Huntsman Marine Science Centre

The Huntsman Marine Science Centre (acronym: HMSC; previously Huntsman Marine Laboratory) is located on Lower Campus Road in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada. The centre is a membership-driven, nonprofit organization founded by a consortium of universities with the support of the National Research Council of Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and the New Brunswick Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture.[1] Mr. Chris Bridger is the Executive Director; Dr. W.B. Scott is senior scientist emeritus.[2] It is named in honor of Archibald Gowanlock Huntsman, director of the St. Andrews Biological Station that adjoins the centre, who stimulated fishery research in the region.[3]

History

It was founded in 1969 by a consortium of universities in Eastern Canada, and several government departments, who pooled their resources in order to provide field research and teaching facilities that would complement their programs in marine biology and oceanography. The Huntsman Marine Laboratory was established on 20 acres (8.1 ha) of land that was provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and included two residential buildings that were called the Ambridge Estate. The government assisted with the purchase of the Sir Thomas Tait Estate which included another 50 acres, and the large Anderson House, which provides accommodation for visiting students. A public aquarium opened in 1972. The name was changed to Huntsman Marine Science Centre in 1987.[4] In 1991 and again in 1999, the HMSC was awarded the Gulf of Maine Visionary Award.[2]

Geography

The HMSC laboratories are located on 74 acres (30 ha) of land at the estuary of the St. Croix River at the Bay of Fundy.[5]

Services and facilities

HMSC has teaching and aquaculture research laboratories and a 15 metres (49 ft) research vessel.[2] The HMSC hosts the executive office of the Ocean Biogeographic Information System.[6] HMSC's education branch offers academic and public education programs for schoolchildren, undergraduate students and school teachers. The research branch works with governmental agencies and private industry, while its biodiversity unit, the Atlantic Reference Centre, has the largest collections of Atlantic organisms in Canada.[1] The HMSC hosts the executive office of the Ocean Biogeographic Information System.[6] The Huntsman Aquarium and Museum includes a teeming touch tank.[7] Live marine specimens, displays, and marine ecology films are available from May to October.[8]

References

1. "Huntsman Marine Science Centre (HMSC)". University of Guelph. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
2. "The Huntsman Marine Science Centre - Complete Profile". Industry Canada. 10 March 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
3. Eiselt, Marianne; Eiselt, H. A. (19 April 2002). Discovering New Brunswick. Formac Publishing Company. pp. 28–. ISBN 978-0-88780-556-1. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
4. "History". Huntsman Marine Science Centre. Archived from the original on 29 April 2011. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
5. Huntsman Marine Science Centre Archived 2011-10-01 at the Wayback Machine, McGill University. Accessed May 3, 2008.
6. D’Or, Ronald (2003). Unknown Ocean: The Baseline Report of the Census of Marine Life Research Program, 2003. DIANE Publishing. pp. 8–. ISBN 978-1-4379-0717-9. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
7. Fodor's Travel Publications (7 March 2006). Fodor's Nova Scotia & Atlantic Canada: With New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland & Labrador. Random House Digital, Inc. pp. 102–. ISBN 978-1-4000-1604-4. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
8. Rogers, Barbara Radcliffe; Rogers, Stillman (1 August 2004). Guide to Eastern Canada, 8th. Globe Pequot. pp. 234–. ISBN 978-0-7627-2984-5. Retrieved 13 April 2011.