The Whimbrel: Issue 3.1

A New Year in Clayoquot Sound brings the promise of longer daylight hours and a longing for sunny spring days. While winter storms come and go, the staff at the Tofino Botanical Gardens and the Clayoquot Field Station welcome educational groups in the dorm, invite adventurous winter visitors to explore the native plants in the garden and we delight in the occasional glimmer of the low Solstice light reflecting on the mudflats.

As you will read here, the past six months has been an exciting time for the Foundation. We've been focusing on three aspects of the organization, and all have made excellent progress:

As you'll read below, these three aspects of our work here haven't detracted from the many important research projects and field courses that have been based at the Field Station. From K to E (kindergarten through Elderhostel), each group here reminds us that it is easy to "inspire conservation of the world's temperate coastal ecosystems" -- the cedars, bears and sea otters do this work for us. Our job is simply providing a venue and knowledgeable staff who get folks outside and immerse them in The Experience.

Upcoming Events at Tofino Botanical Gardens & CFS

22nd Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival
March 15 - 23, 2008
Each spring the entire North American population of Pacific Grey Whales migrate along the west coast of Vancouver Island, B.C. An estimated 22,000 grey whales make the journey from the Mexican Baja Peninsula along the west coast to their summer feeding grounds in the Bering and Chukchi Seas near the Arctic.

Come celebrate this fantastic voyage with the 22nd Annual Pacific Rim Whale Festival!

Events are held all week in Tofino and Ucluelet, and there will be at least two events at the Tofino Botanical Gardens this year - check the Whale Festival website for schedules and more information.

Naturalist's Weekend and 11th Annual Shorebird Festival
April 25 - 27, 2008
Join birders, naturalists and biologists on a weekend adventure during the 11th annual Shorebird Festival as we explore one of the jewels of the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The Tofino Mudflats is an estuarine ecosystem just outside of Tofino, an internationally significant migratory stop-over for shorebirds and among the top ten most critical wetlands for wintering waterfowl on Canada's west coast.

This year you can experience the entire weekend with accommodation at the Field Station, guided programs and presentations for $195 per person.

Fireside Women's Leadership Series: West Coast Adventure Retreat*
April 4 - 6, 2008
The West Coast Adventure Retreat is designed to provide you the opportunity to (re) charge, (re) discover and (re) connect while taking in the essence of leadership building.

The Leadership Series incorporates interactive activities, open discussions, an inspiring Key Note Speaker, and a choice of one of the following adventures:

*Fireside Women's Leadership Series is an independent tour operator and not associated with the Clayoquot Field Station or Tofino Botanical Gardens.

Research News at the Clayoquot Field Station

DOCUMENTING THE VARIABILITY OF COASTAL OLD GROWTH FORESTS

A research team lead by Sari Saunders and Andy MacKinnon have been using the the Field Station as a home base to stage their field work. The team is setting up long term plots in Clayoquot Sound and other temperate coastal rainforests in order to monitor and better describe what they call "very wet, ‘hypermaritime’ Coastal Western Hemlock forests". Anyone who has spent a winter in Clayoquot Sound will certainly agree that the forests are indeed, "very wet" - a scientific term we can all relate too.

This summer, the Coast Regional research team of the BC Ministry of Forests, in cooperation with staff from Parks Canada and BC Parks, began a project to document the variability in old-growth forests across the coastal temperate rainforest biome. This is an exciting initiative that is bringing together researchers from southeast Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington and Oregon, in an effort to describe and understand these forests. The information gathered will assist in the planning and management of protected areas, management of the harvested land base, implementation of forest restoration projects, and prediction of changes to coastal forests in the advent of climate shifts.

