🐻‍❄️ Happy #BiodiversityDay! Today, we’re celebrating one of the rarest and most iconic mammals on Earth—the spirit bear. 🌲 A unique subspecies of black bear found only in coastal British Columbia, the spirit bear’s white coat is the result of a rare recessive gene. To be born with this ghostly coloration, a bear must inherit the gene from both parents—a rare combination in the wild. 🐟 But this pale fur isn’t just striking—it may be evolutionarily advantageous. Research suggests spirit bears can catch up to twice as many salmon as their black-coated counterparts during the day. Their light colouration likely provides countershading camouflage, making them less visible against the sky from the perspective of their prey. 💪🏽 Thanks to the leadership of the Kitasoo/Xai’xais and Gitga’at First Nations, hunting bans are in place for black bears across their territories—protecting about 13% of the Great Bear Rainforest. This is a crucial step toward safeguarding the genetic stronghold of the spirit bear, ensuring this extraordinary animal continues to thrive. 📹 Ian McAllister Cover 📸 Sydney Dixon (fb)

✨We’re hiring! ✨ Pacific Wild is currently seeking a Digital Asset Management Assistant as a part of the Canada Summer Jobs program. 🌲🐻Join our team and help catalogue and process beautiful photos and videos of the Great Bear Rainforest and beyond. 🐺🌊 A full job description is available on our website: https://pacificwild.org/job-posting-digital-asset-management-dam-assistant/ We are looking for: Students pursuing studies in digital asset management, video editing, environmental science, library science, or computer science who are … Organized with a high level of attention to detail Able to work as a team Able to work independently and follow directions from documentation and tasks assigned Able to identify and differentiate key species in a video or photo Knowledge of metadata, tagging, sub-clips, and library systems Knowledge about digital asset management and media asset management Living in Victoria, B.C. Between the ages of 15 and 30 at the start of the employment period (per CSJ rules) A Canadian citizen, permanent resident, or a person who has been granted refugee status (per CSJ rules) Legally entitled to work in Canada in accordance with relevant provincial/territorial legislation and regulations (per CSJ rules) *Bonus if you have IT experience and are familiar with Network Attached Storage systems and have a keen photographic eye Deadline to Apply: June 8, 2025 at midnight Dates of Employment: June 16, 2025 for an 8 week period Salary: $21.00 an hour Hours: 7-hour workday/ 35 hours per week/ 5 days per week Location: Victoria, B.C. Send your resumes to: hr@pacificwild.org with a cover letter outlining your background and experience. #summerstudent #InternJobs #ConservationJobs #SummerJobs #CanadaSummerJobs #CSJ #Hiring #ITjobs #PhotographyJobs #DIT #FilminBC (fb)