Payne Islands

59°58′N 69°41′W / 59.96°N 69.69°W / 59.96; -69.69 (Plover Island)ArchipelagoArctic Archipelago
Ungava Bay ArchipelagoTotal islands100 (Plover Islands and Payne Islands combined)Area1,250 km² (480 sq mi)
(Plover Islands and Payne Islands combined)AdministrationNunavutNunavutRegionQikiqtaalukDemographicsPopulationUninhabited

The uninhabited Payne Islands are an archipelago, members of the Arctic Archipelago and the Ungava Bay Archipelago, in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. They are located in Payne Bay, a waterway in western Ungava Bay, just east of the Arnaud River (formerly the Payne River) and the community of Kangirsuk on Quebec's Ungava Peninsula.

Note: The Atlas of Canada does not recognise this appellation; presumably the Payne Islands are the islets of Nanuk, Agvik, and Akunok.

Geography

The islands have a hard granitic gneiss and a thin layer of soil. Their perimeter measures approximately 3 km (1.9 mi).

Flora

Their habitat includes lichen, moss, sedges, and low woody shrubs.

Fauna

Combined with the Plover Islands, the Payne Islands are a Canadian Important Bird Area (#NU027). Notable bird species include the common eider and colonial waterbirds/seabirds.^[1]

The Payne Islands are a part of the Ungava Bay Archipelagoes, a Key Migratory Terrestrial Bird Site (NU Site 51).^[2]

References

• Plover Islands at Atlas of Canada

External links

• Payne Bay in the Atlas of Canada - Toporama; Natural Resources Canada