Bring Your Group

Each group itinerary is tailored to fit your objectives.

Our educational activities are focused on the biological, chemical and physical sciences. We can also integrate videography, fine art, geography, and archaeology, to name a few. Please let us know if you have other interests, and we will customize your trip accordingly.

Field Experiences

Oceanography and Biodiversity in Grappler Inlet (2 hours)
Travel up Grappler Inlet in one of our research vessels and experience being an oceanographer! This tranquil inlet provides the backdrop for an examination of the biotic and abiotic characteristics of the ocean. Oceanographic measurements and plankton collections are taken at two locations, the head and mouth of the inlet. At each location you will measure temperature, salinity, and turbidity. Back in the laboratory, the data are discussed, comparing between the head and mouth of the inlet, and added to an ongoing multi-year study. Most plankton, collected using a fine meshed net, cannot be seen with the naked eye; the Plankton Lab provides a microscopic examination of the sample.

Research Vessel MV Alta (>1.5 hours)
A field trip to the Deer Group Islands on the MV Alta includes sampling from the subtidal environment and marine mammal and bird observation. A dredge net sampling from the sea floor yields a diversity of organisms including sea stars, urchins, octopuses, crabs, fish, sea cucumbers, and many others not inhabiting the intertidal zone. A trip to the open ocean, depending upon the season and migration pattern, whales, harbour seals, sea lions, and a diversity of marine birds can be observed. There is an additional cost for these trips, please see pricing guide (maximum 12 people per trip).

Research Vessel Barkley Star
Experience marine mammal and bird surveys in BMSC’s research and diving vessel. There is an additional cost for these trips, please see pricing guide (maximum 12 people per trip).

Brady’s Beach Intertidal Exploration (3-4 hours)
Brady’s Beach, with its picturesque sea stacks, sandy and rocky shores, is a wonderful place to explore the intertidal zone. Exploring this beach is an opportunity to see the organisms in their natural environment.

BMSC’s Education Team can deliver lectures and lead activities on intertidal ecology, including tidal and zonation processes, coastal geomorphology, kelp forest ecology, marine terrestrial interactions, and more.

Eagle Bay (2 hours min.)
Eagle Bay is a semi-exposed rocky shore where your group can observe  a diversity of intertidal animals and seaweeds in their natural habitat. Some organisms inhabiting only areas of high wave exposure, such as gooseneck barnacles, can be found here. This bay is also a beautiful place to have reflective time as the sound of crashing waves on the shore is enhanced by the whistle buoy. It is an opportunity to explore under rocks, gently handle animals and ask lots of questions.

Bioluminescence (0.5-1 hour)
This short field trip is conducted at night off the dock or in the boats at the mouth of Grappler Inlet. It is an opportunity to see the water glow! When phytoplankton are disturbed, a chemical reaction occurs. One of the products of this chemical reaction is a bright green light. Knowing the science behind it does not affect the magic of seeing bioluminescence first hand. Bioluminescence is best observed on calm days during the Spring, Summer and Fall.

Temperate Rainforest Ecology (1-3 hours)
Experience a guided walk in the coastal temperate rainforest. Our forest path meanders through old growth before entering into second growth, providing a comparison. The biology of many plants, including fungi, mosses, ferns, shrubs, and trees is discussed with an emphasis on traditional cultural uses (ethnobotany). Culturally modified trees along the path illustrate how first nations people harvest from trees.  Temperate rainforest ecology can also be incorporated with the Brady’s Beach and Pachena Bay field trips.

Pachena Point hike (all day)
Hike a section of the West Coast Trail (WCT) to Pachena Point Lighthouse through the coastal temperate rainforest. The WCT was originally a telegraph line trail, and subsequently modified to assist ship-wreck survivors after the ship Valencia was wrecked off of Pachena Point in 1906, near the present site of Pachena Point Lighthouse. Many lives were lost, making the lack of resources available to help ships in danger. The lighthouse, a 10 km hike from the trail head at Pachena beach, was built in 1907; the same year construction of the Lifesaving Trail began. Trees with cable scars and old lifesaving cabins can still be seen along the trail. The Pachena Point all-day hike is only available in the months of September and May.

