The Garry oak, Quercus garryana Dougl., ecosystem is very rare in Canada and occurs almost exclusively on southern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. Many of the meadows and rocky outcrops on which the species adapted to this habitat once grew have been lost to urbanization, and only five percent of the original area of the ecosystem remains.

This specimen was collected on September 15, 1896 from “dry open land” at the site where Royal Jubilee Hospital now stands in Victoria. It documents that Garry oak trees were once more common than they are today. Records such as this one help us evaluate our impacts on nature over time and plan for the future.