A small contingent of botany enthusiasts enjoyed an outing on the trails adjacent to the Comox Valley Exhibition Grounds (a.k.a. the Tsolum River flats) on January 13, 2026. The main focus was on the mosses, which are beautiful at this time of year, but other features of the area were also observed—trees and shrubs, identified by their shapes and other winter characteristics; liverworts; and a small number of fungi.
Véronique, the co-leader of the Botany Group, has again prepared a photographic guide to many of the species seen. You can download the guide here (PDF, 5.1 MB).
Here’s a selection of photos from the guide [click a photo to see the whole image]:
In honour of Charles Brandt, long-time and much-admired conservationist in the Comox Valley, our Brandt Memorial Committee has organized an afternoon of stimulating and informative lectures on the theme of salmon conservation:
Date: Sunday March 8, 2026 Time: 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. (doors open at 1:00 p.m.) Location: Stan Hagen Theatre, North Island College, 2300 Ryan Rd, Courtenay, BC.
The program includes two keynote presentations:
“The state of salmon: mobilizing data, understanding resilience and informing recovery” by speaker Will Duguid of the Pacific Salmon Foundation.
“Salmon Parks: restoring wild salmon in Nootka Sound for future generations” by speakers Eric Angel and Jamie James, of the Salmon Park Stewardship Society associated with the Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation.
Be sure to mark your calendars for this special event—everybody is welcome. Attendance by CVN members is free, and others by donation.
For more information about Charles Brandt and details of these lectures, visit this page.
Join CVN members and guests for our Annual General Meeting for 2026:
Date: Sunday, February 22, 2026 Time: 3:00 p.m. PT Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox
This is an opportunity to hear our interest groups and projects give an overview of the past year’s events and progress, along with a peek into their upcoming activities.
The business part of the meeting promises to be relatively short, with elections for all positions on the board of directors, and information on the state of our finances and our budget for this year.
As always, there will be an intermission with a chance to meet new people and socialize with old friends. Tea, coffee and treats will be available.
This will be a hybrid meeting (in-person and videoconference). We encourage members and the public to attend in person. Members (only) who cannot attend can participate via videoconference. The link to register for the Zoom meeting will be sent to members by email before the meeting. This meeting will not be recorded.
Garry oak getting light at Vanier Nature ParkNew signs at AirparkBursary winner Ruby ViePulling lamium at Little RiverNew logoBotany at Ruth Masters GreenwayBCN awards at June picnicShoreline Group sees a bearPulling ivy along Rotary Trail
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Watch this space and our other channels in the coming weeks for information about the event referenced here.
This planning message from our Charles Brandt Memorial committee is intended for CVN members.
Dear CVN members:
CVN is hosting an important and exciting event on March 8 (1:30 to 4:30) at the Stan Hagen Theatre entitled the Inaugural Charles Brandt Conservation Lectures. CVN members can attend free of charge!
We are looking for some volunteers to help with specific duties at the event (see details here). If you can help out, please write to and indicate what task you would like to help with. Thank you for considering this.
Comox Valley Nature hosted the following presentation at our January 2026 general meeting:
Title: Tsolum River Watershed – River Resilience in the 21st Century Speaker: Laura O’Brien (Tsolum River Restoration Society) Date: Sunday, January 25, 2026
If you missed this event or would like to see it again, a recording is available here (MP4, duration 1:02, 309 MB if downloaded).
For more information about this talk, see the announcement in our earlier post.
On December 2, the Botany Group met at Kitty Coleman Provincial Park to explore both a typical Douglas-fir forest and the estuary at this coastal location. The focus was on the lush mosses and on signs of both winter setting in (but with no snow yet) and optimistic preparations for spring. The group also looked at ways to identify trees without their leaves and at a few fungi, lichens, and slime molds. The trip was repeated on December 6.
You can download co-leader Véronique’s photographic guide to many of the species seen on this trip here (PDF, 12.9 MB).
Here’s a selection of photos from the guide [click a photo to see the whole image]:
Broken-leaf mossBroom mossSporangium of coiled-leaf claw-mossFlat mossLanky mossRosy conkGloeomucro sp. (fungus)Mica capUpright coral (fungus)White marasmius (fungus)Winter oyster (fungus)Hyphenated ribbon (lichen)Badhamia utricularis (slime mold) on a branchSpiny wood fernSlender toothwortVanilla-leafSilver burweedTurkish towel (a red alga)
Title: Mining and the Environment in Northern Ontario Speaker: Dr. Constance O’Connor (Wildlife Conservation Society) Date: Wednesday, January 28, 2026 Time: 10:00 a.m. PT
See the registration link below.
Peatlands of Hudson Bay Lowland (Photo: Connie O’Connor)
The boreal forests and peatlands of northern Ontario represent one of the world’s largest remaining intact forests and the third-largest wetland in the world. This area is the homeland for Anishnaabeg and Ininiwak, is an important refuge for northern wildlife, and a globally important carbon store. This area has seen little of the industrial resource development and urban settlement that has transformed areas to the south,
However, there is growing interest in resource development in this region, particularly for mining. These developments would also require associated roads, transmission lines, and other infrastructure. This presentation will provide an overview of the current context of mining in northern Ontario, including a discussion of limitations and concerns with the regulatory and planning frameworks for mining in Ontario relative to the environment and Indigenous rights; and current status and issues with proposed projects, including within the Ring of Fire area.
