By Lynda Stevens | 10 July 2022 This spring a medical issue has kept me mostly at home and able to walk only short distances with a walker. That meant that I was unable to get out walking on my favourite trails and exploring with my camera. However, in late May I discovered that one of my …
Bumblebee Therapy (or How Bee Watching Kept Me Sane) Read More »
By Staffan Lindgren | 5 June 2022 Photo Neil McDaniel, https://blueocean.net/glass-sponge-reefs-living-fossils-found-off-canadian-coast/ We have heard a fair bit about sponges lately. I presented a “Nature Nugget” on the glass sponge reefs of the Salish Sea and Hecate Strait at the March public meeting, and Tom Hlavac mentioned the glass sponge reefs in his informative presentation …
Sponges – one of the earliest forms of multicellular life. Read More »
In her current role as a provincial government research scientist with the Coast Area Research Section of the BC Ministry of FLNRORD, Melissa leads and participates in collaborative applied field research into the biology and ecology of a range of coastal vertebrate and invertebrate wildlife species and communities: from bugs to bears. She investigates the …
Please join us for a presentation from biologist Tania Tripp of Madrone Environmental Services Ltd. entitled: Western Screech-Owl – Monitoring and Habitat Enhancement Efforts in Coastal B.C. Tania has conducted research on the Western Screech-Owl for 20+ years. She completed her M.Sc. thesis on the bioacoustics of this species of owl in 2003 and continues to study their …
By Lynda Stevens | 27 July 2021 As naturalists we love to spend time outdoors exploring our parks and trails. An outing is made even more special when we have a wildlife encounter and can take photographs to record the event. Many people take up wildlife photography to remember these encounters while others use photography …
7 PM via Zoom Tim will describe the ongoing efforts to keep the highly destructive gypsy moth (both European and Asian) from establishing in B.C. He will discuss the biology, the known ecological and economic impacts, the integrated pest management options that have evolved since 1979 when GM was first treated in Kitsilano, and touch …
Keeping BC Gypsy Moth Free with Tim Ebata and Jennifer Heron – May 20, 2021 Read More »
Staffan Lindgren | 10 May 2021 As an entomologist I find all arthropods fascinating. There is one group, however, that I can’t quite come to terms with – the ticks. Recently, reports on Facebook have started to trickle in showing that ticks are active and waiting for some warm body to grab onto. Ticks are …
***A copy of the presentation PDF is available here: Spring Flora Around Nanaimo Nature Nanaimo’s next regular meeting will be held on Thursday, April 15th at 7 PM via Zoom. Our presentation will be: “Spring flora around Nanaimo with Caroline Josefsson” An overview of the most abundant and charismatic spring flora that we encounter around town. At …
Spring flora around Nanaimo with Caroline Josefsson – April 15, 2021 Read More »
Inter-relationships of Moose Population Health and Industrial Forestry: Is anybody listening? With Dr. Roy Rea Moose populations in North Central British Columbia have declined 50-70% over the last 20 years, during the same period that salvage logging for pine and spruce beetle have been happening at unprecedented rates. Moose biologists and managers, members of the public, and government officials are …
Nature Nanaimo meeting – Feb 18th, 2021 VIU Bird Banding Project: Engaging Students in Research The Vancouver Island University (VIU) Bird Banding Project has conducted bird monitoring and banding in the Nanaimo area since 2013. This project has been completely operated by over 180 dedicated VIU students and community volunteers who have dedicated over 14,000 volunteer hours to the project. So far, about 15,000 birds of more than …
VIU Bird Banding Project with Eric Demers – February 18, 2021 Read More »
Staffan Lindgren (based on information from Bruce Cousens and Bill Merilees) | February 9, 2021 For a PDF version of this document, click here. At our January Board meeting of Nature Nanaimo, the issue of Purple Martin nest box management at Buttertubs Marsh was discussed. I contacted Bruce Cousens and Bill Merilees for information, and …
Nature Nanaimo’s next regular meeting will be held on Thursday, January 21st at 7 PM via zoom. Our presentation will be “Inspired by Nature” with Doug Fraser.We are surrounded by an amazing diversity of living things. The adaptations of organisms can be both stunning, and puzzling. In this presentation, Doug will share numerous examples of …
Inspired by Nature with Doug Fraser – January 21, 2021 Read More »
William James (Bill) Merilees, a prominent British Columbian naturalist, educator, activist, conservationist and author. Bill received his Bachelor’s Degree from UBC in 1964 majoring in Zoology and Botany He then spent some time traveling with friends and working in many interesting places. In Australia he was offered a position as Biologist at Macquarie Island, 2100 …
