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Birding at Burnaby Lake – June 14, 2025

Birding at Burnaby Lake – June 14, 2025

June can be a quiet time for lower mainland birding, but 14 birders were rewarded withsongs or sightings of 39 species along the South Shore Trail at Burnaby Lake Park. Led by Istvan, we began in the parking lot by the Burnaby Rowing Club, checked outthe lake and dock area, then followed the trail out and back from there. Barn and Treeswallows gave us aerial displays and perched for easier ID of adults and juveniles.Trailside, a Swainson’s Thrush and Willow…

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Nature Journal and Birding: An Introduction

Nature Journal and Birding: An Introduction

Report & Photos Submitted by Joanna Chin On May 25th, during the Vancouver Bird Celebration week, we had a full house with 18 participants for “Nature Journal and Birding: An Introduction” event. We met at Iona Beach Regional Park on the West side of the outer ponds. It was a beautiful sunny day with a light breeze, and we set-up our chairs in a circular formation conducive for conversations and learning from each other. I started off with a land acknowledgement…

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Tree Swallows & Bald Eagles news

Tree Swallows & Bald Eagles news

In this first week of June 2025, Peter Ward would like to draw Members attention to: 1. Tree Swallows. Having been around their nest boxes since April, the swallows are in high gear this week, and will be here up to late June/early July. The adult swallows have recently hatched families, which may number up to 6 young, and are busy catching thousands of insects per day. Both parents feed the young. They have less than 3 weeks to develop,…

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2025 Annual General Meeting

2025 Annual General Meeting

The 107th Annual General Meeting of Nature Vancouver was held on Thursday, May 15, 2025 at 7:00 pm at Hewett Centre Hall, Unitarian Church, 949 West 49th Avenue (49th & Oak) Vancouver. Some of the members attended the meeting online via Zoom. The draft minutes of the 2024 AGM and, the draft financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2024 were approved. The President and the Treasurer’s report were presented. President’s Report Treasurer’s Report Financial Statements – 2024 Final Minutes…

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Walking a loop trail through Honeymoon Bay Ecological Reserve

Walking a loop trail through Honeymoon Bay Ecological Reserve

Trip Report by Nina Shoroplova If you were just driving by and didn’t know it was there, you might never notice the Honeymoon Bay Ecological Reserve. But if you had heard about it, or been before, or spotted it on the map as you drove northwest from Honeymoon Bay near Cowichan Bay on Vancouver Island to, say, Nitinat, you would know you had found it and would look a little closer. I went there with my son, Alun, on the…

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Trip Report – Jericho Beach Park Bird Walk – May 31, 2025

Trip Report – Jericho Beach Park Bird Walk – May 31, 2025

Trip Report By Christine Balkwill, Photos by C Balkwill 13 intrepid birders joined Christine and Neill on what turned out to be a very rainy outing. Attendees included a few seasoned birders who were very helpful at spotting and hearing and also some eager beginners who were excited to meet some of their first birds. Neill spotted a Western Wood Pewee from the parking lot, setting a hopeful tone for the outing. Starting out from the East we found a…

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2025 Volunteer Appreciation & Annual Awards

2025 Volunteer Appreciation & Annual Awards

This year’s Volunteer awards were presented on 15th May, 2025 at the AGM. Kaye and Charles Ney Award The premier award of the Society for “lifetime” exemplary service and dedication to the Society. Active Directors of the Society are not eligible for this award until they have served more than 10 years as a Director. This award was established in 1975 in memory of Kaye Ney by her husband and renamed after his death. Denis Laplante & Teresa Gagné Denis…

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2025 Hugh Hamilton Memorial Scholarships

2025 Hugh Hamilton Memorial Scholarships

Undergrad Scholarship – Tara Brudar Tara is an upper-year undergraduate at UBC, studying natural resources conservation with a primary interest in science communication. Through UBC’s Harley Lab, Tara leads ocean acidification outreach across the province, closely collaborating with local organizations such as False Creek Friends Society (FCFS) to increase knowledge-sharing and community engagement.  This summer, through UBC’s CCEL Connect to Community Grant, Tara is organizing a community-based project which seeks to advance ocean acidification (OA) knowledge, adaptation capacity, and community engagement in False Creek,…

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2025 Nature Vancouver Scholarships

2025 Nature Vancouver Scholarships

Undergraduate Scholarship – Agraj Rathi Agraj Rathi traded business strategy for conservation after discovering a passion for protecting wild spaces through Nature Vancouver’s citizen science projects. Now in BCIT’s Fish, Wildlife and Recreation program, he combines scientific knowledge with practical fieldwork while serving on WildResearch’s board and participating in CPAWS’ Young Leaders in Conservation Program. Drawing on his perspective as someone who grew up in urban India without access to wilderness, Agraj is passionate about making conservation more inclusive. Through…

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Trip Report – Dawn Chorus at Burnaby Lake – May 18, 2025

Trip Report – Dawn Chorus at Burnaby Lake – May 18, 2025

Trip report by Kelvin Yip; Photos by Richard L & Kelvin Y Thirteen early birders joined trip leaders Neill and Kelvin at Burnaby Lake to audience the daily “dawn chorus” when the birds all wake up right before sunrise and start singing their songs. The birds didn’t sing for very long and within half an hour started their day of searching around for food and going about their day. We heard mostly Song Sparrows, American Robins, Black-headed Grosbeaks, and Spotted…

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