Comox Valley Nature members and the general public are invited to CVN’s April general meeting. where you can hear the following keynote presentation by our guest speaker:
Title: The Bird Friendly Cities Initiative in Comox
Speaker: Robert McLennan
Date: Sunday, April 27, 2025
Time: 3:00 p.m. PT
Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox
(Photo: Terry Thormin)
A group of Comox Valley residents has formed Comox’s Bird Friendly Team to pursue the Bird Friendly designation for the Town of Comox. This initiative is part of the Bird Friendly Cities program run by Nature Canada. The program recognizes communities that have programs and volunteer organizations creating a safe environment for birds to thrive within their community.
For a community to be designated as Bird Friendly, it must satisfy criteria in these categories:
- Threat reduction
- Habitat protection, restoration and climate resiliency
- Community outreach/education
The first goal of the Bird Friendly Team is to have the Town of Comox designated as Bird Friendly by September 2025. They are aiming to have the rest of the Comox Valley and surrounding communities designated in the near future.
To learn more about the Bird Friendly Cities program, visit Nature Canada’s website.
About the speaker
Robert McLennan has a long history with the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society, as described on the MARS website:
Robert joined MARS as a volunteer wildlife caregiver when MARS was located on its Headquarters Road location and joined the board shortly after. When MARS founder Maj passed away, he was asked to fill in as manager. He was actively involved in the search for a new property and the transition to the current location when the hospital was under construction.
With a background in adult education and training, he took on the role of education coordinator when the new visitor’s centre was still in the planning stages before construction started. After a few years pursuing other opportunities, Robert returned as visitor centre manager. Recently he rejoined the board, continuing to advocate for the MARS mission and connecting us with the Bird Friendly Cities initiative.
Robert brought the Bird Friendly program to Comox Valley and is the Coordinator of the Town of Comox Bird Friendly Team.
