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Biodiversity is a memory test with consequences

A UBC Magazine quiz turns British Columbia’s native vertebrates into an invitation to look more closely at what is at risk. Published in Alumni Digest as verified reporting from the University of British Columbia.

A UBC Magazine quiz turns British Columbia’s native vertebrates into an invitation to look more closely at what is at risk.

Alumni Digest editorial deskSeptember 4, 20262 min read
In the September issue
The UBC Magazine biodiversity quiz uses a rotating field of native BC species.
The quiz moves through mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish, asking readers to identify species from photographs and clues. It is light in form, but the context is serious: the province’s biodiversity is under pressure as the climate changes. The piece also marks the first anniversary of the Beaty Biodiversity Centre expansion, a $45-million project that brings researchers, students and community partners together around biodiversity questions. A quiz cannot measure ecological knowledge or protection. It can make the names of local species harder to forget, which is a small but useful beginning. Photo: Reporting: Alex Walls. Source image retained for editorial review; rights clearance is still required before any broader reuse.

The context

Where the work begins

The quiz moves through mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish, asking readers to identify species from photographs and clues. It is light in form, but the context is serious: the province’s biodiversity is under pressure as the climate changes.

The work

In the field

The piece also marks the first anniversary of the Beaty Biodiversity Centre expansion, a $45-million project that brings researchers, students and community partners together around biodiversity questions.

The takeaway

What follows

A quiz cannot measure ecological knowledge or protection. It can make the names of local species harder to forget, which is a small but useful beginning.

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