Nancy St. Hilaire recently related this experience to the Birding Group.
On April 12 I was doing my usual route near and through the Millard Creek Nature Park. I check on the progress of two Pileated Woodpecker nest cavities. Captain Peckhard’s cavity is now big enough for him/her to be working on it from the inside.
On my way along the tracks I heard a Downy Woodpecker making a fuss and thought I might see an owl, but came upon a marten about 25 feet up and the Downy Woodpecker very unhappy about it.
(April 28 – Update on the Pileated Woodpecker nest cavity: The cavity is complete and there appears to be a pair taking turns on the nest. The second nest cavity was never finished.)
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This post is by Jocie Brooks, leader of the Botany Group, from an email to members of the group on April 27.
I was out walking along the Puntledge River recently (downstream from the Condensory Bridge on the Courtenay side), and I came across some large patches of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) at the bend in the river. The plants are over knee high and just coming into flower (white flowers). I recall seeing this terrible invasive a few years ago in Victoria. From the looks of things…it’s been at this location for at least a few years.
I have notified Jim [President] and Karen Cummins [Wetlands Restoration Director] about it. Karen is looking into what might be possible for removal. It is somewhat complicated as the ownership of the land overlaps with the City, CVRD and KFN.
I’m attaching some photos here. As well, download this information pamphlet from the City of Victoria which has everything you need to know about it. One thing I’d like to add, however, is that this plant is edible. Yes, you can make pesto with it, toss it into salads and soups etc. Being in the mustard family, it has a bit of a spicy “kick” but by all reports it is a favourable edible.
If any of you have seen garlic mustard anywhere else in the Comox Valley let me know…hopefully it is only at this one location!
This post is by Jocie Brooks, leader of the Botany Group, from an email to members of the group on April 20.
Joy recently sent in a photo of a gnome plant from the Maple Lake area near Cumberland. This unusual and exotic looking plant is one we should look out for, and is a great topic for this week’s feature! In addition to Joy’s photo I’m including a photo of gnomes that I saw with Mandy Vaughan a few years ago on a hike up Crest Mountain (Strathcona Park) in July.
Gnome Plant (Hemitomes congestum)
General Notes:
Gnome plant has a cone-like head of shrimp-pink or whitish flowers that grow close to the ground. It looks strangely alien as it erupts from the forest duff, sometimes looking like a blackened cauliflower when it first emerges. Clark describes it as a “gnome-like dweller of the shaded woods.”
Taxonomic Details:
In the Heather Family, or Ericaceae, gnome plant is monotypic, the only member of its genus in the world. The genus name Hemitomes comes from the Greek words “hemi,” half, and “tomes,” sterile or eunuch, in reference to the fact that often half of the anther (male) cells are sterile. The species name congestum refers to the tightly packed head of flowers.
What the heck is a mycoheterotroph?
Like Indian pipe, pine sap, pinedrops, candy stick and coralroot orchids, gnome plant lacks chlorophyll, and can therefore not carry out photosynthesis.
It was originally thought that such plants fed off dead and decomposing plant matter (saprophytes). Further study revealed that they get nutrients directly from fungi. “Mycoheterotroph” means “fungus-feeding” referring to the fact that these plants depend on fungi. These fungi in turn get their food from mycorrhizal connections with tree roots.
Gnome plant has a special association with the blood fungus, Hydnellum peckii. Blood fungus has mycorrhizal associations with conifers.
Where to find it/range:
Gnome plant is typically found in coniferous forests at mid-elevation and blooms in the late spring and summer. It is limited to the Pacific Northwest and is not found outside of North America. In BC, there is a disjunct population near Terrace.
References: Plants of Coastal BC (Pojar & MacKinnon), Flowers of the Pacific Northwest (Lewis Clark), Botany Photo of the Day (UBC, Daniel Mosquin), Ericaceae of the PNW Park V (Wilbur Bluhm).
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This post is by Jocie Brooks, leader of the Botany Group, from an email to members of the group on April 15.
I recently came across a nice patch of coltsfoot at the entrance to the Nile Creek trail (inland highway), which inspired me put together a few words on this interesting plant.
