Electoral division of the 2017 election. **Collection context** Creation of districts in collaboration with the legal services and the electoral data of the Chief Electoral Officer (DGE). Balancing of districts according to anthropogenic constraints and number of voters. **Collection method** Computer-aided mapping. **Attributes** * `ID_SEC_DIS` (`long`): Identifier * `NAME_DISTRI` (`varchar`): District name * `NO` (`long`): District number * `AREA` (`varchar`): Area * `ADVISORY_NAME` (`varchar`): Name of the advisor * `SOURCE` (`varchar`): Source * `DATE_CREAT` (`date`): Creation date * `DATE_MODIF` (`date`): Date of modification * `USER_MODIF` (`varchar`): Modified by For more information, consult the metadata on the Isogeo catalog (OpenCatalog link).**This third party metadata element was translated using an automated translation tool (Amazon Translate).**

Stimpson's surfclam or Arctic surfclam (Mactromeris polynyma) concentration areas in this layer are described as being known and commercially exploited historically and/or currently. The mapping of these areas is based on several sources of information: exploratory fisheries, scientific surveys and fishermen's logbooks. Commercial fishery data come from three distinct sources of information: the purchase receipt, the fishermen's logbook and commercial sampling by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). All data comes from the research document published in 2015. These concentration areas are considered among the most abundant and are used for commercial fishing (note: high densities are not found strictly in these beds). This dataset does not represent the general distribution of the species nor the extent to which fishing is allowed. The extent of shellfish beds can change over time in response to, among others, harvesting and recruitment rates. The polygons might underestimate the concentration areas because fishing and sampling occur where the target resource is known to be more abundant. However, the precision is good enough for resource protection and management needs in case of an environmental incident. This information is valid until data from a most recent research survey is published. Data sources and references : DFO. 2007. Évaluation des stocks de quahog nordique (Arctica islandica) du banc de l'île de Sable et de la baie St. Mary's, et du stock de mactre de Stimpson (Mactromeris polynyma) du Banquereau. Secr. can. de consult. sci. du MPO. Avis sci. 2007/034 (Révisé). Lambert J. et P. Goudreau. 1997. Biologie et exploitation de la mactre de Stimpson (Mactromeris polynyma) sur les côtes du Québec. Sec. can. éval. stock du MPO. Doc. rech. 1997/101. 44 p. Landry, T.E., E. Wade, E. et M. Giguère. 1992. Évaluation des gisements de mactre de Stimpson, Mactromeris polynyma, dans le golfe du Saint-Laurent: résultats préliminaires. MPO, CSCPCA Doc. rech. 1992/086. 29 p. Trottier, S. et P. Goudreau. 2015. Évaluation des stocks de mactre de Stimpson (Mactromeris polynyma) des eaux côtières du Québec en 2014. Secr. can. de consult. sci. du MPO. Doc. de rech. 2016/063. Ix + 72 p.

Catch, effort, location (latitude and longitude), and associated biological data from the Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl surveys - North on the coast of British Columbia. Introduction: The Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl survey - North (Eul-N) is part of the in the Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl survey series and took place on the coast of British Columbia. The other survey in this series is the Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl survey –South (Eul-S). The Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl survey - North (Eul-N) was conducted monthly from July 2018 to March 2019 and was funded by the Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) National Rotational Survey Fund. The objective of this survey was to learn about the distribution, ecology, and migration times of Eulachon into the Nass and Skeena rivers by observing their spatial and temporal occurrence and biological condition over a wide survey region and over several months. This survey follows a random block design in a targeted depth range of 80 – 300 metres. The sampling units were 2 km by 2 km blocks. Fishing was conducted using the Canadian Coast Guard Research Vessel Neocaligus to tow an American shrimp trawl net (Cantrawl Nets Ltd., Richmond, BC). The horizontal opening of the polypropylene net was estimated to be 34 to 37 feet (10 to 11 m), while the center of the opening had a vertical height of approximately 7 to 9 feet (2 to 3 m). A 0.4” (10 mm) liner was used in the codend. The net was configured with roller gear and 72” (1.8 m) Thyboron Type 2 trawl doors. Tow duration was typically 5 minutes. The standard hours of fishing were 0800 to 1700 hours, depending on sunrise and sunset in winter months. The Eulachon Migration Study Bottom Trawl survey – North was conducted by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO). This survey fished mainly in Chatham Sound with sets in Hecate Strait and Portland Inlet including Pacific Fishery Management areas (PFMA’s) 3, 4, and 104. Effort: This table contains information about the survey trips and fishing events (trawl tows/sets) that are part of this survey series. Trip-level information includes the year the survey took place, a unique trip identifier, the vessel that conducted the survey, and the trip start and end dates (the dates the vessel was away from the dock conducting the survey). Set-level information includes the date, time, location, and depth that fishing took place, as well as information that can be used to calculate fishing effort (duration) and swept area. All successful fishing events are included, regardless of what was caught. Catch: This table contains the catch information from successful fishing events. Catches are identified to species or to the lowest taxonomic level possible. Most catches are weighed, but some are too small (“trace” amounts) or too large (e.g. very large Big Skate). The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that catches can be related to the fishing event information (including capture location). Biology: This table contains Eulachon biological data including length, sex, and weight. Information is provided on whether stomachs or teeth were examined, and whether genetics (DNA) samples were collected. Eulachon maturity data, diet data, and teeth presence data are available on request from the data contacts. Additional analyses are ongoing, including histology, fatty acid profiling, and genetic analysis; frozen heads are also available for a future aging project. In addition to the Eulachon biological data, lengths and weights were collected from American Shad.The unique trip identifier and set number are included so that samples can be related to the fishing event and catch information.

