Mayne Wildlife
Pinnipeds and Pups
If you can find a rocky place beside the sea, you might spy one of our fin-footed neighbours soaking up the sun. Known collectively as pinnipeds, seals and sea lions are important players in maintaining a diverse and healthy west coast. Local Pinnipeds Globally, there are 33 species of pinnipeds, Read more…
Mayne Wildlife
The Road to Rockfish Recovery
Do you ever stand on the shore or peer off the side of a boat and wonder what’s beneath the waves? If you’re close to an underwater rocky shelf, you could be looking down on a fish born decades before Elvis Presley’s birth. Rockfish are slow growing and long lived, Read more…
Our Shorelines
European Green Crab
As the weather continues to warm, hopefully you will find yourself on our local beaches more and more often. This year, while you are beach combing, take some time to observe the crabs around you. The European Green Crab (Carcinus maenas) is one of the most invasive species in the Read more…
Mayne Wildlife
Quiet Seas: How a global pandemic provided an opportunity to study whale behaviour
This year many of us have lived quieter lives, keeping each other safe by distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. With restrictions in travel across the globe, a phenomenon occurred during the pandemic lockdowns that is unlikely to happen again anytime soon; a quieter ocean. Over the last few decades, it Read more…
Kelp Bed Monitoring
Bull Kelp Monitoring Program Expands
Something exciting is happening in the world of bull kelp monitoring around the Southern Gulf Islands! Our long-term monitoring program, which previously focused on seven sites off the shores of Mayne Island, has exploded to include 19 sites around the islands of Galiano, Mayne, North Pender, South Pender, and Saturna. Read more…
Beach Cleanup
Tread Lightly – Derelict Docks
In this month’s Tread Lightly article we’re taking a closer look at the issue of derelict docks. This has been a growing problem in the last few years, and we expect more docks will wash up on our shores in the future. Climatologists are predicting an increase in the frequency Read more…
Eelgrass Monitoring
A Day in the Life of An Eelgrass Survey Team
Our day starts off on the dock at Miner’s Bay. As I walk along the pier to start loading the boat, I glance down into the bay to see how clear the water is. The water clarity (turbidity) has a big impact on how much fun my day will be. I can see some perch lazily swimming below the dock, the Read more…
Kelp Bed Monitoring
Bull Kelp 2019
Our annual bull kelp surveys were a huge success this year thanks to community donations, funding from the Federal Habitat Stewardship Program, and a little luck with the weather. Our bull kelp surveys can only be completed during the lowest tides each August, and this year we had perfect low Read more…
Eelgrass Monitoring
Eelgrass Meadows: Out of Sight and Out of Mind
Have you ever found yourself shoving dirty clothes into a closet as your dinner guests walk up the driveway? I have! Out of sight, out of mind, right? It’s a great strategy for early dinner guests, but unfortunately not so great when it comes to natural resource management. While they’re Read more…
Mayne Wildlife
Mayne’s Marine Mammals
Mayne Island Conservancy is excited to be part of a new conservation initiative, in partnership with our neighbouring island conservancies, that focuses on the future of the Strait of Georgia’s whales, dolphins, and porpoises (collectively called cetaceans), and the health of their habitats. In The Beginning You might remember learning Read more…
