Baffin Bay

Baffin Bay

Baffin Bay is a 689,000 square kilometer region of the North Atlantic Ocean that stretches 1,450 kilometers south of the Arctic between the east coast of Greenland and the west coast of Baffin Island. The width of the bay varies from 110 to 650 km. The Davis Strait leads from the bay into the Atlantic Ocean, while the Nares Strait leads into the Arctic Ocean. The pit at the center of the bay, Baffin Hollow, plunges to a depth of 2,100 meters and, although little used by humans due to its harsh environment, is of great interest to geologists studying the evolution of the North American continent. For most of the year, the bay is not navigable due to the dense ice cover and floating ice and icebergs in the open areas. In the summer, however, an area of about 80,000 km2 opens up in the north near Smith Sound, known as the North Water. Much of the Bay's aquatic life is concentrated near this region. This polynya has a strong position and has existed for at least 9000 years. William Baffin first described it in 1616, and whalers of the 18th and 19th centuries called it North Water. Characterized by a rich fauna, the North Water provides air for ice algae and zooplankton. Of the approximately 20,000 beluga whales in Baffin Bay, about 15,000 are found in the North Water. The region's other abundant wildlife includes walrus, narwhal, Harp Seal, Bearded Seal, Ringed Seal, Bowhead Whale, Rorqual and Polar Bear. Traditionally, most of the Bay's large animals were hunted, but hunting was limited in the 20th century to conserve wildlife. The quota for polar bears in the Bay Area, for example, is 105 per year.