I think I posted these years ago but I don't know what happened to that.
I acquired these from the same old (late) rockhound couple from whom I got a number of other 'orphaned' items that caused me to join the Forum looking for more info.
The people I got them from could not remember where they came from.
They are obviously some sort of nut or seed. They are rather lightweight, but they still sink in water and are almost rocklike, which you can tell by tapping them on your teeth. If they aren't fossil, I'd say they've been buried for some time.
For all I know they could be from around here. Most of the old couple's stuff was from around here on the Island (Upper Cretaceous Nanaimo Group, mostly), though they did have some stuff from elsewhere in North America too.
Also, every now and then I come across something in my hunts that are reminiscent, such as the thing in the next post below, though this one is squashed - perhaps the 4 above came out of one of the coal-producing formations in Nanaimo area. But if on the other hand someone recognizes them from a different location, or what their ID may be, I'd appreciate knowing about it.