Nature Cards | Appreciate the Natural Environments of Metchosin

The Metchosin Biodiversity Project and its supporter, the Metchosin Foundation, have developed tools to help both young and old Metchosin residents monitor and appreciate the natural environments of Metchosin. These resources include boxed sets of nature cards. There have been four sets of nature cards produced so far, featuring local species painted by local artists and field guide descriptions from local authors: Southwestern BC Basic Plant Set (2020), Southwestern BC Art Bird Cards Set 1 (2020) and Set 2 (2021), and the BC Art Nature Cards Mushroom Edition (2022).

Plant Cards

The boxed set of plant cards contains 50 4” X 6” 2-sided cards printed on heavy-stock, waterproof, tearproof paper. The cards describe common plants—and one lichen—from Southern Vancouver Island. The team that created the cards analyzed data from the Metchosin BioBlitzes in order to determine which plants young people were most likely to encounter in the field. You can order a set of cards or download the PDF masters if you wish to develop your own application.

Bird Cards

The Metchosin Artpod, the Rocky Point Bird Observatory, and the Metchosin Foundation worked together to create the bird cards. These 36 4 X 6 2-sided cards, available on either heavy gloss card stock or on waterproof, tearproof paper, feature artwork by Metchosin artists on one side a description of the pictured bird on the other side.

Mushroom Cards

The Metchosin Foundation and the Metchosin ArtPod have collaborated again to produce the latest in our series of nature-inspired art cards, this one featuring common local mushrooms! The 2022 Mushroom Art Card set features the artwork of local artists and field guide descriptions by our local authors of the new book Mushrooms of British Columbia — Kem Luther and Andy MacKinnon!

Nature Cards - Metchosin Biodiversity Project website

Further information on the Nature Cards and how to order yours can be found on the Metchosin Biodiversity Project website.

Nature Cards Designed for Metchosin Kids
Kem Luther

A deck of cards can be fun. Can they also be educational? The Metchosin Foundation’s new set of plant cards, featuring 50 of the most common plants around Metchosin, feels to the hand like a pack of overly large playing cards. The cards are printed on glossy, water-proof, heavy stock paper. But there the resemblance ends. Instead of suits and numbers, the cards have pictures (with inset close-ups) of the plants on one side. On the reverse is a description of the plants’ appearances, habitats, and uses. Written in a simple, jargon-free prose that most intermediate students should be able to read, the cards also introduce and define 50 important botanical terms.

The plant cards were developed as part of a series of Metchosin Foundation initiatives to help increase awareness of the natural environmental among the young people of Southern Vancouver Island. Teachers from local schools, when interviewed about their instructional needs, expressed an interest in a set of cards for classroom use that would have pictures and descriptions of everyday local organisms. The Foundation set up a project team of local photographers, naturalists, and educators to develop the cards. The team included (in alphabetical order) Danny Buchanan, Beverly Hall, Kem Luther, Andy MacKinnon, and Moralea Milne.

The team analyzed data from the Metchosin BioBlitzes in order to determine which plants young people were most like to encounter in the field. As a result, 22 per cent of the card set (11 of them) are introduced, mostly invasive plants. The bulk of the cards, however, represent common native species. Pictures for the cards came from local photographers and from Wikimedia royalty-free sources.

Sets of the nature cards were donated to local schools by the Metchosin Foundation and printable versions have been made available on the web to all teachers. Boxed sets of the nature cards are also available for purchase. Cost of the set is $35 (plus shipping, if necessary), with all proceeds going to the Metchosin Foundation. Ordering information can be found at http://metchosinbiodiversity.com/tools. The boxed cards make great gifts. If you have connections with non-Metchosin schools, consider donating sets of the cards to them.