Dunes at Goose Spit
May 25th, 2010 | by Editor | 3 Comments
Published in Central Vancouver Island, Destinations, Natural History
Tags: Beach Pea, Black Knotweed, British Columbia, Dunes, Gold Star, Goose Spit, Pink Microsteris, Scotch Broom, Seashore Lupin, Vancouver Island, Yellow Sand-verbena
Dramatic skies at Goose Spit, Comox, British Columbia.
Often the reason a destination is popular has little to do with the superb natural features of an area. Such is the case with Goose Spit Park in Comox, on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. Usually portrayed as “the” place to enjoy the sunset and an evening beach fire, Goose Spit has much more to offer the curious naturalist.
The parking lot at the far end of Hawkins Road just before it enters HMCS Quadra is an excellent starting place for a dune botanical exploration. Walking west along the beach a number of plants in the pea family (Fabaceae) can be found above the high tide line and among the driftwood logs.
Seashore Lupin (Lupinus littoralis)
At this time of year, Beach Pea (Lathyrus japonicus) is in bloom as are two species of lupin – Seashore Lupin (Lupinus littoralis) and Tree Lupin (L. arboreus). The former is a native species, the latter has been introduced from California, possibly in an attempt to stabilize the shoreline. A third pea that is readily visible is the invasive Scotch Broom (Cystisus scoparius).
When the buildings of the base end, the dunes start to open up. A training obstacle course runs through the center of dune habitat and climbing walls and other apparatus are readily visible. This sandy area is spectacular for early and late spring blooms and many of early the plants are still in bloom at this time of year (although many are also going to seed as well).
Be mindful that this is extremely sensitive habitat and very significant since it is only one of four locations in BC where the endangered Sand-verbena moth is known to exist. Fortunately, much of the dunes are within DND lands and access is prohibited. It is still possible to find and enjoy most of the plants in the narrow strip between the high tide line and the DND boundary.
Watch for the leaves of Yellow Sand-verbena (Abronia latifolia). Some of these plants were transplanted as part of the recovery plan for the Sand-verbena Moth.
Gold Star (Crocidium multicaule)
Other typical dune plants include Gold Star (Crocidium multicaule), a beautiful yellow aster that is just finishing blooming at this time of year – both flowers and seed heads can be found.
Pink Microsteris (Microsteris gracilis)
Pink Microsteris (Microsteris gracilis) is another delicate dune plant common at Goose Spit. Its small pink flowers have five petals and while the plant has a weedy look it is actually a native species.
Black Knotweed (Polygonum paronychia)
Black Knotweed (Polygonum paronychia) grows in the dunes as well. It has a prostrate, shrubby look with thick leaves that are rolled under. The flowers of this plant are white to pink and clustered in the upper leaf axils.
These are just a few of the flowers that can be seen at Goose Spit in the spring and early summer. With a little care, this rare and sensitive ecosystem can be explored and the natural beauty of the flora of the dunes, so often missed by the casual beach walker, experienced and appreciated.
About the Contributor:
Dave Ingram is a nature photographer and writer based in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. More of his images can be seen on Flickr and on Dave Ingram’s Natural History Blog.
June 5th, 2010 at 4:18 pm (#)
Love your photos Dave and the information with them. i certainly cant compete with my camera; too much vibration in the hands. Haven’ t mastered the tripod but is it much use for macro?
Was on Goose spit yesterday for the first time; a lovely spot and very interesting plants there. I will go again.
June 6th, 2010 at 9:14 am (#)
Hi Elizabeth – glad that you enjoyed Goose Spit, it really is an interesting place botanically.
I should use a tripod more but often I’m walking with both of my kids and only have the time to hand hold and get a couple of quick photographs. I use the aperature priority setting on my Nikon almost exclusively and adjust the ISO (in less than ideal light I’m shooting at 400 ISO) and aperature so that I’ve got a shutter speed that is fast enough for hand-held photography and is a low enough f stop that I’ve got good depth of field. Sometimes I also underexpose the image to bring up detail in the highlight areas and then adjust with Photoshop – doing this also gives me a little faster shutter speed. With macro work the challenge is finding that balance between aperature and shutter speed since the area in focus is often very shallow. My Nikon also has the ability to choose which part of the image is the focus point – very handy when the subject is off center.
I’m enjoying the images that you’ve submitted to the Island Nature flickr Group!
July 10th, 2010 at 12:31 am (#)
[...] flatter dune ecosystems also exist along the eastern coast of Vancouver Island. Due to development along the coast, these dunes have become scarce. Some of the above mentioned [...]