Spring Workshops Announced

We are excited to announce two new workshops this spring; aimed at helping our students and future leaders understand the challenges of climate change and the importance of understanding traditional ecological knowledge. As we target climate change science, students will explore the connections between observable weather and historical climate patterns as we look at glaciers, […]

A Cougar for Mossom Creek Education Centre

  In 43 years no volunteer at Mossom has ever seen a cougar in the watershed. Yet about once a month we record one on the trail cams placed in the forest. Several years ago, we let the BC Conservation Service know that if a cougar has to be destroyed somewhere in the province we […]

Free Talk: Beavers in Port Moody!

Mossom Hatchery and Education Center is hosting a talk about beavers and how they interact and live  in cities.  We have living proof right in our own backyard with the beavers who are building dams in Klahanie and Suterbrook area. Location:  Mossom Creek Education Centre Date:   Sunday Feb 18th Time:   1 – 2 pm Presented […]

Wild Discovery at Mossom

While construction is underway at the Mossom Creek Hatchery site, there are ever present reminders of the amazing wildlife that this pristine watershed supports.  Construction crew, supervisors and hatchery volunteers encounter creatures on a daily basis.  Check out these wild finds the month of October 2014 A tiny wild visitor spotted by one of the construction […]

Did you know that there are gnomes living in the Mossom Creek watershed?

Did you know that there are gnomes living in the Mossom Creek watershed?  Gnome plants that is (Hemitomes congestum). These rare and unusual plants don’t photosynthesize. Instead they get their nourishment through a process called mycoheterotrophy – they extract sugars from the fungus associated with tree roots (mycorrhizae), in this case, probably Western Hemlock (Tsuga heterophylla). The photo […]

Swamp Lanterns a.k.a Skunk Cabbage

Originally published by the Tri City News. Otherworldly, they rise like luminous golden flames from the swamp’s black ooze. And, unmistakably, there is something in the air.  Here on the wet coast there is no surer sign of spring.   Skunk cabbages, modest of moniker but fabulous in form, once again decorate our lowland wet spots […]

Giant stonefly exoskeletons

Yesterday, our favourite cedar tree by the creek had at least 13 giant stonefly exoskeletons on it. Mossom is well known for its diversity and abundance of aquatic insects – stoneflies, mayflies and caddisflies – plus those bllue-listed tailed frog tadpoles we are always finding when we look for aquatic insects. The presence of these […]

Liking the Lichen

Finding big ragged pieces of Lungwort lichen in the Mossom Creek watershed reveals two things.  One, it has been windy recently.  Two, the air quality in the Lower Mainland is improving. Lobaria pulmonaria, like all lichens, is extremely sensitive to pollutants in the air.  It used to be that I could not find such lichen […]

Tailed Frogs in Mossom

The presence of tailed frogs in the Mossom Creek watershed  is a testament to Mossom’s excellent water quality and quantity.  Mossom Creek flows clear and cold year round.  Partially spring fed, it does not dry down significantly in summer.   Its largely intact forest canopy keeps the water well shaded and cool. Pacific Tailed Frogs are […]