July 17, 2006 — The Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team in Victoria, B.C. is pleased to announce receipt of a generous gift of $3,000 from Tree Canada, Canada's largest tree awareness organization, to benefit the recovery of imperiled Garry oak ecosystems.

Garry oaks (Quercus garryana) are the only native oak trees west of Manitoba in Canada. Their range is restricted to a small portion of southwestern British Columbia, and through parts of Washington, Oregon and California. Their unmistakably complex, gnarled forms are wondrous to behold, and they play an important ecological role in the landscape of the region.

Together, Garry oak trees and the ecosystems associated with them are home to almost 700 plant species -- more than any other terrestrial ecosystem in coastal British Columbia. Many of these species occur nowhere else in Canada. In Garry oak meadows, intense blue camas blossoms, stunning pink shooting stars, and blazing yellow western buttercups appear in spring. Golden grasses wave in summer breezes. In the fall, Garry oaks shed their leathery leaves, revealing intricately curved branches cloaked with lichens, liverworts and mosses that brighten with winter rains. Coastal bluffs, grasslands, and seasonal pools that are dry by the height of summer add to the mosaic of Garry oak and associated ecosystems.

Over the past 150 years, waves of settlers have been attracted to Vancouver Island's southeastern coast. Land conversion for agricultural, residential and industrial development has vastly reduced the extent of Garry oak habitat. Less than 5% now remains in a near-natural condition, and that too is threatened by land development, invasive species, and trampling. More than 100 species of plants, mammals, reptiles, birds, butterflies and other insects are currently officially listed as "at risk of extinction" in Garry oak and associated ecosystems. Several species have already been eliminated.

The Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team, through its comprehensive recovery program, is working to increase the protection level of priority sites, fill knowledge gaps through research, conduct on-the-ground programs to restore the ecosystems and the species at risk, and provide information to land use decision-makers.

Tree Canada contributions are funding ecological restoration work on the Trial Islands, a unique ecological reserve near Victoria which protects 19 rare and endangered plants and butterflies associated with Garry oak.

"The efforts of the Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team and its partners in ensuring that Garry oak trees and their associated plants and animals remain a part of the Canadian landscape are much appreciated", said Jeff Monty, President of Tree Canada. "This donation comes from the generous contributions made by the Canadian public to our "Disappearing Act" campaign for Garry oak ecosystems recovery efforts", he added.

Louise Goulet, Executive Director of the Garry Oak Ecosystems Recovery Team, says "We very much appreciate Tree Canada's support for our Garry oak ecosystems recovery work in British Columbia. Working relationships like these make a big difference to the success of our recovery program, and we hope to be able to work with Tree Canada again in the future."