The Great Bear Rainforest and Beyond
Along the rugged coast of British Columbia lies one of the planet's rarest ecosystems: the temperate rainforest. This is a world saturated with life, nourished by abundant rainfall and the rich nutrients delivered from the ocean. Encompassing renowned areas like the Great Bear Rainforest and Clayoquot Sound, this ecosystem is characterized by colossal, ancient trees—Western redcedar, Sitka spruce, and Douglas fir—that can live for over a thousand years, forming a complex, multi-layered canopy that drips with mosses and ferns.
The boundary between land and sea is blurred here. Fjords carve deep into the coastline, and countless rivers and streams form a circulatory system that connects the forest to the Pacific. This connection is most powerfully embodied by the annual salmon runs, a foundational event that transfers immense quantities of marine nutrients deep into the forest, feeding everything from bears to the trees themselves. Our work here is to document this intricate web of life, support the vital conservation work of Coastal First Nations, and highlight the threats posed by old-growth logging and climate change.
Where Forest, River, and Ocean Meet
The biodiversity of the Pacific rainforest is staggering. It is home to healthy populations of grizzly bears, black bears, and the iconic Spirit Bear (Kermode bear), a rare white-coated subspecies of the black bear held sacred by local First Nations. Coastal wolves roam the shorelines, uniquely adapted to a diet that includes salmon and other marine life. The rivers teem with five species of Pacific salmon and steelhead, whose epic journeys are the lifeblood of the ecosystem. In the ocean, humpback whales, orcas, and sea otters thrive. The forest floor, a deep duff of decomposing organic matter, supports a universe of fungi, insects, and amphibians, including the tailed frog, a living relic from the time of the dinosaurs.
We use a combination of acoustic monitoring to track whale songs and bat calls, eDNA analysis in streams to detect the presence of rare fish and amphibians, and collaborative camera trapping with Guardian Watchmen programs. This multi-faceted approach allows us to document the health of the entire ecosystem, from the smallest organisms to the largest megafauna.
Pacific Salmon (Oncorhynchus)
A keystone species complex. Their decaying bodies after spawning deliver essential nitrogen and phosphorus to the forest floor, with studies showing this marine-derived nitrogen can be found in the growth rings of ancient trees hundreds of metres from any stream.
Spirit Bear (Ursus americanus kermodei)
Not an albino, but a black bear with a recessive gene causing its white fur. Found almost exclusively within the Great Bear Rainforest. Documenting a Spirit Bear is a rare and profound experience, underscoring the genetic uniqueness of this region.
A Legacy of Stewardship Reclaimed
The temperate rainforests of BC are the unceded ancestral territories of numerous Coastal First Nations, who have managed and lived in balance with these ecosystems for over 10,000 years. Their cultures, languages, and spiritualities are inextricably woven into the fabric of the forest and the sea. After decades of industrial logging that devastated many of their homelands, First Nations are reasserting their authority and leadership in conservation.
A cornerstone of this movement is the Guardian Watchmen program. These programs employ community members to monitor their territories, collect ecological data, and ensure activities are conducted according to traditional laws and modern regulations. We are proud to partner with these programs, providing technical support, data management tools, and resources. This collaborative model ensures that conservation is grounded in local values and led by those with the deepest connection to the land, representing a powerful and effective path forward for protecting BC's natural and cultural heritage.