S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest

S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest is a 13 acre conservation property located on S,DÁYES (Pender Island) , WSÁNEĆ Territory.

Photo by Alex Harris /
Raincoast Conservation Foundation.

The campaign to protect S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest

In November 2020, Raincoast partnered with the Pender Islands Conservancy to co-purchase a conservation property on S,DÁYES. Despite planning for a six-month fundraising campaign, we secured the required purchase amount in less than three months.

Behind the name: S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest

Globally, bird populations are in significant decline.1 2 Olive-sided Flycatchers are among the bird species federally listed as threatened, predominantly due to habitat loss. These birds, in particular, find their homes in the fringes of forests bordering wetlands, and these interface ecosystems on the Gulf Islands are among the few places these birds are thriving. As a species linking forests and wetlands, the Flycatcher was chosen as the land’s namesake. 

Though the Flycatcher was chosen to symbolize the importance of preserving intact habitat, the placename, S,DÁYES, recognizes the WSÁNEĆ people who have known Pender Islands as home since time immemorial. In SENĆOŦEN, S,DÁYES means “wind drying,” which refers to drying salmon.3 This was the name given to what is now widely known as North Pender Island prior to settler arrival in the area.

About the land

S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest is populated by an assemblage of ecosystems characteristic to the Coastal Douglas-fir zone. It is part of the Shingle Creek wildlife corridor, which also includes land protected within Parks Canada’s Gulf Islands National Park Reserve. The forest shows a legacy of logging, as most forests across the Gulf Islands do, with large fir stumps standing as evidence of the mature forest that once occupied this regenerating system.

Today, maturing Western redcedar and coastal Douglas-fir trees dominate the forest’s canopy, while stands of peeling arbutus occupy the higher elevation slopes at the property’s edges. A forested swamp, now colloquially known as Muskrat Pond, at the north-western corner of the property supports populations of riparian plant species including oceanspray, bigleaf maple, and red alder. Over 50 bird, 4 bat, and a number of amphibian species, including iconic Pacific chorus frogs, call S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest home. 

Support restoration work

The future

S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest is the first property purchased by Raincoast with the intention of healing the land and securing its long-term protection with a conservation covenant. Raincoast is working with our property co-owners, the Pender Islands Conservancy,  to develop a management and restoration plan for the land. Once a management plan is established, we will register a covenant on the land title. Active restoration and education projects are often underway at S,DÁYES Flycatcher Forest, which to date have included native species planting, removing invasive species (particularly Daphne laurel), and creating a native plant meadow. 

donate towards restoration

This campaign was made possible due to the  support of many individuals and organizations, including:

  • Greater Victoria Savings Credit Union
  • Sitka Foundation
  • McLean Foundation
  • Pollinator Partnership
  • Habitat Conservation Trust Fund

Sponsors & supporters

  • Sitka Foundation logo.
  • The McLean Foundation logo.
  • GVSCU Legacy Foundation logo.
  • Public Conservation Assistance Fund logo.
  • Pollinator Partnership logo.
Achiever rests in the water, while a bear sniffs the air in the foreground on an outcropping of land.
Events

What next for coastal carnivore conservation?

In Victoria and Vancouver: We have teamed up with renowned wildlife photographer John E Marriott to present an evening of Tall Tales, Long Lenses and Wildlife Conservation. Don’t miss it…
Tall Tales, Long Lenses, Book cover by John E. Marriot
Events

Events: Tall Tales, Long Lenses and Wildlife Conservation with John E. Marriott

Join renowned wildlife photographer John E. Marriott and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation for an evening of inspiring stories about BC’s wildlife and its conservation. February 20th and 21st in Victoria and Vancouver, John will share stories and photographs from his latest book…
A wolf stands in the short grass and moss, licking its lips.
Investigate and inform

Trophy hunting sullies the reputation of hunters, jeopardizes social licence

Most people can accept the idea of suffering and death if the hunter kills to fulfill a basic life requisite, such as feeding one’s family; in contrast, most people oppose killing inedible animals for trivial reasons, such as feeding one’s ego…
Mashup of maps and population distribution graphs overlaid onto wolf skull illustrations.
Scientific literature

Political populations of large carnivores

A team led by researchers from Raincoast, UVic, and Simon Fraser University reviewed the scientific literature for cases in which independent scientists scrutinized government reporting of wildlife population sizes, trends and associated policy. The findings are reported in a new paper, “Political populations of large carnivores,” ….
A grizzly bear pulls on some brush along the shoreline
Investigate and inform

Letter: Protection of grizzly bears should be strengthened in the expansion of the Species at Risk Act

Raincoast supports the proposal to list 13 new terrestrial species to Schedule 1 of Canada’s Species at Risk Act. While we are encouraged by this, the focus of this submission is on grizzly bears…
A wolf walks along a beach in an intertidal zone with its head lowered inquisitively.
Investigate and inform

Anecdotes, guesses no justification for killing wolves

BC’s Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development is proposing to extend wolf-killing season on Vancouver Island…
Cover image from Nature Ecology and Evolution with figures and maps
Scientific literature

Intergenerational equity can help to prevent climate change and extinction

The global crises of climate change and extinction imperil all life on Earth. A new scientific publication suggests that powerful means to address these looming threats already exist but are largely overlooked…
An eagle sits watching over a BC coastal stream.
Notes from the field

First rains bring spawners and bald eagles back to Vancouver Island rivers

Last fall, while the dry start to autumn put the brilliant golds, reds and oranges of tree leaves on display, my mind continuously returned to the rain. Not the rain that many dread, but the rain that floods small watersheds and raises the water levels in the rivers…

Notes and references

  1.  BirdLife. (2022). State of the world’s birds 2022: Insights and solutions for the biodiversity crisis. https://www.birdlife.org/papers-reports/state-of-the-worlds-birds-2022/
  2.  Rosenberg, K.V et. al (2019). Decline of the North American avifauna. Science, 366. 120–124. https://www.birds.cornell.edu/home/bring-birds-back/
  3. Elliot, D. (1990). Saltwater people: As told by Dave Elliot Sr. School District 63 (Saanich): Victoria, BC.