Biodiversity

Explore the museum's bird collection. Learn how to help birds through citizen science.

Orcas are embedded in human culture, from the screen to aquariums, mass media has shown the world the beauty of this species and how human behavior controls their fate. There is so much more for us to learn about orca culture and what they need to survive.

British Columbia has high mountains. Lots of them. In fact, more than 12 per cent of the province is alpine tundra—land above the trees. The alpine tundra is a land of extremes. Trees can’t grow at such high elevations because of cold temperatures. The growing season is brief, and some areas are covered by snow…

Learning about native plants can connect us to the places we live. Studying First Peoples’ uses of plants can teach us which native berries are edible and which are not.

Marine invertebrates are animals without backbones that live in the ocean. These creatures make up most of ocean animal life. Learn about the incredible diversity beneath the waves.

The study of insects (entomology) is alive and well at the Royal BC Museum. Go behind the scenes to discover how we learn about the diversity of insect life in this province.

Many people fear spiders but they are rarely harmful to humans and are important natural predators of insects. The spider collection at the Royal BC Museum strives to reflect the diversity of spiders in this province.

The Royal BC Museum fish collection is varied and wonderful. Explore the astounding diversity of British Columbia fishes through the collection and scientific illustration.

We're all in this together. An ecosystem is a natural community. When species disappear it can throw an entire system off balance, with far-reaching consequences for ecosytems, for the planet, and for us. What can we do about it?

American botanist Mary Gibson Henry collected plants in northeastern BC in 1931. Her pioneering journey was recorded on film. Lucky for us, BC Archives has a copy.

With all the choices for recording images these days, the art of illustration is still valued by scientific researchers. Explore the work of gifted biologist and illustrator Dr Hart.

Listening for birds is a skill that takes patience and perseverance. Grace Bell used her skill and love of birds to record British Columbia bird calls and songs.

The mammal collection is as diverse as the mammals of BC. Mammal specimens at the museum are preserved, stored and made available for research.