Burke Mountain Naturalists
The Burke Mountain Naturalists (BMN) was formed in 1989 by local residents interested in enjoying nature and conserving local green spaces. Most of our members reside in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam or Port Moody (“the TriCities”), which are located east of Vancouver, British Columbia. BMN is a member club of the Federation of British Columbia Naturalists (FBCN), now re-named BC Nature.
Burke Mountain Naturalists encourages the public to join in an event, field trip or hike and welcomes new members.
We are a registered non-profit society with charitable income status.
Our objectives are:
- to promote the enjoyment of nature
- to foster an interest in, and an appreciation of, our environment
- to actively pursue the conservation and preservation of the natural world
- to promote the accessibility and maintenance of natural areas, particularly local areas.
Our activities include:
Current objectives and activities include:
- minimizing impacts on wildlife, wetlands and salmon habitat in areas undergoing development
- protection, habitat enhancement and invasive species removal in areas such as DeBoville Slough, Coquitlam and Pitt Rivers
- installing and maintaining bird nest boxes in sites such as Widgeon Marsh Regional Park Reserve, Minnekhada Regional Park and Colony Farm
- monitoring bat roosts and installing roosting boxes in local regional and municipal parks
- partnering with other stewards and governments to manage protected areas such as Colony Farm Regional Park
- advocating for effective protection of species at risk
- public education to reduce human impacts on the natural world
- preservation of the historic Riverview Hospital lands and arboretum
- water monitoring
BMN promotes Naturescape BC, a provincial program to encourage homeowners and municipalities to create gardens and landscapes which appeal to both wildlife and people. In response to appeals from BMN, Port Moody and Anmore were the first two local governments in BC to adopt Naturescape as civic policy.
The club name is taken from Burke Mountain, located in northeast Coquitlam, and was chosen because the mountain is a distinctive natural feature visible from Port Moody, Coquitlam, and Port Coquitlam. The mountain was named after Edmund Burke, a British author and statesman.