Biodiversity in Québec

To consult an HTML version of this menu section

What Is Biodiversity?

Biodiversity, sometimes called biological diversity, refers to all the Earth’s species and ecosystems together with the ecological processes of which they are a part. It encompasses every living thing, including variants formed by genetic engineering or selective breeding. This diversity constitutes the biosphere, the interwoven fabric of living organisms that makes human life possible on Earth.

In Québec

Québec is one of the largest administrative divisions in North America, occupying close to 1.7 million km2. This land mass, three times the size of France, is home to close to 40,000 species of wild plants and animals, millions of domesticated animals, and many varieties of agricultural and horticultural plants. A number of ecozones and biomes are found in Québec, including tundra, taiga, spruce forest, fir forest, deciduous forest, and the St. Lawrence River.