Laboratory Study

Climate Change and Oceans (2 hrs)
What will climate change mean for our oceans? We will address this issue from many angles, using information your group has gathered from other labs and field trips during your time at BMSC. Topics include: a review of the carbon cycle, weather and storms, ocean currents, water density, ocean acidification, and the pH scale.

Invertebrate Diversity Lab (1.5-2 hours)
Your group will explore the diversity of live marine invertebrates found in Barkley Sound in the laboratory. Instructors will provide a brief introduction to classification systems and characteristics and identification of species. Teaching will be tailored to the level and requirements of individual groups. This lab is a great introduction to the organisms that students will observe on field trips to beaches or sampling subtidally from research vessels.

Fish Lab: Form and Function (1.5-2 hours)
This lab provides your group with a basic overview of the three main Classes of fish, Agnatha, Chondrichthyes, and Osteichthyes including characteristics and basic morphology. Adaptations of fish are discussed with a focus on buoyancy, locomotion, sensing the environment, and velocity. In the lab activities, you will get to practice identifying fish found in the lab and in our display tanks. Another activity involves choosing a habitat, food source and predator, and then creating a fish adapted to these different conditions.

Seaweed Ecology Lab (1.5-2 hours)
This lab focuses on the identification, ecology, and human use of a selection of the West Coasts’ >600 species of macroalgae. With live specimens in the lab, you can handle the algae as they learn to identify new species and the role of algae in the marine food web, with a focus on kelp (big brown algae) and the ecosystem of kelp forests, and is a valuable introduction to intertidal field studies.
Reproduction and life cycles of algae and algal pressing on herbarium paper can also be included.

Plankton Lab (1.5-2 hours)
This lab is an eye-opening experience demonstrating the diversity of life that lives suspended in the ocean.  A brief lecture focuses on types of plankton found in Barkley Sound, the biology of major groups, and how plankton plays a role in our lives (Red Tide, bioluminescence, productivity).   You are then equipped with microscopes and guides to explore the often under-appreciated world of plankton.  Your group will record the species of plankton observed, taking part in a multi-year study looking at seasonal changes in plankton diversity.  This lab usually coincides with the oceanography fieldtrip to collect plankton samples.

Experimental Marine Biology Lab (around 3 hours)
Using the scientific method as a guideline, your group will design, plan, and run their own experiments.  This is a great opportunity to focus on adaptive behaviour of many marine organisms and to get hands-on experience working with the invertebrates available in the lab.  Presentations of results and conclusions follow the completion of the experiments.  This is a great lab for those of you who would like to experience the many aspects of scientific research: brainstorming, experimental design, analysis, and presentation.
A few examples of previous experiments:
Substrata preference of hermit crabs
Swimming scallop reaction time to different sea star species

Reproduction of Marine Invertebrates (Seasonal, 1 hour plus timeline)
This lab is an examination of the spectrum of reproductive strategies that organisms have adapted to overcome the challenges of reproducing in the ocean. In one-hour your group will observe the fusion of egg and sperm, the formation of a fertilization envelope, and will have set up a culture of developing (sea urchin or sand dollar, depending on the time of year) embryos to observe throughout the duration of their stay. From these subsequent observations you will create a timeline of their developing urchins.

Marine Mammal Adaptations (2 hours)
Why can seals dive so deep without crushing their lungs? How does a baleen work? How do sea otters stay warm in the cold water? Many mammals have adapted to living in the ocean. This lab includes a brief classification of these mammals and then primarily focuses on how each group has adapted to the limitations and challenges of living in water. The Whale Lab collections of marine mammal skeletons are used extensively in this lab.

