Photographer and naturalist extraordinaire, Terry Thormin recently retired to the Comox Valley after 23 years at the Royal Alberta Museum where he curated the entomology collection. Terry has been a naturalist all his life and first became interested in insects in his early teens. Anyone interested in an illustrated insight into the world of Terry should visit his photo website .

Of the 41 species of dragonflies that can be found on Vancouver Island, 38 occur within the Comox Valley. This is an impressive diversity of dragonflies for such a small area, and the reason for this is the great diversity of dragonfly habitats. From high altitude meadows dotted with lakes and streams to sea level ponds, marshes and bogs, from forested lakes to fast flowing rivers and quieter streams, they all occur in the valley and support a diversity of dragonflies. Terry, through the use of his photographs, will take you on a journey to these habitats and show you what species can be found in each habitat. As well you will learn about their life histories and find out how to identify the various species.

This lecture promises to provide the public with a rare insight into the biological wealth at our doorstep.

Comox Valley Nature is a non-profit society affiliated to BC Nature which fulfills its educational mandate by hosting monthly lectures, organizing weekly guided hikes and undertakes a variety of environmental projects .  Founded in 1966, it is one of the oldest environmental societies on the North Island.

Meetings and lectures of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay.  Meetings are open to the public, including children and youth. An entrance fee of $3.00 for the lecture is suggested for non-members.  New memberships are always welcomed.

Jack Minard, President of the Tsolum River Restoration Society, will give a one hour lecture on the value of habitat protection in light of his two decade experience in bringing back the Tsolum River. He will be our guest speaker at the Filberg Centre at 7 pm, Sunday March 18. The meeting is open to all members of the public, young and old, with an interest in the diversity of the Comox Valley environment .

Enacted in 1976 Section 35 of The Fisheries Act, which is now under serious political attack , has been instrumental in reversing decades of streamside degradation by de-regulated development and industry. Legally it was a direct extension of acts governing pollution and health. Scientifically, it was the logical outcome of work done mainly by the Yale University Forestry School and the Canadian Experimental Lakes Station of the Fisheries Research Board.

Jack Minard is the ideal person to speak out on the value of fisheries habitat protection. With more than two decades of valuable and irreplaceable experience in working to bring back a river that was killed by poorly-regulated mining practices in 1962, Jack Minard and local volunteers have managed to bring salmon back upstream the mainstem of the Tsolum by capping the mine site which is not directly connected to the main fish-bearing areas. This experience highlights the intimate ecological connection between non-fish-bearing habitat zones and the economically important zones, which proposed revisions to the Fisheries Act would open to destruction.

Comox Valley Nature is a non-profit society affiliated to BC Nature which fulfills its educational mandate by hosting monthly lectures, organizing weekly guided hikes and undertakes a variety of environmental projects .  Founded in 1966, it is one of the oldest environmental societies on the North Island.

Meetings and lectures of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay.  Meetings are open to the public, including children and youth. An entrance fee of $3.00 for the lecture is suggested for non-members.  New memberships are always welcomed.

Please come out and join us for these important environmental topics.

Forthcoming lectures include:  Bernice Muir:  “The North Woods: Sights and Sounds of Lazo Marsh”

On Sunday, February 19 Comox Valley Nature (Comox Valley Naturalist Society) will hold its Annual General Meeting, at the Filberg Centre at 8pm.  The meeting is open to all members.

Prior to the AGM, as part of its public educational mandate, Comox Valley Nature will host Canadian historian Richard Somerset Mackie at 7pm. Richard Somerset Mackie is the author of  the well-known histories: Island Timber (2000) and Mountain Timber (2009). 

In this illustrated talk,  Richard Somerset Mackie will discuss the long residence and work of Comox Valley naturalist and writer Hamilton Mack Laing (1883-1982). Laing, a Manitoban, arrived in the Comox Valley in 1922 and spent the rest of his life at the two houses he built on Brooklyn Creek: Baybrook and Shakesides. Along with Allan Brooks, Theed Pearse, and Ronald Stewart, Laing helped form perhaps the tightest and most productive fraternity of practicing ornithologists in rural Canada — a group that Betty Brooks has termed The Pioneer Birdmen of Comox. Laing also hunted with Cecil “Cougar” Smith, John and Norman Pritchard, and many other local men. Mackie will assess Laing’s significant contribution to the valley’s natural history.

Comox Valley Nature is a non-profit society affiliated with BC Nature which fulfills its educational mandate by hosting monthly lectures, organizing weekly guided hikes and undertaking a variety of environmental projects .  Founded in 1964, it is one of the oldest environmental societies on the North Island.

Meetings and lectures of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay.  Meetings and guided walks are open to the public, including children and youth.  An entrance fee of $3.00 for the lecture is suggested for non-members.  New memberships are always welcomed.

Richard Somerset Mackie will be available for book sales and  signings at the Blue Heron Bookstore from 2 -4pm and after his lecture at the Filberg Centre at 8pm.

