Imagine a single fossil discovery so transformative that it reshapes an entire scientific field. That’s exactly what happened in the Comox Valley, British Columbia, in the late 1980s. But here’s where it gets controversial: could an amateur fossil hunter truly spark a revolution in paleontology? The answer lies in the remarkable story of Mike Trask and his groundbreaking find.
In the crisp days of late autumn 1988, Richard Hebda, then the head of botany at the Royal BC Museum, found himself in the living room of Mike Trask, a Courtenay resident. Hebda had received a tip about an intriguing fossil discovery along the Puntledge River. Having previously been misled by reports of dinosaur ribs that turned out to be dirtbike tracks, Hebda’s expectations were low. Yet, this visit would prove to be anything but ordinary.
Trask had unearthed something extraordinary in the Comox Valley—a discovery that would forever alter the course of paleontology in British Columbia. His find not only inspired a surge of amateur paleontologists but also led to the creation of the province’s first paleontological society, boasting over 100 members on Vancouver Island. As Hebda later reflected in a 2026 interview with The Discourse, ‘It opened a door, not just into a room, but into another gigantic world.’
In Trask’s cozy living room, Hebda examined a string of grey, tubular rocks laid out on newspapers before a crackling fireplace. These, Trask believed, were fossilized vertebrae. Hebda confirmed his suspicions: they belonged to a large, long-extinct animal. Trask recounted how he and his 13-year-old daughter, Heather, had stumbled upon the fossils while exploring the Puntledge River. At the time, no significant vertebrate fossils—animals with backbones and internal skeletons—had been documented on Vancouver Island.
Before leaving, Hebda took some of the fossil bones to Betsy Nicholls, a paleontologist at the Royal Tyrell Museum specializing in marine reptiles. Nicholls immediately identified them as belonging to an elasmosaur, a marine reptile from the late Cretaceous period, around 85 million years ago. With its small head and impossibly long neck, it resembled the mythical Loch Ness monster. Remarkably, this was the first elasmosaur specimen found west of the Canadian Rocky Mountains.
Trask, understanding the scientific value of his discovery, knew that all the bones were needed for accurate study. ‘It wouldn’t be fair to have more of the specimen appear afterwards,’ he noted in a 1998 interview. With the help of Rolf Ludvigson, an invertebrate paleontologist who had recently moved to Denman Island, they devised a plan.
In 1991, the Courtenay and District Museum placed a newspaper ad seeking 20 volunteers for a paleontological excavation. Despite relentless rain and near-freezing temperatures, over 50 volunteers turned up on the first day. Over three months, the team excavated approximately 100 cubic meters of earth—equivalent to filling three 20-foot shipping containers—along the Puntledge River. Beneath the dirt and shale, they uncovered the nearly complete elasmosaur skeleton.
The excavation ignited a passion for paleontology in the community. Trask began teaching a course on local paleontology and geology at North Island College, drawing on his lifelong fascination with fossils and his professional expertise as an engineering surveyor. In 1991, he led his students on a field trip to the Puntledge River, where participant Joe Zanbilowicz discovered a small vertebra embedded in a shale cliff—the first of many.
These discoveries fueled an insatiable curiosity among the group, which grew to 30 to 50 Comox Valley residents meeting informally outside of class. By 1992, they formalized their gatherings, establishing the Vancouver Island Paleontological Society, the first of its kind in the province. The society quickly expanded, inspiring similar groups in Victoria, Vancouver, and Qualicum Beach.
And this is the part most people miss: how did these separate groups share information? Enter the British Columbia Paleontological Alliance, formed to unite professional paleontologists and amateur collectors under a common goal. The alliance developed policies, including a code of ethics, and advocated for the prohibition of commercial fossil sales in B.C. This was a direct response to past practices, where commercial collectors had legally removed and sold fossils, sometimes using helicopters to extract large slabs of fossilized fish.
Trask’s commitment to science, nurtured by his childhood mentors, ensured that his discoveries remained accessible for research. In the early 2000s, the alliance began discussions with the province to implement a fossil management framework. After two decades of advocacy, B.C. adopted policies in 2022 prohibiting the removal and sale of fossils, designating collectors as ‘caretakers, not owners.’
The impact of Trask’s discovery cannot be overstated. Since his find, hundreds of new fossil genera and species have been identified in B.C., transforming the province into a paleontological hotspot. One notable discovery was Zanbilowicz’s marine reptile, later identified by Nicholls as a new genus and species: Kourisodon puntledgensis, or ‘razor tooth from the Puntledge River.’ Its unique, razor-blade-like teeth set it apart from all other known mosasaurs.
In 2023, B.C. honored Trask’s legacy by designating his elasmosaur as the provincial fossil, alongside symbols like the Pacific dogwood and spirit bear. Yet, despite decades of study, the original elasmosaur specimen remained undescribed due to poor preservation—until Trask’s twin brother, Pat, discovered another specimen in 2025. Paleontologist Robin O’Keefe named it Traskasaura sandrae, honoring Mike, Heather, and Pat Trask.
Just two weeks after learning of this tribute, Mike Trask passed away peacefully in his home on May 15, 2025. His legacy, however, endures. As Hebda aptly put it, Trask exemplified the citizen scientist, driven by curiosity and community, not formal institutions.
Thought-provoking question: In an era of professional specialization, can amateur enthusiasts still drive scientific breakthroughs? Share your thoughts in the comments—let’s keep the conversation going!
