British Columbia, Dogwood flowers and Spirit Bear Print, Lino Block Print Maps of Canadian Provinces & Territories with Symbols, BC bear

The lovely dogwood flowers thrive along the west coast, and can even be found aas far north as Haida Gwaii. The Pacific dogwood has been a symbol of British Columbia since 1956. Once protected it is now considered secure and not at risk of extinction. The same fate is hoped for the newest symbol of the province, the Spirit Bear. This colour morph of the Black Bear is due to recessive alleles common in the population. They are more like human redheads than albinos. National Geographic estimates the spirit bear population at 400-1000 individuals. Because of their ghost-like appearance, "spirit bears" hold a prominent place in the oral stories of the First Nations people of BC. They were named after the Kermode Bear after Francis Kermode, former director of the Royal B.C. Museum, who researched the subspecies.

I've had the great priviledge of having seen much of this country and having travelled from coast to coast. (I am still hoping to visit the third coast). I spent three years living on Vancouver Island. I was never lucky enough to spy a spirit bear in the temperate rainforest of Canada's west coast, but saw many dogwood. BC holds a special place in my heart.