Photo: Cute Bear Cub Climbs Tree!

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Cuteness alert! A baby black bear climbs a tree! 🐻🌲

This little cub on the west coast of Vancouver Island was likely born inside the hollow heart of an ancient redcedar, a favourite maternity den for mother bears in this region.

Newborn black bears are among the smallest mammals in proportion to their mothers. This cub likely weighed about 300 grams (just over half a pound) at birth, roughly one three-hundredth the size of its mother. These blind, nearly hairless little jellybeans stay in the den with their mother for 2–3 months before emerging as playful, fuzzy cubs.

Trees continue to provide safety as the cubs grow. At the first sign of danger, mother bears will send their babies scrambling up a tree trunk or use trees as a safe place for cubs while she forages nearby. In spring, black bears also visit hemlock trees like this one for a sugary treat, stripping away the outer bark of young hemlocks to feast on the sweet cambium when the sap starts to flow.

Thankfully, we were able to view this little cutie from a distance without meeting Mom and then carried on our way. You never know what you might stumble upon while exploring old-growth forests!

🐻 Help protect these incredible ecosystems by sending a message to decision makers today.

Thank you to these businesses and organizations!

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As a business or organization, there are many ways to support the old-growth campaign in BC. We would like to extend a sincere thank you to the following for their passion and commitment in helping to ensure these endangered forests are protected! 

Thank you to:

  • Mme. Leblanc’s students at École des Glaciers, who executed an entrepreneurial project in which they sold a handmade product at the local farmers market and gave 10% of all their sales to the Ancient Forest Alliance.
  • Robinson’s Outdoor Store, who gave a generous donation as part of their Patagonia Thrifting for Charity Initiative, and who are valued long-time supporters.
  • And the Ewasiuk-Dobbie Family Foundation for their kind contribution to the campaign. 

Your generosity and belief in the work we’re doing here at AFA are greatly appreciated, and we’re very grateful! If you work at or own a business that shares our vision and would like to support old-growth protection through a one-time or monthly donation, contact info@16.52.162.165 to learn more.

Sydney Valley, Kiišḥniqʷus Conservancy

Photos: Sydney River Valley – Clayoquot Sound

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On the far western edge of Clayoquot Sound lies the Sydney River Valley, a fully intact rainforest watershed at the head of Sydney Inlet. In 2024, after years of advocacy, much of the watershed was permanently protected under the leadership of the Ahousaht and Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation. To learn more about this incredible valley and see photos, click the image below!

My Comox Valley Now: Commercial logging isn’t happening in BC parks; says BC Minister

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June 29, 2025
By Hussam Elghussein

See original article

When it comes to commercial logging, BC parks are off-limits.

In a letter to the Ancient Forest Alliance and Endangered Ecosystems Alliance, Minister of Environment and Parks Tamara Davidson confirmed that there’s no commercial logging happening in provincial parks and it isn’t permitted under the BC Parks Act.

The letter comes following reports of potential commercial salvage logging and fuel load reduction projects happening in these parks.

Ecosystems Alliance Executive Director Ken Wu says this is good news.

“Logging for profit in parks and protected areas, in this case under the guise of reducing the risk of forest fires, is a red line that must not be crossed under any circumstance,” said Wu.

“This contrasts against non-commercial thinning, controlled burns and ecosystem-restoration efforts that sometimes are needed where decades of fire suppression have unnaturally altered fire-driven forest ecosystems.”

The Ancient Forest Alliance says this kind of logging poses serious risks to the environment like disrupting natural fire cycles, increased fuel loads, and dense fire ladder trees.

Along with these risks, logging for profit in these areas could lead to larger, more commercially valuable trees to be targeted, with them being the most resistant to fires.

With parks off-limits, the conservation groups still have concerns about conservation areas like Old-Growth Management Areas (OGMAs) and Wildlife Habitat Areas (WHAs).

Forest Alliance Campaign Director TJ Watt says logging under the guise of fire management within these areas is another clear red line for them.

“Commercial logging has no place in BC’s protected areas, now or ever,” said Watt.

Both groups are calling on the BC Government to ensure this type of commercial logging is prohibited in protected areas and reserves, to close logging loopholes for OGMAs and WHAs, and to work with First Nations on protected areas in priority ecosystems.

Endangered Ecosystems Alliance executive director Ken Wu stands beside an old-growth Ponderosa pine in the South Okanagan Grasslands Protected Area in Syilx territory.