also called the varying hare or snowshoe rabbit, is a species of hare found in North America. It has the name "snowshoe" because of the large size of its hind feet. The animal's feet prevent it from sink ...

and

muskrat The muskrat or common muskrat (''Ondatra zibethicus'') is a medium-sized semiaquatic rodent native to North America and an introduced species in parts of Europe, Asia, and South America. The muskrat is found in wetlands over various climates ...

), two species of frogs, and two species of non-migratory birds (

ruffed grouse The ruffed grouse (''Bonasa umbellus'') is a medium-sized grouse occurring in forests from the Appalachian Mountains across Canada to Alaska. It is the most widely distributed game bird in North America. It is non-migratory. It is the only spe ...

and the spruce grouse). Of all these species introduced, the success of white-tailed deer is particularly noteworthy. From an initial group of about 200 (introduced in 1896 and 1897), the number of white-tailed deer has grown to an estimated 37,000 animals in 2018, representing a density of 4.7 deer/km². Without predators, this man-made deer population has had noticeable impacts on the island ecosystem. Balsam fir trees covered about 40% of the island, prior to the introduction of the deer. The deer eat tender sprouts from the ground, and prevent fir regeneration; in turn, the firs are being replaced by white spruce. The

brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada. Two ecological forms of brook trout h ...

Atlantic salmon The Atlantic salmon (''Salmo salar'') is a species of ray-finned fish in the family Salmonidae. It is the third largest of the Salmonidae, behind Hucho taimen, Siberian taimen and Pacific Chinook salmon, growing up to a meter in length. Atlan ...

and

American eel The American eel (''Anguilla rostrata'') is a facultative catadromous eel found on the eastern coast of North America. Anguillidae, Freshwater eels are fish belonging to the Elopomorpha, elopomorph superorder, a group of Phylogenetics, phylogen ...

visit the island's shores and swim up several rivers of the island. Some 221 bird species, distributed among 21 avian families, have been observed on Anticosti Island. It is home to nearly 60% of the known breeding sites of the

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

in the province of Quebec.

Tourism

Because of its untamed wilderness and abundant wildlife, Anticosti Island is known for its hunting, fishing and outdoor opportunities and it attracts some 3,000 to 4,000 hunters per year. Most of Anticosti Island () is under management by Sépaq Anticosti, a division of the provincial parks and wildlife reserves agency Sépaq. It actively promotes tourism on the island, in particular hunting and fishing tours. Another is protected in the Anticosti National Park (''Parc national d'Anticosti''). In addition to hunting and fishing, many other outdoor recreational activities are supported in this park, such as hiking, horseback riding, nature viewing and sea kayaking. There are also five commercial

s that hold exclusive hunting and fishing rights to of the island.

Utica Shale

The Utica Shale, a

stratigraphical Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock layers (strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks. Stratigraphy has three related subfields: lithostrati ...

unit of

Middle Ordovician The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era, and the second of twelve periods of the Phanerozoic Eon. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period Ma (milli ...

age Age or AGE may refer to: Time and its effects * Age, the amount of time someone has been alive or something has existed ** East Asian age reckoning, an Asian system of marking age starting at 1 * Ageing or aging, the process of becoming older ...

that is potentially rich in shale gas reserves, underlies the Anticosti Islands and extends to surrounding areas in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and much of northeastern United States. On February 8, 2011, the citizen group "Non au Pétrole et au Gaz au Québec" released one of the biggest petitions in Quebec history against fracking in the province of Quebec with 128,000 signatures thinking it would prevent the oil and gas exploration on Anticosti. In June 2011, the Quebec firm Pétrolia claimed to have discovered about 30 billion

barrels A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers for liquids ...

oil An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) and lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturate ...

on the island of Anticosti, which is the first time that significant reserves have been found in the province. In February 2014, Premier of Quebec

Pauline Marois Pauline Marois (; born March 29, 1949) is a retired Canadian politician, who served as the 30th premier of Quebec from 2012 to 2014. Marois had been a Member of the National Assembly (Quebec), member of the National Assembly in various ridings ...

