Activity Booklets

New to the gift shop this week are Fundy Discovery Aquarium Activity Booklets!  The bilingual booklets include lots of fun activities for children, such as a seal true and false, colouring pages, and a periwinkle board game.  A great item to keep children amused during summer road trips or to bring back memories of aquarium visits! 

Find these booklets in the aquarium gift shop during open hours, 10am to 5pm.  No admission charge if just visiting the gift shop.  While at the gift shop also check out the new Fundy Discovery Aquarium animal trading cards and the Huntsman poster series. 

Summer at the Aquarium – Weeks 7 to 9

We are very excited to share all of the items that we have been working on for the summer interactive exhibits!  Below is a taste of the final two themes of the summer.

Week 7 – August 13-19

Whale and Seal Week: check out the amazing display of whale baleen and bones, learn how scientists ID different whale species, and see just how you measure up compared to some of the whales that visit the Bay of Fundy.

Weeks 8 and 9 – August 20-September 1

Ocean Appreciation:  check out the most popular treasures and exhibits from previous weeks.

Also, each week there are children’s day camps on Wednesday and Saturday.  For more information about how to register visit our website www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium or call (506) 529-1200.

Come and visit us this summer at the Fundy Discovery Aquarium to see all of the amazing exhibits we have prepared!  There will be lots of new things for all ages to see, do and enjoy!

Do you know what this is? 

Visit us Whale and Seal Week to find out!

We will have some amazing displays of bones during Whale and Seal Week.

Summer at the Aquarium – Weeks 5 and 6

This summer we are excited to share all of the items that we have stored away in our backrooms.  Visit the aquarium each week to check out a different interactive exhibit featuring our treasures!

Week 5 – July 30-August 5

Shark Week: dig in the sand in search of ‘shark teeth’, check out the different shark jaws and teeth on display, and learn about sharks that occur in the Bay of Fundy.

Week 6 – August 6-12

Working on the Water Week: let the kids have fun playing our fishing game, search the aquarium for the fisherman’s lost equipment, and view the array of different fishing nets, traps and buoys on display.

Also, each week there are children’s day camps on Wednesday and Saturday.  For more information about how to register visit our website www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium or call (506) 529-1200.

Below are some pictures in preparation for weeks 5 and 6.  Check out the blog tomorrow for a sneak peek on the last two summer exhibits.

Shark jaw...those teeth look sharp!

Making shark teeth for the dig.

Some of the buoys for the display. 

Why are they all different?

Do you know what this is?

Visit during Working on the Water Week to find out.

Summer at the Aquarium – Weeks 3 and 4

All summer the Fundy Discovery Aquarium will be hosting a new interactive exhibit each week.  We are having lots of fun preparing for them!

Week 3 – July 16-22

Invasive Species Week: search for the invasive green crabs in the touch pool (they are good at hiding!), check out the periwinkle display, and take home some information on marine invasive species.

Week 4 – July 23-29

Seabird Week: view some of the amazing seabirds from our collection, conduct a seabird scavenger hunt (there might even be a prize!), and learn about the remarkable migration of some seabirds.

Also, each week there are children’s day camps on Wednesday and Saturday.  For more information about how to register visit our website www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium or call (506) 529-1200.

Check out the pictures below for a taste of weeks 3 and 4.  Tomorrow I will post some information on weeks 5 (sharks!) and 6 (working on the water).

Marked green crabs. 

Will you be able to find them in the touch pool?

What or who made those holes?

Beautiful puffin.

The little world traveller.

Our first attempt to make a globe to show tern migration. 

Visit during Seabird Week to see the final product.

Summer at the Aquarium – Weeks 1 and 2

Each week this summer the Fundy Discovery Aquarium will present a different interactive exhibit. Huntsman staff will raid the backrooms and their personal stashes of hidden treasures to show off some Bay of Fundy specialties.  There will also be children’s activity sheets for each exhibit. 

Week 1 – July 2-8

Plankton Week: view plankton using a microscope, check out the huge food pyramid, and make phytoplankton to add to the exhibit.

Week 2 – July 9-15

Biodiversity Week:  dig for worms in the sand, view shells from around the world, check out the deep sea models, and take home a painted sand dollar.

Also, each week there are children’s day camps on Wednesday and Saturday.  For more information about how to register visit our website www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium or call (506) 529-1200.

Below are some pictures of what we have been working on for weeks 1 and 2.  Check out tomorrow’s blog for a sneak peek of weeks 3 and 4.

