Editor’s note: we are delighted to welcome Herbie Rochet as our guest writer for this post. Herbie and Bernard Rochet are Mayne Island’s stewards of the BC Purple Martin Stewardship and Recovery Project. Among the beautiful sights and sounds of summer on Mayne Island are the aerobatics and voices of the Read more…
2018 Beach Cleanup Another very successful beach cleanup was completed on April 22nd 2018 thanks to the hard work of 123 community volunteers. Nine different teams were active that day under the direction of their Beach Captains. As usual, this event was a success thanks to a great collaborative partnership Read more…
Scrambling and climbing along the sandstone shoreline, I follow my older brother as he races across the cove. I love the feel of gritty rock on my bare feet; a slimy length of bull kelp in my hand. As I avoid the slippery seaweed and sharp barnacles lower on the Read more…
Astronomical phenomena abound! As I write this, Mayne Island is enjoying a partial solar eclipse (around 90%), with a full eclipse occurring further south in the USA. I enjoyed a short peek, thanks to a stranger on the dock who offered me a view through her special eclipse sunglasses. Without Read more…
What the Float! A large section of a commercial dock washed up on Piggott Bay beach in the Spring of 2017. The float was composed of huge blocks of styrofoam encased in thick concrete laced with rebar. This would be a tough nut to crack! The stryofoam was starting to Read more…
Working with the Recycling Society The 2017 Mayne Island annual beach cleanup, sponsored by the Recycling Society and the Conservancy, returned to our beaches and coves on Sunday April 30th, the state of tide determining the 1 pm start. This popular event draws about 100 volunteers each year. They donate Read more…
A short video talking about the work done on Mayne Island and the importance of eelgrass to our local ecosystems,
About Kelp Beds Bull Kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) is an annual marine seaweed that is common throughout the Gulf Islands. Its range extends from Alaska to California, and it provides important habitat for many kinds of marine life. The plant consists of a long stipe (up to 36 m long), attached Read more…
Herring Spawning in Active Pass Active Pass up until the late 1970’s was a high density spawning area for Pacific Herring. Herring are a very important food fish for many species of fish (significantly salmon) and marine birds. Recently herring spawn occurrences have again appeared in the waters around Mayne Read more…
Project Outline Mayne Island Conservancy is joint caretaker of the Active Pass Important Bird Area, an international designation for areas that support internationally and nationally significant populations or species of birds at some part of their life cycle. Active Pass is habitat for three bird species that fall under the Read more…