Porcher Island - Ecology

Ecology

Porcher Island is part of the Hecate Lowland Ecosection, a once heavily glaciated band of narrow lowland rain forest and coastal archipelago that stretches from Portland Inlet in the north to Queen Charlotte Strait in the south. Hecate Lowland terrain is generally rough and rocky, with wide areas of muskeg wetland and bog forest. Tree species include western red cedar, yellow cedar, mountain hemlock and fir. Salal, ferns, berry bush and skunk cabbage are commonly found undergrowth. Lowland climate in the Porcher Island region is dominated by frontal flows from Dixon Entrance, resulting in frequent wind storms and heavy rainfall.

Waterfowl are found in abundance throughout the protected inlets and estuaries that notch Porcher Island’s 100 mile coastline. Species include murre, grebe, murrelet, gull, tern, loon, auklet, petrel and eagle. Both Chatham Sound and Kitkatla Channel afford a profusion of breeding and nesting habitat for a wide variety of seabirds, and are essential components of the Pacific coast migratory flyway.