top of page
Fundy Discovery Aquarium
Fundy Discovery Aquarium
Ocean S.T.E.A.M.
High School Career Exploration and Interest Development
Ocean S.T.E.A.M.
High School Career Exploration and Interest Development
Aquarium
Aquarium
Recommendations for Visiting Scientist Applicants
Press Room
The Huntsman Marine Science Centre turns 55 this week!
St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada – August 19, 2024
Over 55 years, we have:
-
Educated more than 80,000 students of all ages on all aspects of marine biology and other subjects
-
Hosted +1.2M visitors to the Fundy Discovery Aquarium to learn about local marine life and the working waterfront
-
Supported research that has resulted in more than 500 publications in internationally recognized peer-reviewed journals
The Huntsman Marine idea began in 1967, with Dr. John Anderson leading the charge and testing the concept through a Visiting Investigators Program at the adjacent St. Andrews Biological Station in 1968. Success of this program provided further impetus to proceed with legal incorporation of the Huntsman Marine Laboratory in 1969 as a completely independent, federally incorporated non-profit and registered charitable organization. Our name was formally changed to The Huntsman Marine Science Centre in 1987.
Our first Annual General Meeting of the Membership was hosted on August 23, 1970 and we have celebrated our anniversary around this date ever since. This first gathering witnessed Dr. A.G. Huntsman himself cutting the opening ribbon to a standing ovation of dignitaries representing all of the major Canadian universities at that time from Ontario east along with the Province of New Brunswick, Fisheries Research Board of Canada (precursor of present Fisheries & Oceans Canada), the National Research Council and the Royal Ontario Museum. Many advancements made in our early formative years to establish Huntsman Marine have persisted and propelled us to the institution that we are today.
In 1970, we purchased the historical Sir Thomas Tait Estate – Link's Crest – with the assistance of the Province of New Brunswick, including its expansive acreage of land and buildings, to be used as accommodations for visiting students and researchers. These premises have seen considerable expansion over the years and now include 108 beds under our management – second highest number available as accommodations in the Town of St. Andrews (only behind the famed Algonquin Resort) – while remaining true to our general education mission. Nearly 15,000 meals are prepared from our Upper Campus commercial kitchen each year, primarily to feed hungry students after a great day in the field learning about the Bay of Fundy! https://www.huntsmanmarine.ca/studentliving
Students started to arrive by 1970, initially as undergraduate students completing various marine biology field courses and graduate students conducting their thesis research activities. We expanded our reach to include overnight high school field courses in 1977. In 1983, we introduced a new field trip program to introduce marine and coastal biology to local primary and secondary school children. All of these educational outlets, along with innovative ‘edutainment’ tourism offerings, continue strong to this day with more than 3,000 students of all ages added each year to our total education impact. Dr. Anderson had incredible foresight when he wrote in 1999: “I think the greatest contribution the Huntsman will make to Canada will come from its education programs, in particular the ones for school children.”
https://www.huntsmanmarine.ca/education
We are best known to the general public for operating an
aquarium – with our first to open in 1972 thereby cementing Huntsman Marine as an anchor within the local tourism sector with the oldest running attraction – so locals and tourists alike are able to experience and learn about Bay of Fundy marine life. Our initial Aquarium/Museum received major renovations in 1984 to provide a winterized facility with greatly enhanced space for more interpretative displays. This upgraded facility operated for an additional 27 years until eventually replaced by our present day Fundy Discovery Aquarium. Today, we greet more than 30,000 visitors per year eager to learn about the Bay of Fundy, see a seal feeding or other creature feature, or simply to get a face painting while incidentally sparking an interest in our ocean and its protection. https://www.huntsmanmarine.ca/aquarium
OceanSteamCourses
Independent research began in 1974 when our own staff were employed to explore genetics and selective breeding of Atlantic salmon, initially to increase the adult return rate within a sea ranching effort and later in support of the fledgling local fish farming sector. As a result of those trials, the Saint John River Atlantic salmon stock was chosen as the preferred strain for local farming operations and subsequently domesticated for use in culture to this day. Our Larval Fish Laboratory was established in 1977 and later this collection was merged with the Fisheries & Oceans Canada Identification Centre to create the Atlantic Reference Centre in 1984 as a joint venture within a single natural history museum of ocean organisms primarily from the western Atlantic Ocean. Both of these disciplines – Breeding & Genetics and Taxonomy & Biodiversity – remain strong at Huntsman Marine coupled with an added focus on Aquatic Toxicology and Animal Health research since 2015.
https://www.huntsmanmarine.ca/research
We look forward to a future with more Huntsman Marine impact through local, regional and international efforts focused on the ocean economy, literacy and conservation. In 2022, our Board of Directors approved a new Huntsman Marine at 75 Years Strategic Vision, which presents an ambitious future of growth for the institution by 2044. Four priority areas were included with a series of measureable goals – ocean research, ocean science literacy, economic impact, and fiscal sustainability. The common sentiment is that having more of everything that Huntsman Marine has to offer will provide tremendous benefit for the local environment, society and economy. We believe we are well positioned to deliver on our ambitious goals as detailed here:
https://www.huntsmanmarine.ca/visionmissionvalue
Story by Huntsman Marine staff writer.
For additional information or images relating to this article, please email huntsman@huntsmanmarine.ca.
Return to our Press Room for more stories!
bottom of page