Seabirds and plastics (1.5-2 hours)
Your group will learn how to identify several species of seabirds and aquatic birds, and will examine the characteristics that make birds adapted to survive on the ocean. They will then perform case studies using replicas of stomach contents to answer the question “Is this species a good indicator of plastic pollution?” The feeding strategy, habitat, and range of each bird, along with the stomach contents will be considered, in order to determine if the bird is a good indicator species for plastic pollution.
This lab is a good lead-in for the field trip aboard the M/V Alta, since many of the birds examined in the lab can be seen along the route traveled through the Deer Group Islands.  

Primary Productivity ( 3-4 hours divided)
While conducting the light/dark Winkler bottle experiment your group will examine kelp and phytoplankton productivity. Using this classic method, you become thoroughly familiar with the process of photosynthesis and respiration. You will use dissolved oxygen kits to perform chemical titrations to measure how much oxygen is produced (or used up) in the bottles over the course of a few hours. By measuring dissolved oxygen of bottles under different conditions, you will be able to detect the fixing of inorganic (CO2) to organic (C6H12O6) by the kelp. This experiment demonstrates the importance of kelp and plankton as primary producers in the global food chain.

Workshops

Career Panel (45 min – 2 hours)
The BMSC career panel is an especially valuable experience for high school students making decisions about university and careers.  BMSC staff and researchers will join your group and present their educational background and experiences in the field of marine biology, and answer your students questions.

Conservation Case Studies (2-3 hours)
Conservation is an important initiative to encourage but can be met with frustration due to lack of resources, information, or inspiration. This workshop strives to inform and encourage thinking critically about the issues involved. Topics such as habitat loss, invasive species, population changes, pollution, climate change, over-exploitation and the various species status listing (endangered, threatened, special concern, extirpated, extinct) in Canada are discussed in an open forum.  Your group will then examine the biology of a species at risk, the threats to its survival, what conservation measures are in place, and what you can do to help.

Gavia immer -Minocqua, Wisconsin, USA -swimming-8

Fish Printing (1 hour)
 Gyotaku (‘gyo’ meaning fish and ‘taku’ meaning impression) is a traditional method of fish printing dating back to the mid-1800’s. Japanese fishermen recorded their catches by placing rice paper onto fish painted with ink. In this workshop, your group create their own gyotaku using rubber fish and acrylic paint. Bring T-shirts, sweatshirts, or canvas bags to print, or you may use paper available in the lab. These prints make wonderful souvenirs to take home.

Climate Change Grant Proposal Simulation (1.5 hrs)
Age range: grade 10 – university
Your group will review a case study outlining chemical and physical impacts of climate change in a marine ecosystem in small groups. Based on their readings, they then test their knowledge of the scientific method by identifying a specific research question and designing a realistic, persuasive grant proposal to be presented to “the panel” (the instructors) and the rest of the group.


Slide Shows

Marine Mammal Slide Show (1-2 hours)
Enjoy a virtual survey of the marine mammals inhabiting the North Pacific Ocean.  This comprehensive slide show includes the pinnipeds (seals and sea lions), the mustelids (sea otters), the cetaceans (dolphins and porpoises, and the magnificent whales).  The biology of each group and species specific facts are discussed.  Fascinating details about each group make this slide show engaging and thought provoking. 

Kelp Forest Ecology and Species at Risk Slide Show (1-2 hours)
There are more species of kelp on the west coast of Vancouver Island than any where else in the world, and BMSC has played a key role in research on kelp forest ecosystems. The slide show presents basic kelp forest ecology, a discussion of why these ecosystems are important, how kelp forests have changed in the last few hundred years, the community interactions among kelp,  sea otters, urchins and abalone, and how changes in the kelp forests are affecting humans and species at risk.

3 – Day Sample Itinerary

Day 1
1600 Arrive BMSC, settle into accommodations.
1700 Tour of BMSC facilties and safety orientation
1800 Dinner
1900 Field trip: Oceanography and biodiversity in Grappler Inlet, plankton collections.
2030 Slide Show: Marine Mammals of Barkley Sound.