Hunting districts as presented in the Compendium of Migratory Bird Hunting Regulations: Quebec https://www.canada.ca/fr/environnement-changement-climatique/services/chasse-oiseaux-migrateurs-gibier/reglementation-resumes-provinciaux-territoriaux/quebec.html These boundaries are presented for information purposes only and have no legal value.

The blue whale (Balaenopterus musculus) is a wide-ranging cetacean that can be found in all oceans, inhabiting coastal and oceanic habitats. In the North Atlantic, little is known about blue whale distribution and genetic structure, and if whether animals found in Icelandic waters, the Azores, or Northwest Africa are part of the same population as those from the Northwest Atlantic. In the Northwest Atlantic, seasonal movements of blue whales and habitat use, including the location of breeding and wintering areas, are poorly understood. The behaviour of remotely-monitored animals can be inferred from a time series of location data. This is because animals tend to demonstrate stochasticity in their movement paths as a result of spatial variation in environmental characteristics, such as topography or prey density (Curio 1976; Gardner et al. 1989; Turchin 1991; Wiens et al. 1993). Predators are expected to decrease travel speed and/or increase turning frequency and turning angle when a suitable resource, e.g., food patch, is encountered (Turchin 1991), otherwise known as area-restricted search (ARS). In contrast, animals in transit or travelling tend to move at faster and more regular speeds, with infrequent and smaller turning angles (Kareiva and Odell 1987; Turchin 1998). Based on satellite telemetry to track the seasonal movements of 24 blue whales from eastern Canada in 2002 and from 2010 to 2015, it was possible to estimate trajectories and locations where ARS behaviour of blue whales was inferred at a 4h time interval. To assess blue whale movements and behavior, a Bayesian switching statespace model (SSSM) was applied to Argos-derived telemetry data (Jonsen et al. 2005; Jonsen et al. 2013). An SSSM essentially estimates animal location at fixed time intervals, movement parameters and behavioral patterns. Two important sources of uncertainty can be measured separately: estimation error resulting from inaccurate observations (Argos location error) and process variability linked to the stochasticity of the movement process (behavior mode estimation) (Jonsen et al. 2003; Patterson et al. 2008). The points visible on land are the result of errors in the Argos geographic position calculation. They have been deliberately left unchanged to assess the performance of the model, which was able to clean up some positions, but not all. Lesage, V., Gavrilchuk, K., Andrews, R.D., and Sears, R. 2016. Wintering areas, fall movements and foraging sites of blue whales satellite-tracked in the Western North Atlantic. DFO Can. Sci. Advis. Sec. Res. Doc. 2016/078. v + 38 p.

