Canada can boast of more muskeg than any other country in the world, an estimated 500,000 square miles or about 13% of the nation's total land mass.  Derived from an Algonquin Indian word meaning "grassy bog," muskeg is a common and widespread feature of the north.  Many different types have been described, but all are characterized by a wet environment and the development of peat.

Large expanses of muskeg create a formidable barrier difficult to travel across in the summer.  A traveler on foot will find it hard going as there is a tendency to sink into the wet, sucking bog with each step.  Bog pools (like the pictures above) will demand repeated detours.  Black flies and mosquitoes, twin scourges of the north, thrive here also - sufficient reason to explain why so few studies have ever been carried out on this habitat.

Road and railway construction present special difficulties in muskeg country; heavy equipment often bogs down and is occasionally swallowed up.  As a consequence, a number of northern communities have road access only in the winter - when temporary winter roads can be constructed on the frozen ground.