B.C. and Biodiversity- A Fragile Treasure

British Columbia is home to an amazing diversity of wild creatures. Tens of thousands of plant and animal species have evolved over millennia to adapt to many different habitats and microclimates, from the coastal rainforest to the Okanagan desert. Many of them – salmon, caribou, orca, Kermode bear – have become beloved cultural icons and part of our identity.

Meet BC's most iconic creatures.

Imagine walking through a sun-streaked forest of Douglas Firs that were already 500 years old when the first Europeans landed in BC—trees as wide as houses and as tall as skyscrapers. Picture a river churning with spawning sockeye salmon, white Kermode bear cubs playing in the mystical Great Bear Rainforest, or a raft of sea otters floating on their backs at dusk.

In BC's Pacific Ocean, numerous bays, shores and current-swept passages nurture underwater kelp forests every bit as spectacular as groves of ancient cedar on land. Coral "gardens" create underwater homes where other marine animals can hide, reproduce, feed and grow. In Hecate Strait, 9,000-year-old glass sponge reefs grow five stories high, sheltering 36 species of long-lived rockfish. Every spring, wind-swept islands echo with the voices of thousands of breeding seabirds.

This multitude of species and their interactions are part of the Earth’s web of life. Biological cycles generated within the web of life support human life by providing clean air and water, fertile soils and a hospitable climate. Strong ecological cycles that support abundant life provide the “surplus value” that allows humans to live a life beyond survival. They are the foundation of our wealth – our agriculture, our highly developed industries, and much of our cultural and artistic expression.