Coastal temperate rainforests span broad gradients in temperature, moisture and continentality. Foundational studies on old growth systems have been conducted in southeast Alaska (e.g., work by Alaback and Juday), southern BC (e.g., Lertzman and others) and Washington (Spies and Franklin). However, many of these studies have been done independently and there has been no overall, formal assessment of old growth characteristics described through this body of work. Interestingly, research conducted in old growth stands in Washington indicates that current descriptions of old growth may not apply at all environmental extremes (work by Acker and others). So, it is clear we still have much to learn about what constitutes “old growth”. The characteristics that are important for old-growth forest function on the west coast of Vancouver Island may be decidedly different than those on the east coast of the Island or north on Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands). We hope to provide a comprehensive overview of coastal old growth and its dynamics over many decades.

Our work with collaborators from Parks Canada in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve will allow us to describe old growth in our very wet, ‘hypermaritime’ Coastal Western Hemlock forests. These are forests that grow in some of southern BC’s wettest, ocean-influenced regions. We are establishing a long term research plot that will be remeasured every 5 to 10 years to evaluate growth and mortality of trees, decay of logs, and arrangement of understory vegetation communities. We are mapping the location in space of every live tree, snag (standing, dead tree), and log within a 1 hectare area of the forests. Next time you are walking along the boardwalk of the Rainforest Trail in Pacific Rim, count how many trees or logs you pass in a 100 m stretch and then imagine recording the location, height, diameter, and species of each of these in a square 100 m x 100 m. So far we have recorded information for about half our study plot, and have already measured over 250 logs and a similar number of trees! The number and arrangement of the trees and logs gives us a measure of “structural complexity”, which is a defining feature of old growth, coastal temperate forests. This complex patterning develops through interactions of fine scale “gap dynamics”, in which a single or a few trees die creating a gap in the canopy and provide an opportunity for growth of plants on the forest floor, and broader-scale changes produced by disturbances originating outside the forest, such as wind storms. The resultant mosaic may be a unique property of old growth specific to a geographic location and climate conditions; we hope to understand how these patterns influence other ecological properties, such as the type and amount of understory plants, the presence of lichens and mosses, the rate of tree growth, presence of unique insect communities, or the amount of carbon old growth forests can sequester.

Collaborating with scientists in Pacific Rim National Park Reserve and other protected areas is a key to being able to monitor these research plots over time periods that are relevant to understanding old-growth forests. By establishing these plots in parks and protected areas (see, for example, Figure 1 for Vancouver Island), we can ensure that they remain relatively undisturbed into the future and are thus available for remeasurements decades hence! Already we have been able to document differences in the relative size and number of trees and logs between forests of Pacific Rim and the slightly less maritime-influenced forests of Carmanah Provincial Park. Over the coming years we hope to map plots within forests from Strathcona Provincial Park on central Vancouver Island, north to Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve on the Queen Charlottes, and continue to refine our understanding of these ecosystems. Our work this summer was that much more fun because of the terrific support from our friends and the facilities at the Clayoquot Field Station – Thanks!

Long term research projects like this provide invaluable information towards solving current and unforeseen questions about species conservation, climate trends, and habitat loss. As always, the Field Station and the Botanical Gardens Foundation is proud to help in any way we can. We're looking forward to the research team's next visit, and hoping them the best in their long-term study.

Stakeholder Perceptions of Ecosystem Services

Last July and August, Bessie Schwartz from Carleton University spent some time in Tofino working on a research project titled "Stakeholder Perceptions of Ecosystem Services: A Pilot Study in BC Canada". The intent of the project is to overcome some of the challenges faced when scientists attempt to put environmental services into financial terms. Bessie was very grateful to use the Field Station as her research headquarters, and invited folks for a presentation on the initial findings of the study and a discussion.

Stakeholder Perceptions of Ecosystem Services: A Pilot Study in BC Canada

DR. Kai Chan, University of British Columbia
DR. Heather Tallis, The Natural Capital Project
Bessie Schwarz, Carleton College

INTRODUCTION:
Putting the environmental services provided to humans into financial terms enables communities, governments, business and others to better understand the true value of the environment and the environmental, social and economic effects of their operations. Revealing the value of ecosystem services (including life support systems) and incorporating them into decision making holds the potential to bring conservation into the mainstream, and efforts all over the world are making the first steps towards doing so. Yet, in order for such an ecosystem service approach to work, it must take into account a too often overlooked component of conservation: local communities.

The technical nature of the ecosystem service concept and the intangibleness of many important ecosystem services present two major challenges to ecosystem service work. This study uses value-based narrative analysis with community members in and around Clayoquot Sound, BC to do the following: 1. shed light on the differences between the way scientific “experts” and “non-experts” perceive ecosystem services; 2. inform the valuation of many of the less tangible ecosystem services, like the cultural, the aesthetic and the educational; 3. increase mutual understanding among community members, philosophically and politically at odds, by focusing discussion on community values rather than on the issues that divide the community; 4. set the foundation for future ecosystem service assessments in the area; and 5. help create a transferable template for describing community-held ecosystem service perceptions in other sites.

METHODS and INITIAL FINDINGS:
Scientific research has increasingly recognized the importance of local knowledge in informing and implementing effective conservation. In total, this study included 21 participants directly involved in the major local industries—aquaculture, commercial fishing, and ecotourism—operating within the domain of the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust. Initial analysis of interviews revealed heightened recognition of cultural and provisioning ecosystem services, namely “income value”, “aesthetic value”, “habitat value”, educational value” and “traditional/cultural value”. Results indicate a few major areas of differences between participants’ understandings of ecosystem services and the scientific “experts’” understanding of these services. Significantly, while participants concentrated a great deal on intangible ecosystem services, most notably aesthetic value, educational value and traditional value, experts tend to focus on readily quantifiable ecosystem services like nutrient cycles, agricultural value and irrigation for instance.

WITH THANKS
I would just like to say how appreciative I am of [the Clayoquot Field Station's] support, letting me use the space at the field station and many other things, including that last minute scramble before the presentation!

We really appreciated Bessie's enthusiastic approach to her research around the Field Station, and we're very glad that we could help her carry out her research.

Thanks to the University of Washington

The field station's lab is growing! Dr. Rick Keil from University of Washington's Microbial Organic Geochemistry Lab has stocked the field station with many boxes of lab equipment and supplies. There are too many items to mention: slides, pipettes, petri dishes, droppers, a scale, and a utility oven. The lab supplies are to support Dr Keil's research and the research of others visiting the lab. This equipment adds tremendously to the Wet Lab's growing arsenal of scientific equipment.

With the anticipated arrival of five -to-ten new microscopes, and new bench work, the Wet Labs will soon be up and running as a 'state of the art' field location to support short-term research in a variety of terrestrial and marine research arenas.

Rick and his research team continue to make regular visits to the Field Station as part of their ongoing investigations of the waters and sediments around Clayoquot Sound. Thanks again, Rick.

Trilogy Garden Café Opens in Tofino Botanical Gardens

The Trilogy Garden Café opened in the Tofino Botanical Gardens this past November. The vision of the company is to deliver fresh, sustainable seafood directly onto the dinner plates of local residents and visitors alike.

Its owners hope the new Garden Café becomes a hub for local seafood and a lively venue to educate consumers about fisheries and marine ecosystems.

"For too long local residents on the West Coast have seen too much of their local resources harvested and shipped out of the community. With Trilogy's Dockside Store and Garden Café, we hope to reverse this trend," says Brenda Kuecks, Ecotrust Canada director in Tofino. "We want to see more money in the pockets of local fishermen and shellfish growers, and more sustainable seafood choices for the consumer."

The Garden Café is a partnership between Trilogy Fish Co. and George Patterson, Executive Director of the Tofino Botanical Gardens Foundation. Trilogy's shareholders include eight local residents, four outside investors, the Hesquiaht First Nation and Ecotrust Canada. Trilogy continues to run its Dockside Store and processing plant in Tofino, which is one of the last remaining working waterfront facilities in Clayoquot Sound.