Forthcoming lectures include: “ Dragonflies of the Comox Valley” by well-known photographer, Terry Thormin, retired curator of invertebrate zoology, Royal Alberta Museum.

One of the Comox Valley’s favourite recreation areas, enjoyed by mountain bikers and hikers alike, the Comox Lake Bluffs region is above all a frequently overlooked special ecological jewel.  It is registered as a rare northernmost arbutus/manzanita/maritime juniper ecosystem.  It is home to many rare and endangered plant species.

As such, it has been designated since 1996 by the province as an ecological reserve.  Care must be exercised to preserve it as such. As with 150 other such areas throughout the province, these ecological reserves are protected for educational and scientific research. The recreational public needs to take an informed approach in the enjoyment of the Comox Lake Bluffs to preserve its value for generations to come.

As part of its public educational mandate Comox Valley Nature (The Comox Valley Naturalists Society) will be hosting a one hour talk on the Comox Bluffs and the ecological reserve system on Sunday January 15^th, at the Filberg Centre at 7pm.

Helen Robinson is one of the Comox Valley’s best-known plant taxonomist. Helen Robinson has been the volunteer warden for the Comox Bluffs for the past 4 years, and is very familiar with the botanical and geological features that make this area so special.  Her powerpoint presentation will cover ecological reserves in general, and then show pictures of many flowering plants, as well as birds and mammals found in the Comox Lake Bluffs Ecological Reserve.

The Comox Valley Naturalists Society (Comox Valley Nature) is a non-profit society affiliated to BCNature which fulfills its educational mandate by hosting monthly lectures, organizing weekly guided hikes and undertakes a variety of environmental projects .  Founded in 1964, it is one of the oldest environmental societies on the North Island.

Meetings and lectures of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay.  Meetings and guided walks are open to the public, including children and youth.  A donation of $3.00 for the lecture is suggested for non-members.  New memberships are always welcomed.

Forthcoming events include:  February 19, Richard  Somerset Mackie, “Bird Man of Comox: Mack Laing and the Natural History of the Comox Valley.”

Please come out and join us for these important environmental topics. For more information on CVNS please visit the website at www.comoxvalleynaturalist.bc.ca

The Comox Valley Naturalists Society will host Katie Terhune,  Energy Campaigner for Living Oceans Society (http://www.livingoceans.org) at the Filberg Centre, Courtenay November 20 at 7:00pm.   Ms. Terhune will present a one-hour lecture Oil and Water: Navigate the Facts outlining the risks posed by the Enbridge proposal.

Living Oceans Society is a marine conservation organization based in the fishing village of Sointula, on the Central Coast of BC. Katie holds of Bachelor of Science from the University of Victoria. Her past experience revolves around habitat restoration and conservation in riparian, estuarine and coastal environments. With Living Oceans, her task is to aid in the battle against Big Oil in the effort to protect B.C.’s coast from oil spills.

The Comox Valley Naturalists Society is a non-profit society affiliated with BCNature which fulfills its educational mandate by hosting monthly lectures, organizing weekly guided hikes and undertakes a variety of environmental projects .  Founded in 1964 it is one of the oldest environmental societies on the North Island.

Meetings and lectures of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay.  Meetings are open to the public, including children and youth.  A donation of $3.00 is suggested for non-members, and new memberships are always welcomed.

Upcoming events include:  December: The Audubon Christmas Bird Count (held in The Comox Valley since 1919) ;  January: Helen Robinson,  “ Comox Bluffs Flora”;   February: Richard Mackie, “The Life and Times of Melda Buchanan.”

Mike Yip is a retired teacher who discovered birds and bird photography in 2003. He has since published 3 very successful books, Vancouver Island Birds vol. 1-3 (2006, 2007, 2010). His work has supported environmental and educational programmes world-wide.  The third volume which came out in 2010 was supposed to be his last publication, however an encounter with the beauty and biodiversity of Denman and Hornby has resulted in a new book.  In addition to documenting island landscapes, birds, wildflowers and butterflies, this new book includes the undersea photography of Amanda Zielinski.

A partial prelude to this book can be found in Mike Yip’s website: http://vancouverislandbirds.com/Journal357.html.

Meetings of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay. Meetings are open to the public, including youth.  A donation of $2.00 is suggested for non-members and new memberships are always welcomed.

Upcoming speakers include: Katie Terhune (Living Oceans Society) “The Enbridge Proposal and Potential Oil Spills”; Helen Robinson “Comox Lake Bluffs Flora and Fauna Conservation” and Richard Mackie “The bastards are at it again!: Life and Times of Melda Buchanan.”

Please come out and join us for these important environmental topics.

Genevieve hails from the Cowichan Valley, and has been a naturalist and interpreter since the late 1960′s. She has worked/volunteered for BC Parks for many years and runs an environmental consulting firm with her husband, Dave Polster. She has been sharing her passion for the outdoors, particularly her love of the creepy crawlies and plants with children and adults in many settings through the years.

