Title: Birdbrains – Smarter than you think
Speaker: Sandra Milligan
Date: Sunday, October 25, 2026
Time: 3:00 p.m. PT
Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox

 Once dismissed as “birdbrains,” birds are now recognized for their remarkable intelligence.  Sandra explores the evolution of our understanding of avian neuroanatomy, focusing on local species. Through engaging stories and videos, Sandra explores how birds solve problems, use tools, express empathy, and communicate with rich vocabulary – inviting you to see these creatures with newfound respect and wonder.

About the speaker

Sandra Milligan has been teaching university level biology at North Island College for over twenty years. With graduate degrees in neuroscience, she’s now a generalist, naturalist, and lifelong learner. In Campbell River, she’s a recognized environmental advocate and public educator. Her passion for birding has evolved into a deep interest in avian behaviour and intelligence. Drawing on her neuroanatomy background, Sandra has followed the growing research on bird cognition, confirming what many intuitively felt – birds display an extraordinary range of intelligent behaviours.

More about the meeting

This will be an in-person only meeting. We will not record the presentation on this occasion [this is a correction to previous information].

As always, there will be a break after the presentation with a chance to meet new people and socialize with old friends. Tea, coffee and treats will be available (by donation).

A brief meeting follows. Reports from some of our interest groups and projects are an opportunity for guests to learn more about what we do.

The post Learn about bird intelligence at our October general meeting appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Join us in liberating native plants from invasive thugs such as English ivy.

Removing invasive plants ensures that native plants can thrive. A vigorous native plant population provides food for insects and birds.

Where and when

We meet at the end of 21st street in Courtenay, where it meets the Courtenay Rotary Trail near Dogwood Park. You’ll find us there every Sunday starting October 18 until mid-December, and mid-January to March 14, from 1:00 to 3:30.

Bring gloves and water, dress for the weather and wear sturdy shoes.

For more information contact wetlands@cvnature.ca.

The post Courtenay Rotary Trail “Pulling Together” project resumes (fall 2026) appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Autumn is fast upon us, and the trees in the Comox Valley are beginning their transition into the winter season. CVN’s Comox Valley Trees team (formerly Trees of the Year) is inviting you to share how your favourite trees are changing with the season and preparing for the winter ahead. 

It could be a brilliant display of autumn foliage, a production of fruit, nuts or berries, or as a  winter haven for wildlife.  As the leaves fall, do they reveal an interesting or unique tree architecture, shape or silhouette? Perhaps you have discovered trees of interest in forgotten spaces or unusual or unexpected places, or trees with fungi or lichen.

Send us the story of why you selected your tree of note. Include a brief description of the tree,  a photograph, and the geographical location of the best viewing spot. Ideally the tree is in a public location to facilitate viewing.

Please send your story to comoxvalleytrees@gmail.com

We will share your stories on this website and on CVN’s Facebook and Instagram pages.

Also, be sure to check CVN’s Events calendar regularly for other Comox Valley Trees events such as knowledge walks.

The post Celebrating autumn: Overstory, understory, your stories appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Comox Valley Nature hosted the following presentation at our September 2026 general meeting:

Title: The Challenges in Maintaining an Urban Salmon Population – the Brooklyn Creek Story
Speaker: Dr. John Neilson (Brooklyn Creek Watershed Society)
Date: Sunday, September 27, 2026

If you missed this event or would like to see it again, a recording is available here (MP4, duration 0:30, 108 MB).

For more information about this talk, see the announcement in our earlier post.

The post Recording for talk on Brooklyn Creek coho stewardship appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Title: The Challenges in Maintaining an Urban Salmon Population – the Brooklyn Creek Story
Speaker: John Neilson
Date: Sunday, September 27, 2026
Time: 3:00 p.m. PT
Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox

Streams in urban environments that support healthy Pacific salmon populations are uncommon, as natural watercourses are often degraded or even buried during the course of development of roads and other urban infrastructure.  Of the various Pacific salmon species, coho salmon show special abilities to survive and even thrive in close proximity to human settlements.  In this talk, John Neilson reviews the status of coho salmon in the region, and explores the characteristics of this species that promote their resilience.  He will also speak of the work of the Brooklyn Creek Watershed Society as they work to conserve the watershed in Comox.

About the speaker

Dr. John Neilson has had a 30-year long career as a research scientist with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, including leading research on the population status and ecology of bluefin tuna and swordfish in Canadian waters.  He was also a member of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC), and most recently, led the preparation of the status report on chinook salmon in southern British Columbia.  He is the President of the Brooklyn Creek Watershed Society.

More about the meeting

This will be an in-person only meeting. We will make a recording of the keynote presentation available later on this website.

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 (by donation).

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.

The post Learn about coho and Brooklyn Creek stewardship at our September general meeting appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Title: Alone in the Great Unknown: One Woman’s Remarkable Adventures in the Northwestern Wilderness
Speaker: Caroll Simpson
Date: Sunday, September 20, 2026
Time: 3:00 p.m. PT (doors open 2:30)
Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox
Admission: By donation (proceeds to SOFT)

In her memoir, Alone in the Great Unknown: One Woman’s Remarkable Adventures in the Northwestern Wilderness, author Caroll Simpson recounts the highs and lows of running a remote fishing lodge on her own following the untimely death of her husband, and of falling in love with the natural world. 

Simpson tells stories of living in the remote wilderness and managing the lodge, becoming an accidental environmental activist, fending off wild animals, working as an angling guide and finally, fighting off a proposed mining operation and participating in the development of a government land management plan as a spokesperson for the wilderness tourism industry.

While Simpson welcomed paying guests at Ookpik Lodge, unwanted house guests included a woodchuck, a pack rat, and martens. Simpson constantly had to watch out for grizzlies, moose, and cougars.  Storms and extreme weather also provided fodder for hair-raising tales. All this makes for wonderful storytelling.

Caroll’s story is essentially a love story. In an essay for Sierra Club, Simpson wrote: “I developed an immense passion for flora and fauna. Just walking back and forth on the 300’ dock several times a day, I was exposed to the unbelievable beauty of the northern spectrum of water life: the golden eagle soaring above, the osprey and kingfisher diving and coming up with fish for their hatchlings, the muskrats and otters looking for an easy meal, the tireless beaver working into the late evening sunsets. All of these creatures and more expressed their generational ownership of this small piece of the world. In return each was given my utmost respect and admiration…As I listened to the loons at the end of each day and the owl and the wolf in the night, I felt blessed to be witnessing such beauty. “

On September 20, join Comox Valley Nature and Save Our Forests Team for an afternoon of storytelling about this remarkable time spent living on a remote British Columbia lake. There will be time for Q&A after the presentation, as well as books available for purchase. Tea/coffee and cookies – including forest-themed cupcakes – will be available for a donation.

Join us, and prepare to fall in love.

The post Enjoy an afternoon of storytelling with author Caroll Simpson appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.

Strathcona Wilderness Institute is hosting a one-day Mycology Workshop on Saturday, September 19, 8:30 a.m. till 5:00 p.m., in the Strathcona Park Wilderness Centre located at the Paradise Meadows trailhead in Strathcona Park. The SPWC is adjacent to the Raven Lodge on Mt. Washington.

For interested participants, the workshop is complemented with an optional one-day hike into the spectacular old–growth Divers Lake area on Sunday, September 20 (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

The workshop consists of basic and advanced presentations on mushroom ecology, morphology and identification by some of Vancouver Island’s best-known mycologists, followed by in-class hands-on ID sessions and short field trips into Paradise Meadows and beyond.

For registration details and more about the expert team of presenters, download SWI’s information sheet.

The post SWI workshop: Subalpine mycology 2026 appeared first on Comox Valley Nature.