Sophia Priestman, a graduate of Mark R. Isfeld Secondary School, is the 2026 recipient of the CVN Bursary. Our $1000 bursary was presented to her at the school’s awards ceremony on May 28.
Sophia graduates with straight A grades. She made extensive contributions to the Environmental Club throughout her career at Isfeld, taking on the president’s role in grades 11 and 12. She was also very involved in the Model UN Program, and participated in other school clubs and sports.
Outside school, Sophia has volunteered with Anderton Therapeutic Garden and with Lush Valley for several years. At 12 years old she was offered a job by five vendors at the Farmer’s Market and chose Alderlane Bakery where she is in her sixth year of employment. She also has helped out at Pendleton Farm.
Sophia has been accepted at the University of Victoria where she will pursue a dual major in Environmental Studies and Economics with a minor in Applied Ethics. Of this somewhat unusual combination of disciplines, Sophia says:
This variety of disciplines will allow me to see complex political and environmental issues from multiple perspectives and find innovative solutions that both foster sustainability and ensure welfare for all (human and non-human alike).
Congratulations, Sophia!
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Comox Valley Nature hosted the following presentation at our May 2026 general meeting:
Title: Island vignettes from a nature photographer’s life Speaker: Bruce Moffat (moffatphotography.zenfolio.com) Date: Sunday, May 24, 2026
If you missed this event or would like to see some of it again, Bruce has kindly provided his slides (PDF, 72 MB) and links to the subset of the videos he showed for which the sound track is suitably licensed (on YouTube).
CVN members and others who have or know university students in a nature-related degree program should be aware of two scholarships awarded by BC Nature:
Bert Brink Scholarship
$2,500 to a graduate student “in a discipline which contributes to an awareness, appreciation, improved management of flora and fauna, conservation, restoration, and understanding of our natural environment.”
Rene Savenye Scholarship
$2000 to a post-secondary student “enrolled in an undergraduate degree program that contributes to awareness, appreciation, and understanding of our natural environment.”
Both scholarships include the following evaluation criterion (among others): “length of time volunteering in nature for BC Nature or a member club or another non-profit with focus on conservation.”
For more information, including access to the application forms, visit this BC Nature web page.
Applications for both scholarships must be submitted by June 15.
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CVN’s Brandt Memorial Committee has awarded its first grant for Honours or Graduate-level environmental research in the North Island region. The grant program honours the legacy of Charles Brandt (1923–2020), a noted Comox Valley naturalist and conservationist who left a generous bequest to CVN.
Sophie holding an ochre sea star when she first started her PhD in 2022.
Our first recipient is Sophie Johnston who receives a $5,000 grant to support her field research on coastal areas of north Vancouver Island. Sophie is currently a PhD Student at the University of British Columbia under the supervision of Dr. Chris Harley. She has a BSc (Honours) in Biology and Mathematics from Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario. Sophie currently has a publication in the journal Marine Ecology Progress and has other manuscripts in preparation on the effects of a warming ocean and ocean acidification on marine invertebrate species and coastal ecosystems.
Sophie’s research is documenting the effects of ocean acidification on intertidal marine communities in the Johnstone Strait. The goal of her research is to investigate how a dominant ecosystem engineer, a limpet in this case, shapes marine community structure along a gradient of ocean acidification.
Watch for a more detailed description of Sophie’s research in our June newsletter.
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CVN is deeply grateful to member Kathy Haigh who organized and managed the anniversary celebration described here. This post is based on a press release that Kathy wrote, with photos by Bruce Moffat.
Comox Valley Nature marked a major milestone this spring—our 60th anniversary. Founded in 1966, CVN is one of the North Island’s oldest and most active nature organizations, dedicated to fostering environmental education, stewardship, and appreciation for the natural world.
To commemorate six decades of community engagement and ecological leadership, the society hosted a 60th Anniversary Celebration on April 26. The event brought together members, volunteers, and guests to reflect on CVN’s long legacy of protecting and learning from the region’s forests, wetlands, and shorelines.