Day 2 (Low tide of 0.5m @ 0900)
0730 Breakfast
0830 Field Trip: Introduction to intertidal ecology including zonation patterns at Aguilar Point.
1030 Lab: Marine invertebrate diversity in Barkley Sound.
1230 Lunch
1330 Field Trip: Open ocean sampling (dredge) and seabird/marine mammal surveys on board the research vessel M.V. Alta
1530 Field trip: Temperate rainforest ecology, biodiversity study
1800 Dinner
1900 Lab: Microscopic examination of the plankton
2030 Video: “Life at the Edge of the Sea” A BBC documentary filmed here at BMSC.
2130 Field trip: Bioluminescence in the inlets of Bamfield

Day 3 (Low tide of 0.4m @ 0940)
0730 Breakfast, pack-up
0830 Field Trip: Sandy and rocky shores of Brady’s beach, tidepool studies.
1130 Field trip: Life on docks and pilings.
1230 Lunch
1330 depart BMSC.

5 – Day Sample Itinerary

Day 1
10:15   Pickup by BMSC shuttle at Nanaimo Airport
Lunch en route (Nanaimo or Port Alberni)
Stop at Cathedral Grove to stretch your legs
17:00   Arrive at BMSC, check in at the Whale Lab, settle into accommodations
18:00   Dinner
19:00   Tour of the facilities, safety orientation (Meet in traffic Circle)
20:00   Video: BBC’s “Life at the Edge of the Sea” (Rix A)

 Day 2 (Low tide of 1.0 m @ 09:27)
7:30     Breakfast
8:30     Lab: Marine invertebrate reproduction. Set up sea urchin embryo experiment and start development timelines. (Whale Lab) *Time to visit the touch tank
10:30   Group 1: Field trip: Oceanography in Grappler Inlet (Meet at docks)
Group 2: Field Trip: Barkley Star (Meet at Docks)
12:30   Lunch
13:30   Group 1: Field Trip: Barkley Star (Meet at Docks at 13:20)
Group 2: Field trip: Oceanography in Grappler Inlet (Meet at docks)
15:30   Break to warm up
16:00   Lab: Seabirds as indicators of ecosystem health (Ross Hall)
18:00   Dinner
19:00   Check embryos (Whale Lab)
19:15   Workshop: Sustainable seafood (Ross Hall)

Day 3 (Low tide of 1.0 m @ 10:07)
7:30     Breakfast
8:30     Field Trip: Intertidal seaweeds and ecology at Eagle Bay (Meet at docks)
10:30   Lab: Climate change and oceans. (Lower Main Lab)
12:30   Lunch

Group 1Group 2
13:30Field Trip: Sampling for invertebrates on board the Alta (Meet at Docks)Field trip: Examination of life on docks and pilings (Meet at docks)
14:30Field trip: Examination of life on docks and pilings (Meet at docks)Field Trip: Sampling for invertebrates on board the Alta (Meet at Docks)
15:30Break to warm up
16:00Lab: Microscopic examination of plankton and review of oceanography data. Don’t forget to check embryos and update timelines (Rix lower level)

18:00 Dinner
19:00 Art activity: Fish printing

Day 4 (Low tide of 1.0 m @ 10:53)
7:30 Breakfast
8:30 Field Trip: Brady’s Beach. Measure water quality variables and diversity in tidepools. (Meet at docks)
12:30 Lunch
13:30 Lab: Experimental marine biology. Design and perform experiments on live animals, then present your findings to the class. (Whale Lab)
16:00 Souvenir sales in the Whale Lab, final embryo check and release of babies!
16:30 Workshop: Marine Conservation Case Studies (Rix A)
18:00 Dinner
19:00 Slideshow: Marine mammals of the west coast (Ross Hall)

Day 5 (Low tide of 1.1 m @ 11:48)
7:30 Breakfast, build a bag lunch and fill a water bottle.
8:30 Pack up and move out of accommodations, load luggage onto BMSC bus.
9:00 Field trip: Hike to Pachena Bay
12:30 Lunch on Pachena beach (if weather permits)
13:30 Depart on BMSC bus.