Stephen Charles Zoltai was an outstanding Canadian scientist who made an exceptionally innovative and diverse contribution to our understanding of northern wetlands and, more generally, the relationship between soil, vegetation and permafrost. These contributions can be found in his over 70 refereed publications, and numerous non-refereed publications including his contributions to the book Wetlands of Canada. Steve was an Associate Editor of Wetlands in 1995 and 1996, a duty that he performed with great conscientiousness and knowledge. Recently he worked towards clarifying the nature of global climate change recorded in the evolution of wetlands throughout western Canada.

In addition to his publications, Steve also mentored many graduate students throughout his career, in many disciplines, all who benefited from his natural curiosity and love of the natural sciences. His contributions to education will be on-going; Steve recently contributed selections from his extensive collection of photographs to a series of CD-ROMs on the Canadian arctic and subarctic regions, wetlands, permafrost peatlands, glaciers and glaciation, volcanoes and volcanism, erosion and erosional landforms, periglacial landforms, northern environments and engineering, and the boreal forest. Steve's career has been circumpolar, including professional advice on wetland environmental issues for the United Nations in Russia, and developing wetland conservation criteria. His contributions have spanned wider issues that have culminated in the establishment of several Canadian National Parks.

For Steve's outstanding work he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Silver Anniversary Medal and Environment Canada's Merit Award. He was also made a Fellow of the Royal Canadian Geographic Society. Steve will be sorely missed by all who had the privilege to know him. In honour of Steve, a peatland resource centre is being established.

In keeping with Steve's commitment to education, the centre will encourage greater understanding of wetlands. Donations can be made to: The Stephen C. Zoltai Peatland Resource Centre, 11908 - 41A Avenue, Edmonton, AB, T6J 0V9.

Refereed Publications

Zoltai, S.C. 1961. Glacial history of part of northwestern Ontario. Proceedings of Geological Association of Canada 13:61-83.

Zoltai, S.C. 1963. Glacial features of the Canadian Lakehead area. Canadian Geographer 7:101-115.

Zoltai, S.C. 1965. Glacial features of the Quetico-Nipigon area, Ontario. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 2:247-269.

Zoltai, S.C. 1966. Late glacial molluscan fauna north of Lake Superior, Ontario. Journal of Paleontology 40:439-446.

Zoltai, S.C. 1967. Glacial features of the north-central Lake Superior region, Ontario. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 4:515-528.

Zoltai, S.C. 1968. Glacial history of the upper Great Lakes. Proceedings of Entomological Society of Ontario 99:15-20.

Zoltai, S.C. 1969. Sampling fossil mollusks from glacial Lake Agassiz sediments. Journal of Paleontology, Earth Sciences 12:28-43.

Zoltai, S.C. 1971. Southern limit of permafrost features in peat landforms, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper No. 9, pp. 305-310.

Zoltai, S.C. and Tarnocai, C. 1971. Properties of a wooded palsa in northern Manitoba. Arctic and Alpine Research 3:115-129.

Zoltai, S.C. 1972. Palsas and peat plateaus in central Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 2:291-302.

Zoltai, S.C. 1973. The range of tamarack (Larix laricina (Du Roi) K. Koch) in northern Yukon Territory. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 3:461-464.

Zoltai, S.C. and Pettapiece, W.W. 1974. Tree distribution on perennially frozen earth hummocks. Arctic and Alpine Research 6:403-411.

Zoltai, S.C. 1975. Structure of subarctic forests on hummocky permafrost terrain in northwestern Canada. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 5:1-9.

Zoltai, S.C. 1975. Tree ring record of soil movements on permafrost. Arctic and Alpine Research 7:331-340.

Zoltai, S.C. and Tarnocai, C. 1975. Perennially frozen peatlands in the western Arctic and Subarctic of Canada. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 12:28-43.

