VIU Invites Public to Family Day at Deep Bay Marine Field Station

There’s still plenty to do for the whole family at Vancouver Island University’s Deep Bay Marine Field Station during the annual Brant Wildlife Festival.

A Family Day Open House will be held at the Field Station on Sunday, April 12 from 10 am to 4 pm. There will be touch tanks, large public aquariums, face painting and other marine science educational activities. Admission is by donation. 

Visitors can also enjoy an exhibition by artist Caroline James of sixty limited edition original bird paintings in oil and mixed media until April 19. The prints are mounted on beautiful mahogany and spruce supports and then coated in clear high gloss epoxy resin giving the traditional image a very unique and modern look.

The Field Station’s popular High Tea by the Sea, featuring a selection of teas, sandwiches and treats, also continues every Tuesday during April between 11 am and 2 pm.

Various authors and speakers will participate in a spring lecture series Thursday’s at 7 pm until April 30 at the Field Station. The cost is $10 per lecture. For an additional $15, guests can indulge in a pre-lecture themed dinner at 5:30 pm. Dinner tickets include admission to the Field Station. Advance registration is required.

See www.viu.ca/deepbay for a full schedule of other upcoming lectures.

For music lovers, the Field Station will host a Music by the Bay luncheon and concert on April 19, 1 to 4 pm, featuring the A Cappella Plus Chamber Choir performing “A Buffet of Choral Music: twelve years of musical fare.” Tickets are $40 each.

The annual Brant Wildlife festival, organized by The Nature Trust of British Columbia, is a celebration of nature, particularly Brant geese as they rest and feed on the shores of the Parksville and Qualicum beach areas on Vancouver Island. Other festival events will include wildlife viewing, kids nature camps, marsh walks and more. (www.brantfestival.bc)

VIU’s Deep Bay Marine Field Station, located in Bowser about an hour’s drive north of Nanaimo, has teemed up with BC Nature Trust to offer activities during the festival for three years.

The Field Station is a key research facility, public marine science centre and a popular tourism destination on Vancouver Island.

Advance tickets or registration is required for all events except Family Day. Tickets are available at the Deep Bay Marine Field Station at 370 Crome Pt. Road in Bowser, or at the Salish Sea Market in Bowser, Court Yard Café in Qualicum Beach and at A Capella Plus in Nanaimo.

For more information visit www.viu.ca/deepbay or to register for events call 250.740.6611.

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Media Contact

Janina Stajic, Manager, Vancouver Island University P: 250.740.6288 E: Communications@viu.ca Twitter: @VIUNews