'Discover the Seine' in Winter

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'Discover the Seine' in Winter

The Seine River in winter:

This winter walk offered an opportunity to look at the natural processes within the ecological corridor of the Seine River during winter. This was also an interaction experience with the environment to learn about the stresses that different species experience in winter.

Accessibility
The Seine River is more accessible by foot during winter. Summer activities usually invite paddlers and hikers. During winter, activities like snow-boot hiking and cross-country skiing are visible along the riverbed and adjacent golf courses. SOS is willing to promote these activities by making the river more accessible. The community would appreciate such a recreational resource and thus the Seine will benefit from more 'stewards' and concerned citizens. Increased activity would likely deter dumping along the corridor. Through increased accessibility, a wide spectrum of citizens is likely to visit the river during different times of year (Danyluk, 2004).  However, increased number of dog owners along the river has resulted in an increase in dog feces along the stretch. During winter these remain for a longer period and flow directly to the river when the snow melts. One aspect of winter walk is reduced exposure to plant and wildlife. 

Observations and experiences
The river is aesthetically as pleasing as during summer months, however in a different way, as it is frozen. The snow on the frozen river and the bank of Seine had stood long enough to develop different layers (The Big Freeze, 2003).

• The top layer is formed of newly fallen flakes. These are usually sharp crystals that have not been compacted, blown, or melted.
• The layer directly below the new flakes is known as Firn. This layer consists of crystals that are undergoing destructive metamorphosis to become more spherical and uniform in size.
• Below the Firn, lies the Depth Hoare. It is formed of brittle, loosely arranged crystals formed from water vapour near the ground and in the snow. 
  

Marsh (1997) describes how depth of frost line can be approximately estimated based on depth of snow cover. Considering average depth of snow cover to be 20 cm approximately, the depth of frost line would be in the range of 40-50 cm. 

Winnipeg's (49 54deg N) lies in the overlap zone of discontinuous and seasonal permafrost. This zone in turn explains the vegetation associated with the region; mixed forest consisting of Boreal and Deciduous vegetation (Marsh, 1997), which is evident in the picture 5. The ground frost penetration is largely affected by vegetation and land-use in addition to snow cover. 

Flat snow cover and adjacent floodplain vegetation show single thread channel meandering morphology of the river, as shown in the accompanying picture 6. Winter alters the life form and habitat along the Seine, which was apparent during the walk. It is a season of decreased solar, thermal and nutritional energy. An overall reduction of energy levels was evident which lead to physical and physiological adaptations in plants and animals (Hindelang).

The floodplain and upland habitat is clearly discernable in winter. There is evidence of forest canopy, lower understorey (woody plants and shrubs) and stream edge (logs and grasses) habitats. The upland and bottomland forest communities along the corridor are chiefly deciduous and bark and twigs were clearly visible in this non-leaf season. These trees provided less shielding effect due to lack of foliage. The snow provides a protective cover to vegetation on the ground. So very little damage occurs to the vegetation when there is an appropriate snow-cover or when the soil is frozen.

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