GRAMINOID DOMINATED Land dominated by graminoid vegetation, including grasses, sedges and rushes.
		Tussock graminoid tundra (< 25% dwarf shrub) (1) Moist tussock tundra with < 25% dwarf shrubs < 40 cm tall and moss. May also include lichen.
		Wet sedge (2) graminoids and bryoids Wet sedge including cottongrass that is saturated for a significant part of the growing season, also includes moss and may include < 10% dwarf shrubs < 40 cm tall.
		Moist to dry non-tussock graminoid / dwarf shrub tundra (3) 50-70% cover Moist to dry non-tussock tundra with 50-70% vegetated cover. Vegetation includes a mixture of graminoids, dwarf erect < 40 cm and prostrate dwarf shrubs. May also include tract amounts of lichen and moss.
		Dry graminoid prostrate dwarf shrub tundra (4) 70-100% cover Upland or well drained non-tussock graminoid tundra with low to prostrate dwarf shrub heath greater than 70% cover.
SHRUB DOMINATED Land dominated by vegetation with a shrub (perennial woody plants that branches at ground level from several stems) cover with individuals or clumps not touching together.
		Low shrub (< 40cm; > 25% cover) (5) erect Moist erect low shrub < 40 cm forming more than 25% of the vegetated cover, consisting mainly of dwarf birch (Betula) and / or willow (Salix). Remaining cover consists of graminoids, lichen and may contain prostrate dwarf shrubs and bare soil.
		Tall shrub (> 40cm; > 25% cover) (6) erect Moist to wet erect tall shrub > 40 cm forming more than 25% of the vegetated cover, consisting mainly of dwarf birch (Betula), willow (Salix) and / or alder (Alnus). Remaining cover consists of graminoids, lichen and may contain < 10% prostrate dwarf shrubs and bare soil.
		Prostrate dwarf shrub (7) dryas / heath, usually on bedrock or till Generally dry > 50% vegetated cover consisting of prostrate dwarf shrubs, graminoids and may contain < 10% lichen and moss.
SPARSE VEGETATION Generally between 2 – 10% vegetation cover.
		Sparsely vegetated bedrock (8) Barren surfaces with 2-10% vegetation cover on acidic, igneous, mostly consolidated bedrock. Vegetation cover generally consists of graminoids and prostrate dwarf shrubs.
		Sparsely vegetated till-colluvium (9) Barren surfaces with 2-10% vegetation cover (Henry et al., 1986) on nonacidic and calcareous bedrock and colluvium. Vegetation cover generally consists of graminoids and prostrate dwarf shrubs (Dryas-Salix Tundra / Barrens on Bioclimatic Zone 1; Purple Saxifrage-Herb Tundra / Barrens on Bioclimatic Zone 2; Edlund and Alt, 1989).
		Bare soil with cryptogam crust - frost boils (10) Unconsolidated barren surfaces having experienced significant cryoturbation with 2-10% vegetation cover consisting of graminoids and cryptogam plants.
WETLANDS Vegetated areas where the water table intersects the land surface all or part of the year. This class is represented by a general gradient of decreasing biomass with increasing latitude, from sedge, moss low-shrub wetlands at the latitude of central Hudson Bay, to moss dwarf-shrub wetlands at the latitude of south-central Baffin Island, to sedge/grass, moss wetland further north (Walker et al., 2002).
		Wetlands (11) Vegetated areas where the water table intersects the land surface all or part of the year, including bogs, fens, swamps, mashes and shallow water.
NON-VEGETATED Vegetation is scattered or nearly absent; total vegetation cover, excluding crustose lichens is generally less than 2%.
		Barren (12) < 2% vegetation cover on nonacidic and calcareous parent material.
		Ice / snow (13) Areas permanently covered by snow and ice (glaciers).
		Shadow (14) Topographic shadow
		Water (15) Areas covered by liquid standing water.