Zoltai, S.C., Pollett, F.C., Jeglum, J.K. and Adams, G.D. 1975. Developing a wetland classification for Canada. Pages 497-511 in: Forest soils and forest land management. Proceedings of the 4th North American Forest Soils Conference. B. Bernier and C.H. Winget (eds.). Les presses de l'Université Laval, Québec.

Zoltai, S.C., Runka, G.G. and Wells, R. 1975. Biophysical land classification in Canada. Pages 485-495 in: Forest soils and forest land management. Proceedings of the 4th North American Forest Soils Conference. B. Bernier and C.H. Winget (eds.). Les Presses de l'Université Laval, Québec.

Zoltai, S.C. and Woo, V. 1976. Soils and vegetation of Somerset and Prince of Wales islands, District of Franklin. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 76-1B, pp. 143-145.

Delorme, L.D., Zoltai, S.C. and Kalas, L.L. 1977. Freshwater shelled invertebrate indicators of paleoclimate in northwestern Canada during late glacial times. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 14:2029-2046.

Zoltai, S.C. 1978. Soil productivity in the Arctic environments of Canada. Proceedings of the 11th Conference of International Society of Soil Science 3B:348-359.

Zoltai, S.C. 1978. A portable sampler for perennially frozen stone-free soils. Canadian Journal of Soil Science 58:521-523.

Zoltai, S.C., Tarnocai, C. and Pettapiece, W.W. 1978. Cryoturbated organic materials in earth hummocks from the Canadian Arctic. Proceedings of the 3rd International Conference on Permafrost. National Research Council of Canada 1:325-331.

Zoltai, S.C. and Woo, V. 1978. Sensitive soils of permafrost terrain. Pages 410-424 in: Forest soils and land use. Proceedings of the 5th North American Forest Soils Conference, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.

Tarnocai, C. and Zoltai, S.C. 1978. Soils of northern Canadian peatlands: their characteristics and stability. Pages 433-448 in: Forest soils and land use. Proceedings of the 5th North American Forest Soils Conference, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA.

Tarnocai, C. and Zoltai, S.C. 1978. Earth hummocks in the Canadian Arctic and Subarctic. Arctic and Alpine Research 10:581-594.

Delorme, L.D., Zoltai, S.C. and Kalas, L.L. 1978. Freshwater shelled invertebrate indicators of paleoclimate in northwestern Canada during late glacial times: Reply. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 15:462-46.

Zoltai, S.C. and Zalasky, H. 1979. Postglacial fossil tamarack (Larix laricina) wood from the Mackenzie Delta, N.W.T. Bi-monthly Research Notes, Environment Canada 35:7-8.

Sakai, A., Yoshida, S., Saito, M. and Zoltai, S.C. 1979. Growth rate of spruces related to thickness of permafrost active layer near Inuvik, northwestern Canada. Low Temperature Science, Series B 37:19-32.

Dyke, A.S. and Zoltai, S.C. 1980. Radiocarbon-dated mudboils, central Canadian Arctic. Geological Survey of Canada, Paper 80-1B, pp. 271-276.30.

Zoltai, S.C. and Tarnocai, C. 1981. Some nonsorted patterned ground types in northern Canada. Arctic and Alpine Research 13:139-156.

Scotter, G.W. and Zoltai, S.C. 1982. Earth hummocks in the Sunshine area of the Rocky Mountains, Alberta and British Columbia. Arctic 35:411-416.

Zoltai, S.C. and Pollett, F.C. 1983. Wetlands in Canada: Their classification, distribution and use. Pages 245-268 in: Ecosystems of the world. Mires: Swamp, bog, fen and moor. B. Regional studies. A.J.P. Gore (ed.). Elsevier Scientific Publishing Company, Amsterdam.

Delorme, L.D. and Zoltai, S.C. 1984. Distribution of an arctic ostracod fauna in space and time. Quaternary Research 21:65-73.

Zoltai, S.C. 1983. Pingos on Bylot Island, N.W.T., Canada. Polarforschung 53:43-48.