Western Sweet Coltsfoot (Petasites frigidus var. palmatus)
In early spring, when I peer into muddy ditches (as the botanist tends to do) a patch of coltsfoot is always a nice surprise. This is one of the earliest blooms of the year from the Aster family.
General Notes: Thick stems (which emerge before the leaves) are topped with an attractive dome of white and pinkish blooms. The broad leaves fan out like the footprint of a colt and are woolly-white beneath. The genus name Petasites comes from the Greek word “petasos” a broad-brimmed hat, which refers to the broad basal leaf. According to Lewis and Clark, when coltsfoot goes to seed, “the radiating pappus recalls a very large, but flattened Dandelion puff.”
Taxonomy Details: The most common variety in our area is Petasites frigidus var. palmatus, which has deeply divided leaves (leaves with deep indentations between lobes). Look out for sweet coltsfoot Petasites frigidus var nivalis, which is common in the subalpine of our area. The leaves of this variety are not as deeply divided.
Medicinal Use: Alaska natives chewed the root or soaked it in hot water and drank the tea for TB, chest problems, sore throat and stomach ulcers (Pojar & MacKinnon).
Where to look for it: Muddy spots, wet seepage, river banks, lakeshores, roadside ditches.
Other Trivia: A relative of this plant is Japanese butterbur, Petasites japonicus, a common garden plant with large, kidney shaped leaves.
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Notice to CVN Members, Group Chairs, Walk Leaders, and Work Parties
The CVN Board encourages all members to follow the current provincial guidelines regarding physical distancing, hand washing, and avoiding non-essential trips to public places. A full list of BC guidelines is available via https://www2.gov.bc.ca/. Please follow all the recommendations from the BC public health officials to help protect our members, families, and the general public.
No CVN activities requiring your physical presence are permitted at this time , and all meetings and other events are cancelled, pending the lifting of pandemic restrictions. Individuals may still continue CVN work in the parks, but maintain your distances, and do not share tools or other items.
While outdoor activities are important to CVN and are still possible to individuals, please note the following items, and keep safe:
No group activities are planned or encouraged at this time.
Members who are sick or displaying any flu-like signs should self-isolate at home. Call Health Link BC at 811 if you have any concerns about your health.
A minimum physical distancing of 2 metres between participants is suggested.
Carpooling with non-family members is not recommended.
Work groups should distance themselves and not share tools.
Thank you for thinking of others. We are all in this together.
Jim Boulter, President, Comox Valley Nature
Posted inMiscellaneous, News|Comments Off on CVN COVID-19 response (April 19)
This post is by Randal Mindell, leader of the CVN Shoreline Group, from an email to members of the group on April 15.
Hope this finds you all well. We just passed through a great set of spring tides over the weekend. I know some of you got out there to enjoy them. This email will recount some of the interesting things out at this time of year as well as some recent literature that might be of interest. Remember you can always stop by (and contribute to) the group’s iNaturalist page to check on more than 1000 local observations and almost 270 shoreline species.
Intertidal Spring
Group members Roxanne and Mary-Lynn were keeping an eye on all sorts of echinoderms in the Willow Point area. In addition to watching as giant leather stars loitered and purple sea stars consumed limpets, they caught sight of the giant pink sea star, Pisaster brevispinus. These can grow up to 65 cm in diameter. I’m pretty sure the one at Willow Point on Friday was close to that boundary. Apparently it bulks up on sand dollars, geoducks and giant acorn barnacles. In the picture below, note the boots and purple sea stars for scale:
Giant pink sea star (Pisaster brevispinus)
Mystery Eggs and Shorebirds
If you look around sand bars at this time of year, you might catch these 1-2 cm gelatinous sacs of spirally arranged eggs. For years these had baffled me. I assumed they belonged to a type of polychaete worm because I had seen something similar around Boundary Bay that was found in association with the Pacific Lugworm. However, a scientist from California who specialized in marine gastropods pointed out that these in fact belong to the Albatross aglaja, Melanochlamys diomedia. The organism that lays them is a little black peanut-shaped marine slug. He is particularly interested in any observations people might have about birds that might feed on these egg sacs. If you are at Kye Bay, Seal Bay, Williams Beach or elsewhere and you see these and any birds feeding on them, you should record your observation.
