Elasmosaur Poised to Become Official Emblem

A large, fierce-looking marine reptile that lived on Vancouver Island 80 million years ago could soon join the Pacific salmon, the spirit bear and the western redcedar as an official emblem for the province. Tourism Minister Lana Popham has introduced legislation that would see the reptile known in the Comox Valley as the Puntledge River elasmosaur added to the list of provincial symbols as the fossil emblem for B-C. That’s after a five-year effort to recognize it by local paleontology enthusiasts. Locals found the first elasmosaur fossils in 1988 and they’re now on display at the Courtenay and District Museum and Palaeontology Centre.