Nature Trust of British Columbia is calling for volunteers to help plant trees at the Lazo Marsh Wildlife Management Area (WMA) on Monday, January 19.
The West Coast Conservation Land Management Program of Nature Trust BC manages this important conservation area in Comox. Their plan this month is to plant 330 native trees and shrubs in the area. This work is the continuation of a large scale restoration project that began in 2025 and treated over 1.5 hectares of Himalayan blackberry and Scotch broom. The selected area for planting native species is roughly 0.5 hectares.
The Nature Trust BC leader of this work party is Geoff Stathers. Please email Geoff at to let him know you are coming and for answers to any questions you may have. Geoff estimates that with enough volunteers the job can be done in one day.
Geoff has provided the following details.
What to expect
Start time: 11:00 a.m. on Monday January 19.
Where: I will meet everyone at the entrance to the WMA off Torrence Rd between Highland Secondary and the public works yard. The planting site is roughly a 500 metre walk from the parking lot to the restoration area.
Prior to any work, a safety meeting is required and volunteer waiver must be signed, both provided by NTBC.
All trees and shrubs will be staged by Nature Trust (NTBC) staff before volunteers arrive.
Extra shovels and gloves will be provided by NTBC.
A demonstration will also be provided on planting.
Only expectation is to have a great time meeting some new people and restoring the Lazo Wildlife Management Area!
What to bring
Planting shovels, pickaxes, and any tools that could be helpful. The ground here can be quite dense.
Weather conditions look favourable at the moment for Monday but I suggest wearing layers and bring appropriate raingear regardless.
Proper footwear for the walk to and from the restoration area and for protection while planting.
Other details
Pot sizes for native species: (1-gal, 2-gal, 5-gal, 7-gal).
A pre-measured volume of time-release fertilizer will be added to each plant– a demonstration will be provided in the field.
Comox Valley Nature invites its members and the public to CVN’s January general meeting. where you can hear the following keynote presentation by our guest speaker:
Title: Tsolum River Watershed – River Resilience in the 21st Century Speaker: Laura O’Brien (Tsolum River Restoration Society) Date: Sunday, January 25, 2026 Time: 3:00 p.m. PT Location: Main hall of Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox
The 2025 pink salmon migration, where they were stopped by a man made/beaver enhanced dam on Sep 28, 2025.
Laura’s presentation will incude:
A little history – minesite reclamation, society.
Current issues:
Worsening summer drought conditions and winter flood events exacerbated by climate change,
Riparian issues – large second growth falling into the river now; the need for replanting to assist with lowering temperature for trout and coho salmon in summer season.
Invasive species – American bullfrogs and pumpkinseed fish.
Hope for the future:
Historic returns of pinks every odd year since 2011.
Engaging youth and community.
New RIBIT regional bullfrog initiative.
CV Conservation partnership.
About the speaker
Laura during the pink salmon count on the Tsolum, Sep 30, 2023. (Photo: Laura O’Brien)
Laura O’Brien was born and raised in Vancouver, BC, loves water, writing and the natural world. She has lived in the Comox Valley since 1994 and on the Tsolum River for almost 25 years. She is a legal assistant by trade and has been a volunteer director of the Tsolum River Restoration Society (TRRS) since 2001. She wrote a series of informative historical pieces about the Tsolum River and created a series about “Tsolum Sid” a fictional Western toad who lives in the watershed, both of which were published regularly in the now defunct Rural Shopper magazine. She wrote these pieces to raise public awareness about the River and the long-term pollution caused by acid mine drainage, and to encourage river stewardship.
Laura is a leader on the TRRS Outreach Committee which participates in many public events to celebrate the River and watershed, develop community connections, share information and raise awareness. The Committee is also actively involved in bringing watershed education to local schools. Sharing her love of the Tsolum with others and encouraging them to be active stewards of our unique watersheds and our beautiful Valley are among her favourite pursuits.
More about the meeting
This will be a hybrid meeting (in-person and videoconference). We encourage members and the public to attend the in-person meeting. Members (only) who cannot attend can participate via videoconference. The link to join the Zoom meeting will be sent to members by email before the meeting.
After the keynote presentation there will be a break with coffee/tea, goodies and socializing, followed by the business part of the meeting. This consists mainly of brief reports from our interest groups and projects, an opportunity for guests to learn more about what we do.
At the end of another impactful year of restoration work at the Courtenay Airpark, long-time project leader Frank Hovenden has provided his illustrated annual report which you can read and download here (PDF, 5.1 MB).
As usual, the dedicated project volunteers diligently attacked invasive species and planted appropriate native species, all while attending to previous plantings. Invasive rabbits continue to be an issue in the park, which explains the fencing you may see there protecting the plantings.
Frank installing one of the new signs.
An extra task this year was replacing the aging signs that identify and describe the native species that are gradually increasing in the park. The new signs include the new logos of both Comox Valley Nature and the City of Courtenay. CVN has worked closely with City staff over the years to accomplish the goals of this project.
You can also find this report and previous ones on this page.
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
