In the Wild

These plants and animals are perfect springtime pairs!

BRITISH COLUMBIA Pacific dogwood (Cornus nuttallii) Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeon (Patagioenas fasciata monilis)

The Pacific dogwood is British Columbia’s provincial flower, notable for the many white flowers that come to life on each one in the spring and fall. These blooms, which are actually modified leaves, become dark red berries that nourish the Pacific Coast band-tailed pigeon — a sub-species of band-tailed pigeon unique to Canada’s Pacific region.

PRAIRIES Prairie crocus (Pulsatilla patens) Ground squirrels The prairie crocus is Manitoba’s provincial flower, often blooming not long after the snow goes away. This fuzzy purple crocus can also be found in many places across Canada’s grasslands. Although its range has shrunk over the past few decades, the flowers of this sign of spring provide much-needed early-season munchies for several species of ground squirrel.

EASTERN CANADA Canadian serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis) Northern cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

The bright white flowers of the Canadian serviceberry, which grows in Quebec’s Laurentian forests, in the Maritime provinces and down through southern Ontario into the eastern United States, appear in early spring. The trees provide shelter for northern cardinals, while their flowers attract insects for the birds to eat.

NORTHERN CANADA Purple saxifrage (Saxifraga oppositifolia) Arctic hare (Lepus arcticus) Purple saxifrage, Nunavut’s official flower, is a welcome sign of spring each year in the Arctic. The hardy plants grow close to the ground, often on rocky ground, and have woody stems ending in clusters of purple flowers (sometimes white). Aupilaktunnguat, as the plant is named in Inuktitut, provides food for the Arctic hare, which will eat whole clusters of the flowers.