Nature Nanaimo Life Member: William James (Bill) Merilees Read More »
The past year has been an eventful one for Nature Nanaimo and, by any measure, an unusual one. We began last fall with many wonderful routine monthly meetings and outings covering such topics as Birds of Vancouver Island, Killer whales and the Sharks of BC. We ended the calendar year with a wonderful holiday gathering and social. …
Staffan Lindgren | October 16, 2020 Note: This is a revised, updated and expanded blog, first published on my personal website https://wordpress.com/view/cinnabarreflections.wordpress.com A few years ago I attended a talk by Dr. Sarah Dudas at Vancouver Island University (VIU). She was discussing the impact of shellfish farming on biodiversity, particularly in her study area in Baynes Sound. In …
Staffan Lindgren | August 22, 2020 . Vision is something that most of us value immensely. Humans are largely visual beings. Our eye sight is a primary sense organ by which we experience the world. Our other senses (smell, taste, touch and hearing) tend to be less refined, although much of that is because of …
Staffan Lindgren | August 4, 2020 Parasitism is without a doubt the most successful of all life strategies. Parasites account for at least half of the earth’s biodiversity, and may have been the evolutionary springboard for higher life (Araujo et al. 2003). A parasite can be considered one of several similar, and often overlapping types …
June 8, 2020 Did you know that there are species on Vancouver Island that do not occur anywhere else in the world?! Fascinating report below on Canada’s endemic species. Canada has thousands of wildlife species of conservation concern. Some are rare provincially, while others are at risk in the entire country or imperiled globally. Most …
Some fabulous YouTube tutorials to help learn local bird songs from Trudy!They are wonderfully informative and fun 🙂 Alison Watt and I did these Zoom meetings on spring song. These videos are in 4 parts. Obviously we aren’t movie stars or pros but some folks may enjoy if they are interested in birds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=349WHl6NRowhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1HzEvntP7ohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M60VC3OdU5ohttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8ajqv1vwJM
(This blog was first published on my site Cinnabar Reflections) Here is my second installment of books that I have enjoyed reading. Nature’s Argonaut: Daniel Solander 1733-1782 by Edward Duyker. Melbourne: Miegunyah Press. 1998. 400 pages. Daniel Solander was the de facto naturalist on Cook’s first voyage, although Joseph Banks, who financed the trip, tends to get the …
Recommended Reads – Rainy Days/Covid-19 Physical Distancing Activity, Part II Read More »
Staffan Lindgren (This blog was first published on my site Cinnabar Reflections) As someone with “underlying health issues” and a compromised immune system, I feel that the Covid-19 pandemic has really thrown a spanner in the works of my spring activity-plan. I am sure that many naturalists are in a similar situation. Outdoor activity is …
Recommended Reads – For Rainy Days/Covid-19 Physical Distancing Activity, Part I Read More »
Covid-19 UPDATE: On March 18th, the Province of BC declared a state of emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic and is calling on everyone to adhere to strict social distancing and avoid any public interactions that are not essential. The situation is extremely serious, changing rapidly and will most certainly last for many weeks if not …
February 26, 2020 On Friday February 21, Nature Nanaimo President Doug Fraser and Past President Staffan Lindgren met with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog. The purpose of the meeting was to introduce our society to the Mayor, and to explore roles we can play to promote and facilitate mutual interests in the city. We had a good, …
Nature Nanaimo meeting with Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog Read More »
February 20th @ 7 PM – Beban Social Centre, Room 2: Over the past decade or two, it has become clear that insect pollinator populations are declining along with other insects. Large scale agriculture focusing on monoculture crops is to blame in part, but we can all share the responsibility as our demands for flawless …
Pollinators in Your Garden: Not Just Bees! with Staffan Lindgren – Feb. 20, 2020 Read More »
February 6th, 2020 Bespoke Band of Beekeepers Beat Back the Bee-eating Beasties by Besieging their Burrowing Bunker Conrad Bérubé wrote up a brief description of how establishment of Asian Giant Hornets in Nanaimo was averted. This was published in the Newsletter Boreus published by the Entomological Society of British Columbia. Conrad has kindly given us …
On Saturday morning a small group of Nature Nanaimo members ventured out after the deluge to explore lovely Moorecroft Regional Park. We were rewarded not only with sunshine, but a wonderful diversity of waterfowl and a pleasant walk through the lush forest. Thanks to Lance for sharing his great photos!