Come see the huge food pyramid during Plankton Week.

 

View plankton through the microscope.

How many can you identify?

Take home a sand dollar souvenir during Biodiversity Week.

Dig for gooey worms during Biodiversity Week!

Trading Cards

We are very excited to offer Fundy Discovery Aquarium animal trading cards at the gift shop!  The cards in series #1 feature Loki the harbour seal, Jethro the halibut, DeeDee the jumbo lobster, and sea cucumbers, anemones, and hermit crabs from the touch pool.  The cards have great pictures and drawings of the animals and lots of interesting and fun facts!

You can visit the gift shop during aquarium open hours, 10am to 5pm.  If just visiting the gift shop there is no admission charge.

While at the gift shop also check out the series of Huntsman posters which include Life in the Bay of Fundy Intertidal Zone, Bay of Fundy Whales, and Phylum Arthropoda. 

Free Lecture Series

Once a month the Fundy Discovery Aquarium hosts a free public lecture series in the beautiful new Dunn Science Theatre.   Following the 45 minute lecture there are refreshments offered around the touch pools in Gallery II of the aquarium. 

This summer’s lectures will feature two professors who teach university field courses at the Huntsman:

·         July 24, Dr. Pieter deHart, Seabird Anatomy and Adaptations

·         August 14, Dr. Catherine Hood, About the Whales

For more information on these interesting lectures visit our website, www.huntsmanmarine.ca.

Dr. deHart on the Huntsman research vessel with his students.

Shearwater

Dr. Hood (on the right) in search of whales with her students.

Whales in the Bay of Fundy.

Aquarium Memberships

We are excited to announce the launch of Fundy Discovery Aquarium Annual Memberships!

Join today and enjoy these benefits:

·         Unlimited one year admission

·         10% off at our gift shop, birthday parties/sleepovers

·         Quarterly newsletter ‘InDepth’

·         Invitations and advance notice of Special Events at the Aquarium

These also make great gifts!

Visit the aquarium website for more information, www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium/.

The tidal tank is now open!

Our happy first member!

Glenview Senior Public School – Day 3

This morning the Glenview students awoke to a gorgeous sunny day.  Whoever requested the sun, thank you! 

Again half of the group headed to the Sunbury Shores Art and Nature Centre to make prints while the other students came to work with me in the wet lab.  The students did some amazing drawings of the animals that they had collected earlier in the week and had fun working with the glow-in-the dark paint to decorate their deep sea creatures.  We now have some great student work to post in our labs!

After a yummy lunch of fish and chips the students loaded on the bus to go for a tour of Ministers Island.  This island is a historical landmark because it was the summer residence for Sir William Van Horne, an important figure in the building of the Canadian Pacific Railway.  Another reason the island is popular is because at low tide it is not an island at all but connected to the mainland by a sandbar.  Hope someone checked the tide table!

To finish off the afternoon the students will be stopping in town to do some souvenir shopping and picking up snacks for their long bus ride home early tomorrow morning.

Thanks for the great visit Glenview!  Safe travels tomorrow morning!

Which animal do you want to study?

Working hard on their drawings.

Glow-in-the-dark is awesome!

Sir William Van Horne's cottage on Ministers Island.

Glenview Senior Public School – Day 2

The Glenview group was treated to some nice warm weather again today.  Unfortunately, the sun didn’t stay out very long but at least the rain held off until late this afternoon.  Good thing there is an inside activity booked for this evening!

This morning half of the Glenview students headed off to Sunbury Shores Art and Nature Centre to learn about the connection between art and biology.  They learned how to make prints from a printmaker.  I hear the prints turned out really well. 

The other half of the students joined me in the lab to observe and get up close with the animals they collected yesterday on the boat and on the beach.  During the activity the students drew and described the animals and had the chance to observe them moving.  There are some very talented artists in the group! 

While at the Huntsman we try to expose the students to as much of the local marine environment as we can.  One of the locations that we just can’t explore with the students is the deep sea.  So while in the lab I conducted a presentation for the students to learn about the challenges of living in the deep sea.  We also discussed some of the amazing creatures that live in the deep sea and the adaptations that allow them to live in this harsh environment.  We focused in on the bioluminescence that many animals in the deep sea possess and did some art using glow in the dark paint.  Pretty sure some of the paint ended up on the students (on purpose!) so hopefully it washes off! 