Cody, W.J., Scotter, G.W. and Zoltai, S.C. 1984. Additions to the vascular plant flora of the Bathurst Inlet region, Northwest Territories. Canadian Field-Naturalist 98:171-177.

Cody, W.J., Scotter, G.W. and Zoltai, S.C. 1984. Additions to the vascular plant flora of Bylot Island, Northwest Territories. Canadian Field-Naturalist 98:485-488.

Zoltai, S.C. and Johnson, J.D. 1985. Development of a treed bog in a minerotrophic fen. Canadian Journal of Botany 63:1076-1085.

Bailey, R.G., Zoltai, S.C. and Wiken, E.B. 1985. Ecological regionalization in Canada and the United States. Geoforum 16:265-275.

Wells, E.D. and Zoltai, S.C. 1985. The Canadian system of wetland classification and its application to circumboreal wetlands. Aquilo, Ser. Bot. 21:45-52.

Zoltai, S.C. 1985. Axel Heiberg Island. Dubawnt Lake. Fosheim Peninsula. Horton Plain. Horton River. King William Island. Melville Island. Prince of Wales Island. Somerset Island. Stefansson Island. Pages 123, 520, 680, 833, 941, 1117, 1481, 1758 in: The Canadian Encyclopedia. Hurtig Publishers, Edmonton.

Zoltai, S.C. 1987. Peatlands and marshes in the wetland regions of Canada. Pages 5-13 in: Aquatic insects of peatlands and marshes in Canada. D.M. Rosenberg and H.V. Danks (eds.). Mem. Entomol. Soc. Can. No. 140.

Schunke, E. and Zoltai, S.C. 1988. Earth hummocks (Thufur). Pages 231-245 in: Advances in periglacial geomorphology. M.J. Clark (ed.). John Wiley & Sons, Chichester, England.

Zoltai, S.C. 1988. Distribution of base metals in peat near a smelter at Flin Flon, Manitoba. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution 37:217-228.

Ali, M.W, Zoltai, S.C and Radford, F.G. 1988. A comparison of dry and wet ashing methods for the elemental analysis of peat. Canadian Journal of Soil Science 68:443-447.

Zoltai, S.C. 1988. Wetland environments and classification. Pages 3-26 in: Wetlands of Canada. Ecological Land Classification Series No. 24. Environment Canada, Ottawa, and Polyscience Publications Inc., Montreal.

Zoltai, S.C., Tarnocai, C., Mills, G.F. and Velduis, H. 1988. Wetlands of Canada. Ecological Land Classification Series No. 24. Environment Canada, Ottawa, and Polyscience Publications Inc., Montreal.

Zoltai, S.C., Taylor, S., Jeglum, J.K., Mills, G.F. and Johnson, J.D. 1988. Wetlands of Boreal Canada. Pages 99-154 in: Wetlands of Canada. Ecological Land Classification Series No. 24. Environment Canada, Ottawa, and Polyscience Publications Inc., Montreal.

Tarnocai, C. and Zoltai, S.C. 1988. Wetlands of Arctic Canada. Pages 29-53 in: Wetlands of Canada. Ecological Land Classification Series No. 24. Environment Canada, Ottawa, and Polyscience Publications Inc., Montreal.

Zoltai, S.C. 1989. Late Quaternary volcanic ash in the peatlands of central Alberta. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 26: 207-214.

Cody, W.J., Scotter, G.W. and Zoltai, S.C. 1989. Vascular plant flora of the Wager Bay region, District of Keewatin, Northwest Territories. Canadian Field-Naturalist 103:551-559.

Zoltai, S.C. and Vitt, D.H. 1990. Holocene climatic change and the distribution of peatlands in western interior Canada. Quaternary Research 33: 231-240.

Zoltai, S.C. 1991. Estimating the age of peat samples from their weight: a study from west-central Canada. The Holocene 1:68-73.

Gignac, L.D., Vitt, D.H., Zoltai, S.C, and Bayley, S.E. 1991. Bryophyte response surfaces along climatic, chemical, and physical gradients in peatlands of western Canada. Nova Hedwigia 53: 27-71.

