Since the launch of the team name and our mascot Harvey in 2013, many have been asking, "What exactly is a HarbourCat?"

Well we have scoured the biological and taxanomical literature and found a description for you:

HarbourCat [hahr-ber-kat]

The HarbourCat (Felis portus) is a North American mammal of the cat family Felidae, first appearing in the Victoria area of British Columbia during the Non-Baseballian era of 2011-2012. It is a unique species, found predominantly in the Pacific Northwest region of Canada and the United States, including the southern portions of the Province of British Columbia and the States of Washington and Oregon. It has been also briefly spotted at times in the central part of the Province of Alberta.  It is a migrational species, with members of its colony spending summers in the Pacific Northwest, but then dispersing to different parts of Canada and the U.S. during the fall, winter and spring seasons. Strangely, there were no reported sightings during the summers of 2020 and 2021, leading many to think the species had gone extinct.  This is not the case however and it appears that HarbourCats will be back in abundance in 2022.

The HarbourCat is an adaptable predator that inhabits the coastal, forest and urban ecosystems of Victoria and Vancouver Island, but is equally at home in the interior mountains and rangelands of British Columbia, Washington State and Oregon, or the flatlands of Alberta. It persists in much of its original range and populations are healthy.

With a gray or white coat, whiskered face, dark navy blue-tufted ears and deep aqua blue markings on its nose, the HarbourCat resembles many other species of the Felidae family including the Puma, Lynx, Cougar, Bobcat, Jaguar, Panther and Leopard, but its distinct colours and markings make it a unique member among all the world’s cat families.

HarbourCats tend to have lithe and flexible bodies with muscular limbs. They are fleet of foot when running and quick, agile and powerful when confronted or eluding attack from enemies. HarbourCats typically range in height from 5’5” to 6’6” and can weigh anywhere from 150-250 pounds depending on age and maturity. The largest known species was observed briefly in Victoria in 2016 and reached 6'8" in height.

Though the HarbourCat tends to prefer a diet of sunflower seeds and peanut butter and jam sandwiches, it also feeds regularly on a variety of apple known as a Pippin, dill Pickles, Sweet onions, a confection known as a Nanaimo Bar and a somewhat new and tasty delicacy called a NorthPaw, found only in the central interior portion of BC. It will hunt anything from Bells, Knights, AppleSox, Riverhawks and Falcons to the rare, left-handed Marmot found near the Port Angeles area of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington and the NightOwl found in the Nanaimo area of Vancouver Island. It has even been known, at times, to prey on Elks in Oregon and Black Bears and Raptors, particularly in the southwest portion of Washington State.  Prey selection depends on location and habitat, time of the summer, and abundance.

Like most cats, the HarbourCat is territorial and will do everything it can to defend its home turf, particularly from Drifters migrating from the south, as well as all other prey.  It uses several methods to mark its territorial boundaries, including spitting out the hulls of sunflower seeds and marking the ground with their metal-like claws.

Although many members of the cat family have been hunted extensively, both for sport and fur, the HarbourCat is actually deeply revered, with many humans often dressing as a HarbourCat and congregating en masse in some sort of religious ritual to catch a glimpse of the rare cat in its summer territory.

We received many great names in our Name the Team contest, with animal and aquatic themes, as well those of teams from the past, but we felt this was the most appropriate name submission, one that worked well on all fronts. (Our favourite submission that wasn't selected? The Victoria Secrets... which was followed closely by the Victoria Humpbacks.)

While the Seals and other former teams were very well supported and had a great following, we felt it important for this team to have a fresh start, with their own new identity and to create a brand that was unique and in keeping with the style and character of other teams in the West Coast League. HarbourCats merchandise proved to be very popular with our fans, as you can see the distinctive HC hats all over the South Island. Look for new merchandising sales offerings in 2018.

While most may assume this because cougars are a wildlife species that are present on the Island and that have roamed around the Inner Harbour in the past, the cat is meant to be a generic wildcat, one with an imposing demeanour that implies it will be a “protector” of the harbour and will not be afraid to tangle with any foe that comes its way.

The HarbourCats and all teams in the West Coast League play summer collegiate wood-bat baseball. The HarbourCats and WCL teams feature MLB Prospects from many of the top college baseball programs in North America. All WCL teams recruit players nationwide and are committed to developing aspiring pros. Our players are striving to get to that next level and the next stop for them after college will be pro or minor-pro teams. Many of our players have already been drafted, but chose to stay in school and will re-enter the draft when they graduate. As a league, no other college summer league has ever had as many drafted student-athletes and alumni reaching the big leagues so early in its history. A record fifty-five former or current West Coast League players were selected in the 2012 Major League Baseball draft. That record was broken as the number rose to 57 in 2013, and is expected to rise in the future. In 2017, there were 271 alumni of the WCL playing professional baseball at all levels, including 32 that were active on the rosters of MLB teams. This included 2013 Victoria HarbourCat Nick Pivetta, who became the first HarbourCat to play in the MLB when he pitched for the Phillies in 2017.

NO. Our players are all collegiate level players and are enrolled at colleges and universities in the U.S. and Canada. As such they are NOT professional players and do not get paid as such. This would void their college eligibility. Many of our players have been drafted previously by MLB clubs, but choose to stay in school and use the great game of baseball to provide them with world-class education rather than turning pro at that time.