Recent Publications
Like some other group members, I love the field guide called Between Pacific Tides. The original edition was written by Ed Ricketts and coauthors. Rickettswas the inspiration for the “Doc” character in Steinbeck’s Cannery Row. Earlier editions of Between Pacific Tides have a forward by Steinbeck which draws on shared experiences of the two from past marine biology expeditions (see Log from the Sea of Cortez). Anyways, Ricketts travelled to Comox and other locales in the 1930s. These natural history expeditions were recently reviewed in the Archive of Natural History journal. You can find an accessible preprint here.
Plainfin Midshipman
If you head out to cobbly, bouldery shores at this time of year, you might hear the mysterious sounds of the plainfin midshipman. This is an intertidal fish which can survive quite a long time without air. Like the penguin, this species finds males often responsible for the care of developing eggs. This recent paper (abstract only) shows how males in the species deal with the respiratory stresses of the intertidal.
History and Significance of Mariculture on the West Coast
We hear often about the Garry Oak ecosystems as an example of the historical landscape management for indigenous food systems. Along the shorelines of British Columbia is a record for food production systems stretching back just short of 12,000 years. This paper uses an example from Quadra Island to show changes in productivity and size of the giant butter clam over this large expanse of time. The authors point out that this method of mariculture was sustained over millenia at high levels of productivity and posit it as an example of the technology required for sustainable food systems going forward.
CVN members may be interested in the following information that we received from Kelly Fretwell of the BC Parks Foundation. The text has been lightly edited for use on the website.
If you’re receiving this email I’ve likely contacted you previously about getting your outdoors/naturalist group involved with the BC Parks iNaturalist Project, a citizen science initiative of BC Parks, the BC Parks Foundation, the University of Victoria, and Simon Fraser University to collect nature observations using the free app and website iNaturalist. If this is new to you, you can find more information on the project at bcparksfoundation.ca/inaturalist.
I’m writing with a couple of project updates, a few resources to get started with iNaturalist and the BC Parks Project, and tips for staying involved and busy with iNaturalist and the BC Parks project during this current time of social/physical distancing. I’m also introducing Emma Griggs, who is taking over from me for the BC Parks Foundation’s citizen science projects as I move into a new science communications role with the Hakai Institute. Emma will be the BCPF contact for citizen science engagement going forward.
The BC Parks iNaturalist Project: 2020
We had big plans to expand the project this year and connect in-person with as many community groups across the province as we could, but those plans have of course been impacted by the pandemic in a number of ways, not least of which is the necessary closures of BC Parks trails and facilities.
In these difficult times I’m sure we would all like to lean on our shared love for the outdoors and nature, however doing so while maintaining the physical distancing needed to flatten the curve may not be possible, especially in the more densely populated areas of the province. With that in mind, here are some ideas to remain connected with nature and the BC Parks iNaturalist Project during the pandemic by becoming an “Armchair Naturalist”:
Check out the BC Parks iNaturalist Project page to browse all the observations that have been made so far in the different parks. Send us any crazy cool ones you come across!
Browse through the BC Parks observations and help identify observations of your favourite species groups.
Do you have old nature photos languishing on your hard drive, unseen by anyone but you? Upload those to iNaturalist!
Download the BC Parks Foundation’s themed PARKS bingo cards and scour your photo library for matching observations.
If you’re lucky enough to have a backyard or live in a more remote place where it’s easy and safe to get out into nature while maintaining the necessary 2m/6ft distance from others, go test out your new iNaturalist skills to be ready for when parks re-open.
If you missed the successful presentation by our March speaker via webinar, or you would like to view parts of it again, the recording of the presentation is now available here:
After our first attempt to host a monthly talk as a webinar had technical problems and had to be abandoned, our speaker Aaron Purdy has kindly agreed to a new date. He will now present his talk, “The Whales in Our Waters: Conservation Through Citizen Science” on Sunday March 29, 2020 at 7:00 pm.
You need to register for the webinar using the following link:
A personalized email “ticket” will be sent to you with a link to the actual webinar and instructions for ensuring (in advance) that your computer is set up appropriately.
For more information about this talk and the speaker, see the original post.
