Much of Canada’s landscape was molded by glaciers over thousands of years. Valleys were widened, moraines were sculpted and bedrock was smoothed. Glaciation also left behind many sediments, including gravel, which is important to Canada’s export economy.

The Canadian Shield formed over 3 billion years through processes such as plate tectonics, erosion and glaciation. Plate tectonics refers to the movement and collision of the Earth’s outer crust. When these crustal plates collide they may weld together, forming larger landmasses.

The Canadian shield eroded for billions of years. The action of the glaciers affected the drainage of the shield. The scraping and gouging action of the ice created depressions which filled with water. The glaciers deposited sand, gravel and clay which dammed rivers or forced them to flow in certain directions.

The effects of the Ice Age on the Canadian Shield Also, the glaciers gouged out hollows where the rocks were softer and blocked some river valleys with rocks, thereby causing the very large number of lakes in the Canadian Shield region, which appeared when the ice melted.

The Canadian shield gets its name from its shape, which resembles an ancient shield, raised and ready to defend North America. The Canadian shield’s bare surface makes it much more useful for mining, logging, hydroelectric power generation, and similar operations that do not require deep earth.

Water collected in the numerous large scale groves and indentations in the bedrock by the glaciers after their “retreat”, hence there are countless lakes.

Canada

According to the study, the 10 countries with the most lakes in the world are: Canada – 879,800. Russia – 201,200….Which country has the most lakes?

Brazil