Anniversary cupcakes
Over the years, Comox Valley Nature has championed numerous restoration and education initiatives. These include programs such as Garry oak and wetland restoration, Courtenay Airpark Walk restoration, birding, botany and shoreline groups, an annual bursary for high school graduates, and ongoing community partnerships to maintain sustainable access to local trails and habitats.
In 2026, we are also incorporating our anniversary theme throughout our public walks. To check the various upcoming nature walks, visit our Events web page.
As we look ahead to our next chapter, we remain rooted in our founding mission—to know nature and keep it worth knowing. Through guided walks, lectures, interest groups and conservation projects, Comox Valley Nature continues to inspire stewardship and connection with the rich ecosystems of Vancouver Island’s Comox Valley.
Here’s a selection of photos from the event [click a photo to enlarge it].
Welcome by K’ómoks First Nation elder Tami Compton
Emcee Kathy Haigh speaking
Frank Hovenden reminiscing
Members chatting in front of the timeline display
Door prizes
Beautiful (and healthy) refreshments
CVN’s long history was represented in a graphic timeline display. You can read the entries in the images below the full timeline by zooming in on each one.
60 years of activity
Timeline 1966 to 1986
Timeline 1986 to 2006
Timeline 2006 to 2026
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The Botany Group visited Bear Creek Nature Park on March 3. The focus was on the plants and plant communities of a beautiful second growth bigleaf maple and conifers forest. The walk included a short floodplain section and a very dry little plateau. As in other recent outings, many of the observations were of mosses, liverworts and lichens, but the group also looked for early signs of spring among the vascular plants..
You can download co-leader Véronique’s photographic guide to many of the species seen on this trip here (PDF, 12.6 MB).
Here’s a selection of photos from the guide [click a photo to see the whole image]:
Comox Valley Nature invites its members and the public to CVN’s May general meeting. where you can hear the following keynote presentation by our guest speaker:
Title: Island vignettes from a nature photographer’s life Speaker: Bruce Moffat (moffatphotography.zenfolio.com) Date: Sunday, May 24, 2026 Time: 3:00 p.m. PT Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox
Click each photo to enlarge it.
CVN’s own Bruce Moffat will present several short videos based on his experiences over the past seven years on Vancouver Island. Bruce will comment on each of these engaging videos to describe his experiences and the challenges of capturing his images of each of the diverse subjects. He will take questions after each video and again at the end.
The videos will include some of those first shown as entries in the Comox Valley Photographic Society’s annual ImageFest show at the Sid Williams Theatre.
About the speaker
Bruce Moffat is a retired professional photographer, currently the coordinator of CVN’s Nature Photography Group, and a member of the Comox Valley Photographic Society. He has been an avid photographer since his teen years and has focused on nature photography for the past twenty years. He has been published regularly in the local CV Land Trust calendars and in four of the last five CV Collective magazines here in the valley. His latest published shot is featured on this month’s cover of Scout Life magazine.
Bruce is well known to CVN members, particularly to the birders. He generously shares his excellent photographs with this website and with CVN’s Newsletter. In the last couple of years Bruce has had fun with drone photography, and he organized CVN’s group members and volunteers from CVPS to create the spherical panoramas that you can see in our online Nature Viewing Guide.
More about the meeting
This will be an in-person only meeting.
As always, there will be an intermission after the presentation with a chance to meet new people and socialize with old friends. Tea, coffee and treats will be available.
A brief business meeting follows. Reports from some of our interest groups and projects are an opportunity for guests to learn more about what we do.
Members of the Botany Group enjoyed a field trip to the Nymph Falls trails along the Puntledge River on February 3. The trip was repeated on February 7 with an invitation for public participation.
In the mild winter conditions (no snow), the group studied various plant communities in the area which consists mainly of second-growth Douglas-fir and western redcedar forest. The focus was mainly on the many mosses and lichens to be seen on living trees, the forest floor, and on stumps and logs. A few forbs, fungi and slime molds were also observed.
You can download co-leader Véronique’s photographic guide to many of the species seen on this trip here (PDF, 10.2 MB).