The Garden Café is open from 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM, serving from an all-day breakfast menu and a lunch menu featuring sustainably harvested seafoods. Watch for great events throughout the year, like the ongoing Saturday night music series and weekly salmon BBQs in the summer.

Welcoming the Raincoast Education Society

RES Interpreter Lisa Fletcher leads a Mudflats
Program in the Gardens with students from
Tamagawa University, Tokyo.

On January 1st, the Raincoast Education Society (RES) moved into a new office in the first floor of the Clayoquot Field Station at the Tofino Botanical Gardens.

The RES is looking forward to the new opportunities their location change will bring them. “Moving away from the downtown Tofino core was a hard decision to make,” said Board member Barb Beasley, “But being located in the rainforest, next to the Tofino Mudflats, and within walking distance of exposed sandy beaches means we’ll have better access to a ‘living classroom.’ There’s nothing comparable to showing people first-hand an enormous western red cedar or a giant green sea anemone.”

The Raincoast Education Society, incorporated in 2000, is a charitable society whose mission is to help shape an environmentally sound future for the Clayoquot and Barkley Sound region through education and community stewardship. Based in Tofino, the society is active delivering school and summer youth programs about natural and cultural history in the Central Region Nuu-chah-nulth communities as well as in Tofino and Ucluelet. The RES also hosts interpretive walks and slideshows and delivers stewardship initiatives oriented toward youth and adults, such as the Tofino Mudflats Stewardship Program. Over the past several years, the RES has developed innovative new programs, including the Raincoast Host program to help train hospitality workers to answer visitors’ questions about the Pacific Rim, and the Nuu-chah-nulth Raincoast Explorers Program, a summer program for Nuu-chah-nulth youth delivered in Nuu-chah-nulth communities.

The new space is adjacent to the Tofino Botanical Gardens Foundation's office, which allows the two organizations to collaborate, share resources and cut costs. The RES and TBGF have already put their collective heads together to deliver programs to students staying at the Field Station. Both organizations are looking forward to the collaborative energy that this shared space will facilitate.

AWARDS & GRANTS

NSERC PROMOSCIENCE GRANT

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Resource Council of Canada has awarded the Tofino Botanical Gardens a three-year grant to provide core funding to our Environmental Education Program. The money, which comes from NSERC's PromoScience program, will support our existing youth programs and allow us to continue to build and expand science-based environmental programs for youth.

SHELL ENVIRONMENTAL FUND

High school students cram during their
two-night field trip at the Field Station

Our request to the Shell Environmental Fund was successful again this year. Shell has funded our Environmental Education Program by providing money to help 30 student groups to experience our hands-on interpretive programs. The students range in age from 10 to 25 years old.

Approximately 600 students will participate in these programs in 2008. About sixty students have already benefited from this grant. These student groups ranged from visiting Japanese horticulture students studying First Nations culture, to a high school art class from Victoria, BC that was looking at the science of botany as inspiration for their art.

CLAYOQUOT BIOSPHERE TRUST

This year the Clayoquot Biosphere Trust (CBT) will help fund two Sustainability Camps: the second annual camp with Tofino's Wickaninnish Elementary School and our first annual camp with Maaqtusiis Elementary School from the First Nation's community of Ahousaht.

The grade six students will spend the three days in each camp, learning about different aspects of sustainability in the Tofino Botanical Gardens’ natural settings – the gardens, the old growth temperate rainforest and the mudflats – as well as two local beaches. The kids and chaperones stay and learn in the Field Station, using a combination of hands-on activities, community service and classroom learning to explore and instill the basic principles of sustainability. The camps will help Clayoquot Sound's youth build a foundation of skills, knowledge, and personal qualities that will encourage them to become thoughtful and responsible citizens.

