Photo: Vivid Green Moss Rain Forest Foliage

This vivid green moss covers tree branches and the trunk of a western red cedar tree in the rain forest of Goldstream Provinical Park. Due to the temperature and climate of this region, this foliage is common in this part of Vancouver Island.

This vivid green moss that can be seen here was photographed in the rain forest of Goldstream Provincial Park near Victoria, on Southern Vancouver Island in British Columbia. This foliage is common to this part of Vancouver Island due to the climate of the rain forest. It would be common to walk through parts of the forest here and see vivid green moss like the type here covering most of the trees and parts of the ground and plants.

The western red cedar as seen here, proper name Thuja plicata, is a native to the Vancouver area and Vancouver Island. It is also the provincial tree for the whole of British Columbia. They are often very tall and some are very old, with a few estimated to be almost 1,000 years old.

Moss is a plant that prefers damp and shady locations, and as there is so much tree cover here, the forest floor is so shady that it is almost always damp. As there is so much moss in this picture, it is not hard to imagine that this area of Goldstream Provincial Park gets very little light and a lot of rain. Moss and foliage of this type thrives in this environment.

Tree branches covered with lush green moss and the trunk of a western red cedar tree, Thuja plicata, during fall in the rainforest of Goldstream Provincial Park, Victoria, Southern Vancouver Island, Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada.