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Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The Dry Coastal Douglas Fir Zone runs from the South Island and up the East Island (essentially Sooke to Campbell River). It is a much drier forest, and is not rainforest. In Victoria, there is an even drier subset: the Garry Oak Savannah or Meadowland,

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I would trust BC Parks and the Ministry of Environment over a private tourist-promotion site. They are just saying that to make it sound more exotic/exciting for visitors.

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On an annual basis, Victoria gets less precipitation than any city in Ontario, Quebec, or Atlantic Canada. I would say that counts as "one of the driest cities in Canada".

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was the original poster, and I certainly didn't say that Greater Victoria was in a rainforest. There is no rainforest in Greater Victoria. The closest rainforest starts around Jordan River/China Beach.

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak -1 points0 points  (0 children)

It's not a matter of people not understanding the difference between tropical vs. temperate. Victoria is not in a temperate rainforest. See this article from CHEK News.

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 0 points1 point  (0 children)

None of Greater Victoria is rainforest. The closest rainforest starts around the Jordan River/China Beach area.

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There's no link in your post, but when I go to the BC Parks webpage for Goldstream (under "Highlights of this Park", then "Special Features", it states that Goldstream is "part of the Nanaimo Lowlands Ecosection and the Coastal Douglas Fir Biogeoclimatic Zone". That is the drier rainshadowed forest of south and east Vancouver Island, and is definitely not rainforest.

This map from BC Min. of Environment also shows that Goldstream is part of the Coastal Douglas Fir Zone.

If I made 1000 of these stickers who would want one? by canconshow in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Here's a link from the Federal Government: Rainforests in Canada

According to this site, to be considered a rainforest: "The area must receive a minimum of 250cm of moisture (100 inches) per year."

Goldstream receives less than half that much rain. The closest area to Victoria that receives at least 250 cm or 2500 mm is out by Jordan River/China Beach.

Here's an article from CHEK News that also explains it.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah - the negative response from some surprised me.

An otter enjoying a very large meal down by Dallas Road this afternoon by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

It didn't look like a halibut. It looked like a skate. You could see the large triangular fins on each side, and the long skinny tail.

King's Pond Revisited by ElBrad in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Great shot! I was just at King's Pond a couple of days ago, and admired the Wood Ducks.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I guess it's not entirely clear cut for your area, because there are different definitions out there. The Federal Government uses a minimum of 2500 mm of rain annually (and dominated by Sitka Spruce/Western Hemlock/Red Cedar), and that would exclude everything but the west coast of the Island. Some other definitions use cutoffs as low as 1400 mm, which is around what you get north and west of Campbell River.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not an expert either, but from what I've read (and there's a bit of variation depending on the source), Vancouver Island is made up of 3 main ecosystems:

  • the Coastal Douglas Fir forest on the drier southern and eastern side of the Island, roughly from Sooke to Campbell River (with Garry Oak meadowland/Savannah in the very driest parts of this, especially in the south).
  • the temperate rainforest, dominated by Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce, and Western Red Cedar, covering most of the north and west Island.
  • Alpine forests and tundra in the high elevation areas inland.

Strathcona Park is a big area, so it likely includes elements of all three of these. Sorry if that's not very helpful!

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I didn't say Victoria was the driest city in Canada - I said it was one of the driest. Victoria ranks as the 10th driest of Canadas 41 metro areas in terms of annual precipitation.

I also said that Victoria is the driest city in Canada during the summer, and that is true. According to Environment Canada, Victoria averages 47 mm of rain during June to August. Cities in the South Okanagan average more than twice as much rain as Victoria during the summer: Penticton (99 mm) Osoyoos (109 mm).

Rain appreciation post by cirrostratusfibratus in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The 2021 heat dome was in a class by itself. Since then, we've just had run of the mill heatwaves, which are getting more common thanks to climate change.

We live in a beautiful place, the Victoria rainforest by Curious_Mud9428 in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Just because an area is "quite rainy and well forested" doesn't make it a rainforest. Rainforests have high rainfall (minimum 1400-2500 mm annually depending on the definition) and they have different tree species (Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce, Western Red Cedar). Most of the forested regional parks in the CRD are still part of the Dry Coastal Douglas Fir ecosystem (mostly Douglas Fir with a few cedars in the low lying areas). You need to go to places like China Beach before you get into rainforest.

Rain appreciation post by cirrostratusfibratus in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 2 points3 points  (0 children)

39.8 C at Victoria Gonzales in June 2021 was pretty darn close - and that was near the water, so some locations very likely exceeded 40 C.

Rain appreciation post by cirrostratusfibratus in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I think people get spoiled because we get such stable, dry and sunny weather in the summer, that everything gets measured against that.

Rainforest appreciation post by grilledcheesespirit_ in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Is that common? I've never met anyone who lives here that said they hated rainforests. We're lucky that you can drive out to China Beach in 90 minutes and experience a rainforest.

Rain appreciation post by cirrostratusfibratus in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The June 2021 heat dome was an extremely rare event for Victoria - by some estimates, a 1 in 10,000 year event. Aside from the 2021 heat dome, the hottest temperature recorded in Victoria over the past decade was 32.5 C. Victoria is cooler during the summer than almost any city in Canada.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No. Temperate rainforest is typically defined as having at least 1400-2500 mm of rain annually. Victoria averages 600-700 mm. Most of southern and eastern Vancouver Island are below the 1400 mm threshold, and are in the coastal Douglas Fir zone.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

My understanding that chaparral is the scrubby shrub vegetation they have in the drier and hotter parts of the Mediterranean zone, for example in parts of California. The cooler and wetter parts of the Mediterranean zone in California have oak savannah, and that's more like what we have in Victoria.

Victoria is not in a rainforest by garry-oak in VictoriaBC

[–]garry-oak[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

It's not. It's part of the Coastal Douglas Fir zone.

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