BC HEALTHY COMMUNITIES

Last fall, the BC Healthy Communities (BCHC) provided support for the Foundation's second Biosphere Conversation titled "Understanding Nature, Changing the World". The money came from the BCHC Seed Grant Program, which provides "funding opportunities that encourage and support efforts to improve community health and well-being, and to promote optimum human development, in communities throughout the province." We were fortunate to have BCHC facilitator Kerri Klein join in the Conversation -- a wonderful added bonus to the grant.

NEW MEMBERSHIPS

COALITION ON THE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDING OF SCIENCE (COPUS)

The Coalition on the Public Understanding of Science (COPUS) "is a grassroots effort linking universities, scientific societies, science centers and museums, government agencies, advocacy groups, media, educators, businesses, and industry in a peer network having as its goal a greater public understanding of the nature of science and its value to society."

One of the COPUS initiatives that the we are particularly excited about here at the Gardens is called ScienceCafés.org. Watch for this engaging and fun initiative, coming soon in the new Trilogy Garden Café. For more information about COPUS, see www.copusproject.org.

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES (AIBS)

The American Institute of Biological Sciences is a "scientific association dedicated to advancing biological research and education for the welfare of society." Originally founded as part of the National Academy of Sciences, AIBS now has a membership of 5000 biologists and over 200 societies - a combined individual membership of 250,000 people.

Our main interest in joining AIBS is for the networking opportunities that our membership will bring, but one of the ancillary perks of being an AIBS member is a subscription to the peer-reviewed journal BioScience, which is now available in our Natural History Library. For more information, see www.aibs.org.

BIOSPHERE CONVERSATION II

“Our Second Conversation
about
Understanding Nature, Changing the World”
Changing the argument between ecologists and economists, environmentalists and industry, protesters and workers into a productive conversation

Participating members were from Malaspina University-College, University of Victoria, Institute for Coastal Research, Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations, BC Healthy Communities, Forest Ethics, and community members from Tofino and Ucluelet.

Dr. John Black was the moderator for the discussion, and describes the weekend below:

There were altogether five seminars, including one open to the general public, on philosophical topics associated with the environment. The idea behind this series is to encourage among non-philosophers philosophic inquiry into an area where almost all of the discussions have been negotiations based on applied science (engineering or economics). These negotiations have often seemed to be conducted between people who speak different languages without the benefit of a translator.

The role of philosophy, in this case as embodied in myself as moderator, is to enable people to fashion their own translations of one another’s approaches to the important ecological challenges of our place and time, and hence to foster communication between different stakeholders. Within these terms I felt the event was a success, though perhaps not so spectacular a success as the first Conversation last Spring. Of particular note was the discussion following a presentation by representatives of Forest Ethics, on their successful campaign to save the Great Bear Rainforest.

- Dr. John Black
Director
Alexandro Malaspina Research Centre

Field Station Visitor Profile

JOHN ROSENTHAL, ARTIST

Monkeys Can't Surf. That's the title of the newly completed children's book that John Rosenthal has been married to for the duration of his three-week stay here at the Field Station. John had some time off from work in Vancouver recently, and decided that this was going to be his time to "focus on art, and try really hard not to be distracted." He chose the Field Station because he knew that the quiet nights and wild surroundings would provide inspiration to push him to complete at least one of the projects on his ever-expanding list.

As he lays out his latest work -- completed while retreating at the Field Station -- it's clear that the 18-hour days that he's been pouring into this project have paid off. It's full of life, and ripe with imagination. The drawings actually make me giggle out loud, and I'm impressed to the point of feeling privileged to be a allowed a pre-published viewing.

John first became aware of the Field Station and the Botanical Gardens while eating in the café last year. He quickly realized that it would be a perfect retreat for a youth art camp that he was working with in Vancouver. After the youth group spent three-nights in the Field Station last May, they were united in their opinions that the field trip was their "best ever." John still laughs out loud when describing the kids up to their knees on the mudflats while learning about ghost shrimp and other critters with one of our interpreters.

We'll keep an eye out for John's published work to appear in our Library's collection, and we look forward to welcoming him back as a group coordinator and artist-in-residence.

Message from the Foundation