Layer that includes the known information on potential haul-out sites for the harbour seal and gray seal in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence according to a literature review of documents produced between 1978 and 2000. Additional Information Potential haul-out sites for the harbor seal and gray seal were produced according to a literature review of the following documents: Andersen, A. et M. Gagnon. 1980. Les ressources halieutiques de l'estuaire du Saint-Laurent. Rapp. can. ind. sci. halieut. aquat., 119: iv + 56 p. Argus Groupe-Conseil inc. 1992. Synthèse et analyse des connaissances relatives aux ressources naturelles du Saguenay et de l'estuaire maritime du Saint-Laurent. Parc marin du Saguenay. Service canadien des parcs, région du Québec. Biorex. 1995. Cartographie des ressources halieutiques et de leurs habitats dans l'estuaire moyen du Saint-Laurent. Rapport au ministère des Pêches et des Océans, Région du Québec, Division de la gestion de l'habitat du poisson. 36 p. + annexes. Biorex. 1996. Base de données géoréférencées sur les ressources halieutiques et leurs habitats : estuaire maritime du Saint-Laurent et fjord du Saguenay. Rapport au ministère des Pêches et des Océans, Région du Québec, Division de la gestion de l'habitat du poisson. Volume 1 : 38 p. + annexes et Volume 2 : 34 p. + annexes. Chevrier, V. 1994. Cartographie des habitats du poisson aux Îles-de-la-Madeleine. Rapport technique no. 1. Réalisé en collaboration avec le M.P.O., Attention Frag'Îles et la M.R.C. des Îles-de-la-Madeleine. 24 p. + 1 ann. + 36 cartes. Comité de la zone d'intervention prioritaire (ZIP) de la Côte-Nord du golfe. 1999. Inventaire des habitats côtiers et marins sensibles de la Basse-Cote-Nord : Rapport final, présenté à Pêches et Océans Canada par le Comité ZIP Côte-Nord du Golfe. 126 p. Comité de protection de la santé et de l'environnement de Gaspé inc. (C.P.S.E.G.). 1996. Communication personnelle par Carol Fournier, MPO. 1999. Communications personnelles par Gosselin, J-F-. 1996. Desaulniers, J. 1989. Étude des populations de pinnipèdes de l'Archipel-de-Mingan et relation entre l'activité de chasse au phoque et la sécurité publique 1987 à 1989. Parcs Canada. Région du Québec. Service de la conservation des ressources naturelles. Enquêtes auprès des pêcheurs. 1995. Lavigne, P.-J. 1978. La chasse estivale du phoque dans le Saint-Laurent. Rapport non publié. 65 p. Pêches et Océans Canada, Région du Québec. Lesage, Véronique. 2000. Communication personnel. Lesage, V., M. O. Hammill, and K.M. Kovacs. 1995. Harbour seal (Phoca vitulina) and Grey seal (Halichoerus grypus) abundance in the St. Lawrence estuary. Can. Manuscr. Rep. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 2307: iii + 19 p. Naturam Environnement inc. 1996. Caractérisation physique et biologique de l'habitat du poisson du secteur de Pointe-aux-Outardes. Realisé pour le compte de la Corporation du Parc régional de Pointe-aux-Outardes. 196 p.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) selected the Manicouagan Peninsula area as a site of interest for the possible establishment of a Marine Protected Area (MPA) in 1998. With this in mind, DFO conducted surveys to assess benthic biodiversity between 2006 and 2008. During the various campaigns, more than a hundred stations were sampled using various tools to target epibenthic and endobenthic species. Various tools were used during the three years of sampling, including an SM (Smith-McIntyre) grab with an area of 0.1 m² and a height of 20 cm, an IKU-type grab with a surface area of 1.5 m² and a height of 50 cm, and a hydraulic dredge measuring 1.36 m wide and 0.66 m high with a net mesh size of 2.3 cm. As the dredge clogged fairly quickly, small organisms were collected in abundance. In 2006 and 2007, a camera mounted on a sled pulled by a boat along transects of varying lengths depending on the sampling campaign collected images (3,008 x 2,000 pixels) every 10 seconds, representing a seabed area of 40 x 40 cm. The data are presented in Darwin Core format in the file “donnees_manicouagan_data” The available data include taxonomic identifications of samples (individuals collected or identified in images) as well as metadata related to stations, including sampling date, depth, and geographic coordinates. Please note that the depths are for informational purposes only, since the bathymetry is very steep in this region. Further details on sampling can be found in the following report: Provencher, L et Nozères, C. 2011. Protocole de suivi des communautés benthiques de la zone de protection marine Manicouagan. Secr. can. de consult. sci. du MPO. Doc. de rech. 2011/051. iv +25 p. https://waves-vagues.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/library-bibliotheque/344357.pdf

Parks Canada’s National Program for Ecological Corridors was initiated to strengthen the network of protected areas across Canada through the creation of ecological corridors. To achieve this goal, Parks Canada sought out to develop tools for a common approach on the scientific and governance aspects of corridor creation and management. The National Priority Areas for Ecological Corridors (NPAECs) were developed using a scientific framework for national-scale prioritization of where ecological corridors are most urgently needed. Improving or maintaining ecological connectivity in these areas will greatly benefit biodiversity conservation and climate change adaptation. The NPAECs were identified based on a methodology that is multivariate, data driven, national in scale, and spatially explicit at a coarse resolution. The Criteria for Ecological Corridors in Canada provide a common approach to ensure ecological corridors are managed and stewarded to maintain or restore effective ecological connectivity, while upholding Indigenous stewardship values. They are derived from the internationally recognized International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Guidelines on Connectivity and adapted to the Canadian context. The NPAECs geographic data layer, the list of datasets used to identify them, the Criteria and their accompanying guidance can be found below. More details and context about both program elements are available on the Program’s webpage (https://parks.canada.ca/nature/science/conservation/corridors-ecologiques-ecological-corridors).

Average grid cell density is a polygon feature class containing the average density value for each grid cell per species/groups and season.

Survey transects is a line feature class containing transects completed in 2011.