The big field trip for the students today was to Pottery Creek, a muddy beach, to explore and see what lives in the sediment.  Armed with their shovels and buckets the students headed out in search of worm poop (yes, poop!) to see who could find the biggest worm.  The students were amazed to learn that some of the worms they found have teeth!  Bet you would be surprised to be bitten by a worm!

The last marine biology activity of the day was in the aquarium theatre where Meagan talked to the students about lobsters.  She even brought with her a live lobster to show the students.  No, there was no tasting after the presentation! 

This evening the students will be travelling into the town of St. Stephen to have fun at the bowling alley.  Good luck!    

Hermit crab posing nicely for his portrait.

Drawing a sea urchin...not an easy feat!

Giving their deep sea creatures some "glow".

Blood worm...watch out for its teeth!

Learning all about the lives of lobsters.

Keswick Valley Memorial School

This afternoon we welcomed to the Huntsman campus 74 grade 6, 7 and 8 students from Keswick Valley Memorial School.  While on campus the students went for a beach walk, toured the aquarium, watched Snorkel and Loki have their supper and got hands-on with arthropods in the wet lab.  They had a great day, with the rain only catching the last beach walk group!    

Below are some pictures from their time at the Huntsman. 

Observing the arthropods.

Is it a boy or a girl crab?

Rock crab!

Green crab with eggs.

Sturgeon!

Skate in the touch pool.

Vincent Massey Elementary

Today we had an eager group of students from the local elementary school visit the aquarium.  They had lots of fun touring the aquarium and looking at the different coloured lobsters, the harbour seals, Snorkel and Loki, and all of the animals in the touch pools.  After their tour the students joined Meagan in the lab to learn more about harbour seals and their pups.  They played a game where the mother pup tried to find ‘her’ pup on the beach and also put together a seal life cycle wheel.  The students also did some great seal impressions! 

Glenview Senior Public School – Day 1

Yesterday we had a group of 45 excited grade 8 students from Toronto arrive on campus in the wee hours of the morning for their week of marine biology.  After getting some sleep and then breakfast the students met with Tracey, Meagan and I to start their day.  Since they are such a large number they were split into three smaller groups for the day’s activities.  

During the day each group toured the Fundy Discovery Aquarium and had a chance to see some of the amazing animals that live in the Bay of Fundy, including harbour seals, a 22 pound lobster, wolffish and the prehistoric sturgeon.  Their favourite parts of the aquarium were definitely the two touch pools filled with marine creatures such as sea stars, scallops, hermit crabs and skates.  Touching the live animals was so much fun!

Another activity each group did during the day was visit the wet lab to learn about the life in a drop of water.  The students used microscopes to look at phytoplankton and zooplankton that had been collected for them by other Glenview students on the research vessel.  Looking through the microscopes was pretty cool but when you add in a game of plankton bingo it got even better!

The third activity that all of the students did during the day was a trip out onto the water with the Huntsman’s research vessel, the Fundy Spray.  While on board we did plankton tows and scallop drags to collect the live specimens that the students will examine in the lab throughout the week.  The students really enjoyed sorting through the scallop drag to count the sea cucumbers, urchins, sand dollars and other animals that were pulled up from the bottom.  Plus, the weather was awesome!

To finish off the marine biology activities for the day all of the students put on their shiny new rubber boots to visit the intertidal zone (beach) at Indian Point.  The students were surprised to find hiding under the rocks and seaweed all sorts of animals including green crabs, sea stars, and sideswimmers.  Also, the tide was coming in so they got to see the awesome power of the Bay of Fundy tides!

After supper the students trekked into the town of St. Andrews to learn some of the history of the area.  They were lucky to have a beautiful evening to explore the town!      

       

The scallop drag brought lots of animals from the bottom for us to examine.

Checking out the collection from the plankton tows.

Enjoying being on the water!

Copepod under the microscope.

Skate in the touch pool!

Exploring the intertidal zone at Indian Point.

What did you find?

Loch Lomond Elementary

This morning at the Aquarium we had some very excited grade 3 students from Loch Lomond Elementary School!  The students toured the aquarium with Justin, played with the animals in the two touch pools and got to see the harbour seals, Snorkel and Loki, eat their yummy fish breakfast!  The students also did some activities in the wet lab to learn about seal pups.  Can you make a sound like a seal pup?  The students did some pretty good impression!

Below are some pictures of the students at the aquarium.

Listening for the sound of their seal pup.

Watching the seal feeding...yummy herring!

Putting together their seal life cycle wheels.