<P> The Canadian Hydrographic Service finally declared it a statistical tie, with measurements of a 16.8 - metre (55 - foot) tidal range in Leaf Basin for Ungava Bay and 17 meters (56 feet) at Burntcoat Head for the Bay of Fundy . The highest water level ever recorded in the Bay of Fundy system occurred at the head of the Minas Basin on the night of October 4--5, 1869 during a tropical cyclone named the "Saxby Gale". The water level of 21.6 meters (71 feet) resulted from the combination of high winds, abnormally low atmospheric pressure, and a spring tide . </P> <P> Leaf Basin has only been measured in recent years, whereas the Fundy system has been measured for many decades . The tide at Leaf Basin is higher on average than tides at Minas Basin; however, the highest recorded tidal ranges ever measured are at Burntcoat Head and result from spring tides measured at the peak of the tidal cycle every 18 years . </P> <P> Traditional Mi'kmaq folklore states that the tides in the Bay of Fundy are caused by a giant whale splashing in the water . Oceanographers attribute it to tidal resonance resulting from a coincidence of timing: the time it takes a large wave to go from the mouth of the bay to the inner shore and back is practically the same as the time from one high tide to the next . During the 12.4 - hour tidal period, 115 billion tonnes of water flow in and out of the bay . </P> <P> The tides in the Bay of Fundy are semidiurnal, which means that they have two highs and two lows each day . The height that the water rises and falls to each day during these tides are approximately equal . There are approximately six hours and thirteen minutes between each high and low tide . </P>

Why are the tides so extreme in the bay of fundy