Posted inGuest Speakers|Comments Off on “The Whales in Our Waters” Talk Rescheduled
CVN members may be interested in this free two-day workshop to be held in June by the BC Wildlife Federation. Here is their description:
“Wetlands can filter water, mitigate flooding, and provide critical habitat to hundreds of species. Unfortunately, wetlands are disappearing at an alarming rate and need our protection.”
“Come join us to learn about the different types of wetlands around Cumberland and how to map and protect them using technology such as GPS, Google Earth, and BC’s Community Mapping Network. No previous experience is necessary.”
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 Environment 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! ... See MoreSee Less
The New Forest Act Roadshow is a series of public presentations across British Columbia explaining what the New Forest Act is, why BC’s current forestry system is failing, and what a workable legislative solution looks like.That solution is the New Forest Act – a proposed policy framework developed over several years through research, public input, and lived experience in communities directly affected by forestry decisions.BC’s forestry challenges are not isolated incidents—they are the result of a system that no longer reflects the realities on the land.Join Jennifer Houghton and Dave Weaver on Monday June 15th at the Stan Hagen Theatre in Courtenay fpr a presentation that offers a clear, developed alternative.Jennifer Houghton is lead developer of the New Forest Act, a legislative proposal to replace British Columbia’s current forestry system. She works directly on forestry policy analysis, public education, and government engagement to advance structural reform in how BC’s forests are managed.Dave Weaver has 37 years of experience in British Columbia’s forestry sector, working across industry, consulting, and government. His career includes field forestry with MacMillan Bloedel, forest consulting and applied ecology instruction in the northern interior, and 12 years with the BC Ministry of Forests developing silviculture policy and training in alternatives to clearcutting.He now focuses on watershed-level impacts of forestry through his work with the Beaufort Watershed Stewards, bringing decades of on-the-ground and policy experience to the discussion of forestry reform in BC.This event is for:Residents concerned about forestry in their regionPeople working in or affected by the forest sectorThose interested in practical, policy-level solutionsAnyone who wants a clear explanation of what’s happening—and what can be doneTo view the schedule for other presentations and for full details on the legislative framework visit boundaryforest.org/the-new-forest-act-proposal/Sentinel Educational Foundation and the Watershed Sentinel magazine are the sponsors of the Vancouver Island leg of the 2026 New Forest Act Roadshow. Their support is helping bring public education about forest policy reform to communities across Vancouver Island.This is a free public event and donations are welcome ... See MoreSee Less
The New Forest Act Roadshow is a series of public presentations across British Columbia explaining what the New Forest Act is, why BC’s current forestry system is failing, and what a workable legislative solution looks like. Dave Weaver and Jennifer Houghton will be speaking at Stan Hagen Theatre on June 15th. for more information visit boundaryforest.org/courtenay🚨 ANNOUNCEMENT: The New Forest Act Roadshow - June 2–22, 2026This will be a series of in-person presentations across British Columbia focused on the New Forest Act - a legislative proposal to replace the current forestry framework.Tour stops include:Golden • Nelson • Trail • 100 Mile HouseCampbell River • Quadra Island • CourtenayPort Alberni • Honeymoon Bay • Powell River • Victoria Full details and event pages: boundaryforest.org/new-forest-act-roadshow-2026-info/About the New Forest ActThe New Forest Act is a proposed legislative framework that restructures forest management around ecological limits and long-term economic stability.It is built on a Protect–Restore–Harvest (PRH) model:• Protect primary forests and critical watershed areas• Restore degraded landscapes• Harvest only on previously disturbed land using selection-based systems, within ecological thresholdsThe framework shifts management from volume-based targets to outcomes-based management, with a focus on watershed function, ecosystem integrity, and stable regional economies.FormatEach event will be a presentation followed by a focused Q&A. Presenter Jennifer Houghton, New Forest Act Campaign Director, draws on years of research, public education, and direct engagement with communities and decision-makers across BC.Co-presenterDave Weaver (retired forestry professional) will co-present in Campbell River, and likely in Courtenay and Port Alberni as well.If you’ve been watching this issue for years...If you’ve felt like nothing ever actually changes...Come to a presentation.See it for yourself.Bring someone with you. June 2–22. Across British Columbia. Let’s go. ... 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.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