announced that the provincial government would help finance two exploratory shale gas operations as a prelude to

hydraulic fracturing Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, fracing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of Formation (geology), formations in bedrock by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the ...

on the island, with the province pledging $115-million to finance drilling for two separate joint ventures in exchange for rights to 50% of the licences and 60% of any commercial profit. It was the first oil and gas deal of any size for the province. With the change in government that occurred in April 2014, the Liberals of

Philippe Couillard Philippe Couillard (; born June 26, 1957) is a Canadian business advisor and former neurosurgeon, university professor and politician who served as 31st premier of Quebec from 2014 to 2018. Between 2003 and 2008, he was Quebec's Minister of H ...

could change that decision. Petrolia Inc., Corridor Resources and

Maurel & Prom Maurel & Prom is an oil company specialising in the production of hydrocarbons. It is listed on Euronext Paris and has its registered office in Paris. The Group generates most of its business in Africa through the exploitation of onshore product ...

formed one joint-venture, while Junex Inc. was still seeking a private partner. On June 4, 2013, the citizen group "Non au Pétrole et au Gaz au Québec", realizing that fracking continued to be a viable method of oil extraction on Anticosti, released another petition that garnered 26,000 signatures against fracking, exploration and exploitation of oil and gas on Anticosti Island and asked for a moratorium and an environmental evaluation. Geological engineer Marc Durand gave a presentation at a conference explaining that a minimum of 12,000 wells would be necessary for this exploitation and would put Quebec in debt, considering the 12 million dollar cost of one of these wells. A year later, when Pauline Marois announced an investment of 115 million dollars for Petrolia to continue the exploration, the same petition increased up to 36,000 signatures. The government started a BAPE (environmental evaluation) specific for Anticosti and the report, published on October 3, is in favour of creating a protected area on the island.

References

Bibliography

* * * Charlie McCormick. ''Anticosti''. (1996) Éditions JCL * Donald MacKay. ''Anticosti, The Untamed Island''. (1979)

McGraw-Hill Ryerson Ryerson Press was a Canadian book publishing company, active from 1919 to 1970. First established by the Methodist Book Room, a division of the Methodist Church of Canada, and operated by the United Church Publishing House after the Methodist Chu ...

*Alberta C. Pew, Joseph N. Pew, Jr., Margaret R. Leisenring, Edward B. Leisenring, Jay Cooke, ''A.E.F.: Anticosti Expeditionary Force'' (Philadelphia?: Privately Printed, 1935). Account of a private fishing expedition to the island. * J. Schmitt, ''Anticosti'' (Paris, 1904).

External links

Henri Menier. ''Anticosti, 1905''
(1905), 237 original photographs by Henri Menier. Some originals were deposited in the “Archives du Québec” in the Lucien Comettant collection by his grandson, Lucien Laurin. * Gretchen Eshbaugh Engel, ''Though Memory Plays Me False
A Story of Anticosti. The St. Lawrence River Isle of Enchantment, the life of William Hardy Eshbaugh and the role he played in its early development
'' (Southbury, CT, 1971) *Logan, W.E., Murray, A., Hunt, T.S., and Billings, E., 1863
Geology of Canada. Report of Progress from its Commencement to 1863; Geological Survey of Canada
983 p. ccompanied by an Atlas of Maps and Sections.doi:10.4095/123563 *Billings, E. (Elkanah), 1820-1876
Geological Survey of Canada, and Geological Survey of Canada. Catalogues of the Silurian Fossils of the Island of Anticosti
With Descriptions of Some New Genera And Species. Montreal: Dawson brothers, 1866.
A descriptive sketch of the geology, and economic minerals of Canada
Young, G. A. Geological Survey Branch (1909). Canada Department of Mines *
Sépaq Anticosti official websiteParc national d'Anticosti official website
{{Authority control River islands of Quebec Menier family Landforms of Côte-Nord Geographic regions of Quebec World Heritage Sites in Canada