Whales in Our Waters! Join Aaron Purdy to learn all about the whales in our waters! Aaron will discuss BC’s common cetaceans (whales, dolphins, and porpoises), the threats they face, and how Ocean Wise helps to mitigate these threats through research and conservation efforts. He will also describe how you can become a citizen scientist by acting as an observer for the BC Cetacean Sightings Network while out on …
Whales in Our Waters with Aaron Purdy – January 16, 2020 Read More »
December 20, 2019 Nature Nanaimo’s Board of Directors, Michael Stebbings, Carole Lee and Staffan Lindgren, met with Mr. Paul Manly, MP for Nanaimo-Ladysmith, on December 18 to introduce our organization and to discuss issues of mutual concern. We discussed a number of issues, e.g., the climate crisis, habitat protection, plastics pollution and the need for …
Meeting with Paul Manly, MP for Nanaimo-Ladysmith Read More »
By Michael Stebbings Planning for the Buttertubs Marsh Conservation Area began in earnest in 2004 with the development of a Management Plan for the East Marsh. With the acquisition of the West Marsh in 2012 by Ducks Unlimited and the City there was a need to revise and update the original plan. The current plan …
November 14th @ 7 PM – Beban Social Centre, Room 2: Sharks of British Columbia Sharks! The very word conjures up images of dangerous, large, ferocious creatures with voracious appetites. For the vast majority of sharks this image couldn’t be farther from the truth—most sharks are cautious and placid, and many live in waters that …
Sharks of British Columbia with Jackie King – Nov. 14, 2019 Read More »
Another year has gone by, and again Nature Nanaimo members can look back on a very successful year of activities and meetings. Meetings have featured talks on topics ranging from astronomy, fungi and eel grass to tailed frogs, marmots and climate change. We have enjoyed excursions on a similarly wide range of topics, e.g., birds, animal rescue, …
by Lynda Stevens Many of you know me as an avid birder and bird photographer. This summer the birding became very quiet in mid-July and I knew that to satisfy my passion for photography I would need to find some other willing subjects. It didn’t take me long to realise that insects would be my perfect …
Just a reminder that our next fabulous meeting is just a week away – Thursday October 17th.Nature Nanaimo presents: Killer Whales of the Coast This interactive presentation, by Maureen Vo, provides an in-depth look at the history and rich culture, language, and ecotypes of the iconic killer whales of the Pacific Northwest. In addition, the current challenges and conservation efforts will …
Killer Whales of the Coast with Maureen Vo – October 17, 2019 Read More »
Staffan Lindgren On Saturday September 28 ten Nature Nanaimo members went to East Sooke Regional Park to participate in the annual spectacle of watching the raptor migration. Hawks, falcons, and vultures gather at the southernmost part of Vancouver Island, where they wait for favourable conditions to brave the Juan de Fuca Strait on their migration …
Sept. 23, 2019 The Friends of Buttertubs, once part of the now defunct Nanoose Naturalists Society, have found a new home. The Board of Nature Nanaimo has welcomed this active group with open arms. After summer-long discussions the two parties have worked out how this amalgamation can be a win-win situation for both. They look …
Our first meeting of the fall season will feature “Birds of Vancouver Island” – a photographic presentation by Mike Yip. Mike will share his passion for birds and amazing photographs while providing an overview of our local birds – how many there are and where they come from. He will also include some rare and …
Birds of Vancouver Island with Mike Yip – Sept. 19, 2019 Read More »
Staffan Lindgren Three specimens of the Asian Giant Hornet, Vespa mandarinia, have been found in Nanaimo this year. The first two specimens were found by a bee keeper, whereas the third was reported to Nature Nanaimo. I collected the specimen and pinned it so that it could be properly identified. There are a number of Asian hornet …
Staffan Lindgren On Friday August 30, 6 of us went to Paradise Meadows at Mount Washington. The weather was great for hiking, but low clouds obscured the views of the mountain peaks. We saw many interesting things, although it was a bit late for flowering plants. On the way to to Helen Mackenzie Lake, we were …
An impromptu Nature Nanaimo outing to Paradise Meadows Read More »
The summer is drawing to a close, although you would be hard pressed to realize that given the near record temperatures the last few days. We have had another mild summer, but thankfully have been spared from smoke this year. That does not mean that the environment is not under severe stress. Salal and western …
President’s Perch: Looking ahead to another successful year. Read More »