February 11th, 2010
As Vancouver gears up for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, various communities have had the Olympic Torch pass through, including UBC, where the Torch was transferred right in front of our atrium. See the video at the Beaty Museum's YouTube channel.

February 9th, 2010
We celebrated Charles Darwin's birthday a few days early this year. We hosted our second annual Bake a Cake for Darwin event and presented Baba Brinkman (Babasword.com) and Greg Bole in an evening talk. See photos of the cakes and more.

November 18th, 2009
Carl Zimmer from Yale presented "The Origin of Species: 1859 to 2009" in which he talked about the development of new diseases, including H1N1. Museum personnel presented organisms which can cause illness to an enthusiastic audience. This installment in the Biodiversity Lecture Series can be watched on the lecture page.

November 13th-15, 2009
Oluna Ceska led a Mushroom Microscopy Workshop at UBC, with a foray into the surrounding forest. Thanks to our event partners, the Vancouver Mycological Society and Genome BC. Photos from the workshop are on the event page.

November 5th, 2009
John Marzluff from the University of Washington presented "In the Company of Crows and Ravens" as part of the Biodiversity Lecture Series. Thanks to John for a great talk and thanks to our amazing staff and volunteers for helping us with another event. The full talk can be watched on the lecture page.

October 31st, 2009
The Beaty Museum took part in the UBC Botanical Garden's Bootiful Botany Haunted Hallowe'en Event. Trick-or-treaters got to see examples of the range of organisms that suck blood, from mosquitos to hagfishes to vampire finches.

October 23rd, 2009
As part of the Advanced Molecular Biology Lab's 2009 Teacher Conference, the Beaty Museum hosted tours of Lower Mainland teachers. The groups saw some of the Museum spaces under construction and paticipated in an evolution activity that they could take back to their students.

September 19th, 2009
We were tremendously pleased with FestEVOLVE; the weather was beautiful, a great crowd showed up, and there was plenty to see and do in the courtyard. Thanks to all our participants and volunteers. For more photos, see our FestEVOLVE page.

August 22nd, 2009
Our summer open houses at the Blue Whale Project Workshop in Victoria were a great success. Thanks to everyone who came by to learn about the Project, thank you to Ellice Recycle for the venue, and a giant thank you to our Workshop associates and volunteers.

June 17th, 2009
A class of Grade One students from Frank Hobbs Elementary visited the Blue Whale Project Workshop in Victoria. For more images and information, click here.

April 27th, 2009
The UBC Herbarium, part of the Beaty Biodiversity Museum, was featured on the Food Network TV show Glutton for Punishment. Host Bob Blumer talked to mycologist (fungi scientist) Paul Kroeger about morel mushrooms, including how to differentiate them from the poisonous False Morels using the dried specimens in the Museum's collections. The entire episode can be watched online at Food Network Video.

The camera rolls.

Paul Kroeger shares his knowledge.

Bob Blumer learns about morels.

April 16th, 2009
The Beaty Biodiversity Museum presented the ninth installment in its Biodiversity Lecture Series. The Beaty Museum's Director, Dr. Wayne Maddision spoke on his recent discovery of dozens of spiders new to science in his talk: "In Search of New Species: spiders from the jungles of Papua New Guinea". For more information on this project, including video clips and an interview with Dr. Maddison on CBC Radio's Early Edition, visit our Field Notes section. You can also watch a recording of the full lecture.

Attendees find out about the Museum and its collections.

Wayne Maddison shows off a live jumping spider.

Inquisitive minds learn about the entomology collection.

March 7th, 2009
The Beaty Museum attended the annual Metro Vancouver Ideas Fair for the organization's partners and volunteers. This year's fair was held on the UBC campus and tours were run to the wide array of natural habitats in Pacific Spirit Park. Thanks to the event organizers and tour leaders, and a pat on the back to all the Metro Vancouver partners and volunteers for their continuing efforts to restore, protect, and raise awareness about the environment.

Participants gather in the morning.

Information about the Museum.

A tour of Camosun Bog.