“Flower Power!!…” illustrates very well her passion for plants and will include many interesting tidbits about ethnobotany, current uses, and folklore, and will be accompanied by Dave Polster’s photographs.

Please come and join us to become better informed, and to learn how you can help CVNS provide education and protection for B.C.’s natural environment.

Meetings of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay. Meetings are open to the public, including youth. A donation of $3.00 is suggested for non-members, and new memberships are always welcomed. Meetings are not held in July, August, and December.

The CVNS May 15 presentation features Maj. Birch, with a lecture on the activities of the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society, and on June 19 we will have our annual CVNS Society Picnic.

The regular monthly meeting of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society will be held March 20, 2011 at 7:00 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton Avenue, Courtenay. The speaker will be author and explorer Anthony Dalton, who will speak on his newest book “Arctic Naturalist, The Life of J. Dewey Soper”.

J. Dewey Soper was the last of the great pioneer naturalists in Canada. He was also a skilled and meticulous explorer. In the 1920s, Soper completed the last links in the complex map of Baffin Island’s coastline. As a naturalist, he was a major contributor to the National Museum of Canada and to the University of Alberta, as well as to other museums across the country.

Anthony Dalton is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society and a Fellow of the Explorers Club. He is also National President of the Canadian Authors Association. The author of eleven non-fiction books on exploration and marine subjects, Anthony is a former professional expedition leader with years of experience in the Sahara, the deserts of the Middle East and in the Arctic.

Please come and join us to become better informed, and to learn how you can help CVNS provide education and protection for B.C.’s natural environment.

Meetings of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay. Meetings are open to the public, including youth. A donation of $3.00 is suggested for non-members, and new memberships are always welcomed. Meetings are not held in July, August, and December. The CVNS April 17 presentation features Genevieve Singleton, with a lecture on “Wildflowers of Southern Vancouver Island”, and on May 15 we will have a presentation on the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society.

Please come out and join us for these important environmental topics. CVNS is a local 45 year old registered charity, with primary functions of protecting the environment, and educating the public about the environment. For more information please visit the website at www.comoxvalleynaturalist.bc.ca.

The regular monthly meeting of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society will be held February 20, 2011 at 7:00 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton Avenue, Courtenay. The speaker will be Victoria bee expert Gordon Hutchings, and will consist of detailed information on native bee pollinators and their habitat requirements. An abbreviated meeting, and our annual AGM will follow.

Gordon has been studying native bees for 22 years in BC, Yukon and Saskatchewan. He has been a contract field biologist for the Royal BC Museum, BC Ministry of Environment (Conservation Data Centre), the Yukon Territory Government, and Canada Wildlife Service. He also has a book on dragonflies of western boreal forests coming out soon.

There are over 450 species of bees in BC, and some species are adapted to very specific types of flowers. The biggest threats to native bee species are habitat loss/degradation, habitat fragmentation and pesticides. Native bees (especially Mason bees) are becoming increasingly important as pollinators since honey-bee populations have been drastically reduced by an introduced mite. Most of the agricultural crops in British Columbia depend on pollination by bees.

Please come and join us to become better informed, and to learn how you can help CVNS provide education and protection for BC’s natural environment.

Meetings of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held on the third Sunday of most months at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton, Courtenay. Meetings are open to the public, including youth. A donation of $3.00 is suggested for non-members, and new memberships are always welcomed. Meetings are not held in December, July, and August. The CVNS March 20th presentation features author Anthony Dalton, with a lecture on the northern naturalist, botanist J. Dewey Soper, and on April 17th we will host Genevieve Singleton on Wildflowers of Southern Vancouver Island.

The regular monthly meeting of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society will be held January 16, 2011 at 7:00 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton Avenue, Courtenay. The speaker will be local environmentalist Wendy Kotilla, and consists of slides from her 1995 fisheries study of the entire length of the Clayoquot River.

Wendy Kotilla has been involved with wild Pacific salmon for over forty years through commercial fishing, salmon enhancement, fisheries research and ecological restoration.  Fisheries work has taken her to many areas of the coast including Skeena River, Queen Charlotte Islands, Tsitka River, Clayoquot River and Carnation Creek Experimental Watershed Project.  Currently, Wendy coordinates the Youth and Ecological Restoration Program in the Comox Valley to educate young people about the natural world.

In 1993, over 850 people were arrested in Clayoquot Sound to stop clear-cut logging. Clayoquot Biosphere Project began baseline data collection in the pristine Clayoquot River valley and built a cabin at Clayoquot Lake to be used as a base camp.  In 1995, Wendy initiated assessment of longitudinal distribution of fish communities in the Clayoquot River, walking most of its length to conduct the field work.  Her presentation highlights the fisheries research she was involved with during that time and contains “never before seen” slides.  Clayoquot River valley remains unlogged to this day.

Please come and join us to become better informed, and to learn how you can help CVNS provide education and protection for B.C.’s natural environment. A donation of $3.00 is suggested for non-members, and new memberships are always welcome.