INTRODUCTION TO THE Vertebrates of
British Columbia

Harbour Seal (Phoca vitulina), photo © by David Blevins

Vertebrates make up about 2% of the animal species on the planet and include more than 30,000 species. They include the animals that are most familar to us, such as horses, dogs, bears, fish, moose, koala bears, reindeer, humans, and more.  They all have one thing in common:  they all have backbones.  This group of animals are considered the most advanced in the animal kingdom. As a general rule, vertebrates are usually larger than invertebrates. 

Read our introductory pages for vertebrate groups found in British Columbia, such as mammals (by David Nagorsen) and birds (by Jamie Fenneman), and visit our atlas pages for detailed species-specific information on each species, including habitat, distribution, reproduction, conservation status, and more.   The atlas pages also provide links to other important databases found on the web that contain species-specific information or that provide further detail on vertebrate animal groups. Importantly, the atlas pages contain detailed distribution mapping for our BC species, as well as collections of photos for each species. 

Learn more about E-Fauna atlas pages and mapping here.