March 4th, 2009
Specimens from the Beaty Museum's Cowan Vertebrate Collection can now be seen in the exhibit "The Bounty of Boundary Bay: The Georgia Basin Habitat Atlas" on now through June 10th, 2009 at the White Rock Museum and Archives, 14970 Marine Drive, White Rock, BC. Explore the natural habitats of White Rock, meet the plants and creatures that inhabit them, and learn about the threats they face. Through hands-on activities, photographs, marine samples, and a series of exhibit-related programs, explore the Georgia Basin and find out how you can help preserve the natural beauty of this incredibly rich area.

February 12th, 2009
In celebration of the 200th birthday of Charles Darwin, the Beaty Museum participated in the Bake a Cake for Darwin contest run by the Vancouver Evolution Festival. For more photos of the event, and all the amazing cakes, visit the VEF contest webpage.

January 17th, 2009

The Vancouver Sun has an article on Dr. Geoffrey Scudder, a Professor Emeritus at UBC, and the former Director of the Spencer Entomological Collection. To read the article and find out more about Dr. Scudder's lifelong passion, as well as the importance of collecting and naming biological specimens, visit the Vancouver Sun website.

January 8th, 2009
Nature Vancouver hosted the Museum and Dr. Andrew Trites for a presentation of "Beaty and the Beast: the blue whale comes to Vancouver". An enthusiastic crowd gathered in the Vancouver Museum to hear the story of the Blue Whale and learn more about the Beaty Museum. Thanks to the folks at Nature Vancouver for organizing this event.

Dr. Trites answers questions from the audience.

Attendees gather around a display from the Museum.

Dr. Trites with the (upside-down) skull of a Minke Whale.

December 10th, 2008

Dr. Andrew Trites, Director of marine mammal research, and Andrea Byrne, a student working in the Museum, presented the story of the Blue Whale at the Blue and Gold Revue. Held by the President's office in the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, the Blue and Gold revue is an annual entertainment event showcasing the outstanding students and initiatives at UBC.

December 3rd, 2008
We are very pleased to announce the generous donation of Kelly Norton's personal shell collection to the Beaty Biodiversity Museum. Ms. Norton's donation is in addition to her previous donation of the Alice Stein Collection of shells. The new acquisition is made up of particularly significant specimens that were given to Kelly Norton by Alice Stein. The Museum wishes to express its gratitude, and the hope that these treasures will continue to be appreciated by all who see them in the future.

December 1st-2nd, 2008
The West Beyond the West BC Digitization Symposium was held at UBC. The keynote address was delivered by Ian Wilson, Librarian and Archivist of Canada. Panel discussions covered current projects in BC and Canada that are creating, sharing, and preserving digital assets held in libraries, archives, museums, and other heritage venues. Participants identified areas of action to further the development of effective digitization in British Columbia. Thanks to all the organizers, and everyone involved in the event.

November 19th - 22nd, 2008
The Beaty Museum attended the British Columbia Museums Association (BCMA) Conference in Victoria, BC. Delegates attended a pre-conference workshop on exhibit design, as well as sessions on digitization, databasing, insurance, and tourism. Thanks to the BCMA for their organization, and to all our host venues for their hospitality. Special thanks to Kelly Sendall and the Natural History Collections staff for the behind-the-scenes tour at the Royal British Columbia Museum (RBCM).

Kelly Sendall (centre), Manager of Natural History at the RBCM.

A workshop on exhibit production.

Derek Tan presents the Museum at the BC Reports Reception.

November 5th, 2008
Robert Bateman's Get to Know program hosted a Calendar Signing at the TD branch on Georgia St. in downtown Vancouver. Kids from all over Canada submitted wildlife artwork to be included in the calendar. Representatives from the Beaty Museum were there to see our local artists signing their work. Congratulations to all the kids, and to the program for inspiring interest in the natural world.

Robert Bateman introduces the Get to Know program.

A Great Horned Owl acts as an ambassador for the natural world.

Robert Bateman and fellow artists sign calendars for the crowd.

October 26th, 2008
The Beaty Museum presented a table at the Vancouver Mushroom Show, held at Van Dusen Gardens by the Vancouver Mycological Society. We brought dried specimens along with information on how to collect mushrooms and fungi for research collections. We were happy to introduce the Museum to so many interested attendees, and we learned a great deal. Thanks to the Vancouver Mycological Society for hosting us.

An impressive display of mushrooms.

Visitors find out more about the Beaty Museum.

A tarantula infected by parasitic Cordyceps fungi.