Comox Valley Naturalists Society

Sunday, January 15, 2006
Member's Night

The next meeting of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society is scheduled for January 15 in the Rotary Hall of the Florence Filberg Centre. This is our annual “Member's Evening” and will feature several short presentations by our club members on a variety of topics which should prove of interest to everyone.  Each presentation will be about 15 minutes in length and there will be an opportunity for members of the audience to ask questions.

Our first presentation will be by Dave and Jocie Ingram on ‘Flowers and Fossils - Backpacking in Marble Meadows’.  This talk will feature a slide show highlighting the amazing limestone geology and fragile sub-alpine ecosystem of Marble Meadows in Strathcona Provincial Park. Flowers, fossils, landscapes and more will be shown. The photographs were taken during a five day Comox District Mountaineering Club backpacking trip in July 2005. In addition to exploring Marble Meadows the group also hiked to Morrison Spire and had excellent views of Vancouver Island's highest mountain, the Golden Hinde.

The second speaker will be Frank Hovenden who will talk on ‘Flora and Fauna of South Winchelsea Island’.  The photos to be shown in this presentation were taken during a Comox Valley Naturalists Society field trip to this island in April 2005.  South Winchelsea Island and the cabin on it are owned by the Land Conservancy of B.C., an organization that buys special areas in B.C. for preservation purposes. The island is a small piece of relatively untouched Garry Oak ecosystem within sight of the huge real estate developments on Vancouver Island.

Our third speaker, Jenny Balke, will make a presentation on ‘The Life and Times of the Marine River Otter in the Comox Valley’. River otters, our charismatic aquatic neighbours, are loved and hated. They are loved for their fun-loving attitude and “cute” looks, yet hated for their love of fish and their rather messy behaviour on boats and under buildings. But what makes a river otter population healthy? How can we tell it's healthy? A study of river otters in coastal waters around the Comox Valley is beginning in January 2006. The study will address questions about the population and it's sustainability in the area.

The final CVNS member featured will be Steph Nathan, with a presentation on a recent excursion to China. As well as visiting historic places and scenic areas, her trip coincided with the harvest time of many interesting crops.

In addition, David Hutchings of the Federation of BC Naturalists Foundation will give a short talk about the role of the Foundation in supporting the work of the FBCN and its member clubs around the province and in local communities.

Meetings of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society are held in the Rotary Hall of the Florence Filberg Centre in Courtenay starting at 7 p.m. Starting this month, the meetings will have the featured speakers first, followed by a short break, then the business meeting. The public, including children are welcome to attend and new memberships are encouraged.  A suggested donation from non-members is $2. 

Click on a link below to view descriptions of previous guest speakers.