Extinct Vancouver Island Wildlife
The southeast coast lowlands, the geographic zone in which the Greater Victoria area can be found was once, ever so long ago, a breeding ground for big, smelly Ice age Mammals. Scientists maintain that these ancient island mammals probably crossed over on sheets of southern moving glacier ice, which then covered the Georgia strait. Amongst the mammals whose fossils they have found are the Imperial Mammoth, which is basically a giant woolly mammoth (they were 10 tones and 15 ft. tall), Columbian mammoths, American Mastodons, helmeted musk oxen, horses, and bison. The Vancouver Island Marmot, who gets the spotlight in a subsequent section, is also thought to have come over in a later period of glaciation.
Fossil deposits of the mammoths (there are currently 25 specimens) can be found in the Saanich peninsula in the neighbourhoods of Cordova Bay, and Cowichan Head (see the "Greater Victoria Geography" section). Scientists attribute the rise and fall of these great beasts to a variety of factors, but no one is quite certain why they perished so quickly. They were possibly on the island for close to 10 thousand years, which in human terms is more than enough time to witness the rise and fall of a civilization..
For some more info check out:
http://www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/hhistory/mammoth/mammothstory.html
Current Local Wildlife
Besides the proliferation of homo sapiens that abound in all manners of fashionable dexterity, the only other sentient life forms that you are likely to see in downtown Victoria are crows and seagulls, perhaps the odd raccoon or squirrel- but nothing too thrilling. But Vancouver Island and its surrounding seas are home to a complex and variegated ecology, a cornucopia of emerald splendour that only the ancient rain forest and the warm coastal water could afford.
The fat and furry Vancouver Island Marmot is our claim to fame He burrows down into the deep underground and lives in tunnels. An elusive kind of fellow, and for good reason - he can't help but feel Endangered.
The Vancouver Black Bear gorges on berries and tourists…
The Raccoon is a sneaky little critter and can sometimes be heard sabotaging garbage containers. Having been seen on the roofs of apartment buildings and checking out the statue of Captain Cook across from the Empress hotel, you could say that they show themselves in some unlikely places..
The Mountain Lion is one of those animals that provokes opposite reactions - you want to see one, and you really don't want to see one. The fact is that humans seldom see a mountain lion. Unlike the Black Bear who has a curious nature, the mountain lion would rather avoid the world, coming down now and again to chase something smaller around for fun or food, but definitely not for companionship.
The Gary, Douglas and Red squirrel can be seen on every other tree in parks everywhere. He can leap tall buildings in a single bound, has four legs, a bushy tail, and can be heard chatting excitedly about heady philosophical topics in Beacon hill park from the hours of 12-6 pm weekdays.
The Roosevelt Elk is a large mammal that can weigh up to 1000 lbs., and can grow 8 feet long. It is like a cross between a Deer and a Cow.
There are far more species of Birds on Vancouver Island than anything else, so we didn’t even bother to attempt it, you can try:
Vancouver Island Birds - http://vancouverislandbirds.com/ ↑
The Sasquatch is a waste of your time. Even if these 10 ft. hairy men do exist, it seems that all who believe they have caught sight of them have one thing in common: devoting the rest of their lives to sasquatch research and who wants to do that?
There are two subspecies of Sea Lion that can be found near the shores of the southern Island:
The "Steller" is the largest of the two - some can grow 3.25 meters in length and weigh 1120 kilograms, is a light tan or reddish brown and has a Bear like face.
The "California" Sea Lion can grow to 2.1 meters and about 390 kilograms and can be a chocolate brown, or golden brown in colour and has a dog-like face.
The sub-species of Seal which can be found around these parts is the "Harbor" seal. - with a maximum length of 1.9 meters and weight of 130 kg (while the female is still tinier than that). The Harbour Seal is sleek and compact - a stream lined swimmer. Their face is partially cat-like, with whiskers and wide eyes. Their colours are speckled browns and black.
In the seas around Vancouver Island are Orcas (killer whales) Humpbacks, Gray Whales, Dall’s and Harbour Porpoises and fish. Lots and lots of fish.
There are many parks within a short distance of, or within the greater Victoria area where one can check out wildlife, and if you are interested in Birds, you will definitely get lucky.
Victoria's top bird watching spots:
Martindale Flats/ Island View Beach/Witty's Lagoon/Goldstream/Tower Point/Viaduct Flats/Quick's Bottom/Esquimalt Lagoon/East Sooke Park-Hawkwatch/Victoria waterfront/Mount Tolmie/Gowland Tod Provincial Park/Blenkensop valley/Blenkenson Lake/Cowichan Bay and Duncan Sewage Lagoons
More Info:
Birding Hotspots and Site Guides -
http://birding.bc.ca/regions/victoria/hotspots/index.php ↑