Here’s a selection of photos from the guide [click a photo to see the whole image]:
Broom mossBlack cottonwood with mossesEvergreen huckleberryFlowerpot bird’s nest fungusFragmenting coral lichenInflatable bone lichenLesser featherwort liverwortMosses on stumpPink wintergreenRagbag lichenSlime mold on redcedarVariable mossWitch’s hair lichenYellow tuning fork fungusYew
Drought in the summer is hard on plants in our environment. The trees in your yard may have begun to respond to this stress. Our next knowledge walk will help you to learn how to keep your trees healthy and thriving.Join Verna Mumby as we look at the effects of drought and climate change on trees.This knowledge walk will be at the Airpark. Taking the trees there as a sample, we will look for signs of drought stress, and indications of healthy growth. We will examine factors such as hydrology, disease vectors and soil compaction. We will discuss watering and other methods of mitigating stress.Meeting location will be sent before the walk. Bring binoculars to examine higher branches. Wear sturdy footwear and dress for the weather. We will be walking on the airpark paths.REGISTRATION required using RSVP link at comoxvalleynaturalist.bc.ca/event/trees-and-drought/ An easy 1 km walk on a wheelchair accessible paved path. Sorry, no dogs. This event is free, but donations are welcome. ... See MoreSee Less
Bruce Moffat, our very own CVN Nature Photography group coordinator will be presenting at this month’s general meeting. He has prepared a handful of wildlife vignettes collected over the past 7 years on Vancouver Island. Each of these shorts will be played with Bruce pausing to describe the experiences and challenges for each of the diverse subjects covered.This presentation includes images first shown as entries in the Comox Valley Photographic Society’s annual Imagefest show at the Sid Williams Theatre. There will be time to ask questions after each short film and following the wrap up. Bruce will bring some of the equipment used to capture his images.Bruce has been an avid photographer since his teen years and has focused on nature photography for the past 20 years. He has been published regularly in the local CV Land Trustcalendars and 4 of the last five CV Collective magazines here in the valley. His latest published shot is featured on this month’s cover of Scout Life magazine. ... See MoreSee Less
Comox Valley Nature is pleased to announce that Sophie Johnston has been awarded the Brandt Research Grant. This is a $5,000 grant in support of her field research on coastal areas of north Vancouver Island. Sophie is currently a PhD Student at the University of British Columbia.The intertidal zone ecosystem is critically threatened by ongoing climate change. Sophie’s PhD research is documenting the effects of ocean acidification on intertidal marine communities in the Johnstone Strait, British Columbia.The goal of her research is to investigate how a dominant ecosystem engineer shapes marine community structure along a gradient of ocean acidification.Ocean acidification not only alters the morphology of limpet species by increasing shell erosion, but can also increase their thermal sensitivity, limiting limpet grazing efficiency and survival in the intertidal zone. Thus, the effects of ocean acidification on such ecosystem engineers could result in large-scale, rippling impacts on marine communities, from microscopic algae to top predators.The results of this research will be of particular interest to residents who inhabit areas near or along the Johnstone Strait and those interested in the trophic level effects of ocean acidification i.e., the reduced growth of herbivores, barnacles, mussels, and oysters can affect the population sizes of predators like sea stars and otters.For more information on this grant and CV Nature in general, visit our website at cvnature.ca ... See MoreSee Less
CVRD News: Watershed Awareness Days: Discover Where Your Water Comes From 🫗The Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) invites the public to explore the Comox Lake Watershed during Watershed Awareness Days, taking place from May 26 to 30, 2026. This week-long event features guided walks, lakeside talks, presentations, and family-friendly activities. It’s a unique opportunity to experience the watershed firsthand and learn how it sustains the health and wellbeing of the entire Comox Valley community.Read the full story here 👉 comoxvalleyrd.ca/connect/news/watershed-awareness-days-discover-where-your-water-comesView all the FREE* events here: www.comoxvalleyrd.ca/connectedbywater*Some events require registration#ComoxValleyRD ... See MoreSee Less
Drought in the summer is hard on plants in our environment. The trees in your yard may have begun to respond to this stress. Our next knowledge walk will help you to learn how to keep your trees healthy and thriving.