Zoltai, S.C., Singh, T. and Apps, M.J. 1991. Aspen in a changing climate. Pages 143-153 in: Aspen management for the 21st century. S. Navratil and P.B. Chapman (eds.). Proceedings of Symposium, November 20-21, 1990, Edmonton, Alberta. Forestry Canada, Northwest Region and Poplar Council of Canada, Edmonton, Alberta.

Timoney, K.P., La Roi, G.H., Zoltai, S.C. and Robinson, A.L. 1992. The high subarctic forest-tundra of northwestern Canada: Position, width, and vegetation gradients in relation to climate. Arctic 45:1-9.

Vitt, D.H., Van Wirdum, G., Halsey, L. and Zoltai, S.C. 1993. The effects of water chemistry on the growth of Scorpidium scorpioides in Canada and the Netherlands. The Bryologist 96:106-111.

Timoney, K.P., La Roi, G.H., Zoltai, S.C., and Robinson, A.L. 1993. Vegetation communities and plant distributions and their relationships with parent materials in the forest-tundra of northwestern Canada. Ecography 16:174-188.

Zoltai, S.C. 1993. Cyclic development of permafrost in the peatlands of northwestern Alberta, Canada. Arctic and Alpine Research 25:240-246.

Vitt, D.H., Halsey, L.A. and Zoltai, S.C. 1994. The bog landforms of continental western Canada in relation to climate and permafrost patterns. Arctic and Alpine Research 26: 1-14.

Zoltai, S.C. 1994. Impact of climate change on Canadian peatlands. Pages 315-319 in: Mires and Man. Mire Conservation in a Densely Populated Country: the Swiss Experience. A. Grunig (ed.). Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research, Birmensdorf.

Kuhry, P. and Zoltai, S.C. 1994. Past climate change and the development of peatlands: an introduction. Journal of Paleolimnology 12:1-2.

Zoltai, S.C. 1995. Permafrost distribution in peatlands of west-central Canada during the Holocene warm period 6000 years ago. Géographie physique et Quaternaire 49:45-54.

Zoltai, S.C. and Vitt, D.H. 1995. Canadian wetlands: environmental gradients and classification. Vegetatio 118:131-137.

Halsey, L.A., Vitt, D.H. and Zoltai, S.C. 1995. Disequilibrium response of permafrost in boreal continental western Canada to climate change. Climatic Change 30:57-73.

Walker, D.A., Bay, C., Daniels, F.J.A., Einarsson, E., Elvebakk, A., Johansen, B.E., Kapitsa, A., Kholod, S.S., Murray, D.F., Talbot, S.S., Yurtsev, B.A. and Zoltai, S.C. 1995. Toward a new arctic vegetation map: a review of existing maps. Journal of Vegetation Science 6:427-436.

Zoltai, S.C. 1995. Regional variations in peatland ecosystems of west-central Canada through time. Pages 35-42 in: Regional Variation and Conservation of Mire Ecosystems. A. Moen (ed.). Universitetet i Trondheim, Gunneria No. 70.

Zoltai, S.C. and Martikainen P.J. 1996. Estimated extent of forested peatlands and their role in the global carbon cycle. Pages 47-58 in: Forest Ecosystems, Forest Management and the Global Carbon Cycle. M.J. Apps and D.T. Price (eds.). NATO Advanced Science Institutes Series, Vol. I40, Springer Verlag, Heidelberg.

Dahl, T.E. and Zoltai, S.C. 1997. Forested northern wetlands of North America. Pages 3-17 in: Northern Forested Wetlands: Ecology and Management. C.C. Trettin, M.F. Jurgensen, D.F.Grigal, M.R. Gale and J.K. Jeglum (eds.). CRC Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton, Florida.

Timoney, K., Zoltai, S.C., and Goldsborough, L.G. 1997. Boreal diatom ponds: a rare wetland associated with nesting whooping cranes. Wetlands 17:539-551.