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.
Landscape drone photo of the Kamloops landscape.
Raincoast updates

The painful truth of colonization

In light of recent evidence of the unmarked graves of 215 children that have been found at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in Canada, we express our deep condolences to the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc, Residential School Survivors and all Indigenous people who continue to be affected.
Underwater shot of a chum salmon in the Fraser River
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Join us for the last webinar of our Connected Estuary series

In Episode 6, we will build on this learning with Morgan Guerin, a community member, past Councilor, and Senior Marine Planning Specialist for the Musqueam Nation. Morgan is also an artist who has developed materials for the c̓əsnaʔəm exhibit at the Musqueam Community Cultural Centre and he continues to share his knowledge, expertise and teachings through tool-kits for use in schools and other communities.
Single salmon smolt underwater.
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An opportunity to learn about the importance of improved connectivity in the Fraser River Estuary

Join Dave Scott, Raincoast’s Lower Fraser Salmon Program Research and Restoration Coordinator, for an online information session about the upcoming North Arm Jetty Breaches Project and the importance of improved connectivity in the Fraser River Estuary. The session will include an opportunity for participants to ask questions and provide input on the project.
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The 2021 Student Innovation Challenge

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Achiever anchored in the Salish Sea on a sunny day.
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A map and a science figure from Christina Service's paper hover in the foreground with a Spirit bear scratching their ear in the background.
Scientific literature

Research: Dietary differences among individuals with different genes and coat colours gives insight into the maintenance of the Spirit bears among black bear populations

The paper, “Intrapopulation foraging niche variation between phenotypes and genotypes of Spirit bear populations,” was published in the open-access journal Ecology and Evolution.
Christina Service sits down beside some barbed wire to take samples of white bear hair.
Raincoast updates

Research publication led by Dr. Christina Service honoured by the British Ecological Society

This year’s exceptional winning papers span topics as diverse as spirit bear genetics, coral reef productivity, plants reclaiming mining land and classifying elephants as refugees.
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GiveBig Washington to protect killer whales in the Salish Sea.

We are excited to participate the 2021 GiveBig Washington campaign! The 48-hour fundraiser officially starts next week (May 4-5), but with early giving having already started you can make a contribution now.

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.