Media Releases
Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre Acquires Northern Abalone
Posted on: July 30, 2010
The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre has taken a huge step towards educating visitors about conserving threatened species with the addition of Northern abalone to its habitats. It is one of the only public aquariums in Canada with a permit to exhibit this diminishing species.
Northern Abalone once thrived on the west coast. It was traditionally harvested by First Nations for meat, and its shells were used for jewellery. The decline in abalone numbers resulted from nearly two decades of legalized commercial harvesting and from continued poaching after its ban in 1990. The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre obtained its Northern abalone from the Bamfield Marine Science Centre, home of the Bamfield Community Huu ay aht Abalone Project, which aims to replenish the mollusk by breeding and reintroducing it into the wild.
Aquarists and Oceaneers at the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre are excited to be participating in the mission to restore the abalone population by creating much needed public education. “We wanted to put this species on display to help our visitors identify abalone if they see it being taken from our shoreline”, says Mike Anderson, Head Aquarist at the Centre in Sidney. “If people can recognize it, then we have a much better chance of being able to replenish it and help remove abalone from the list of threatened species.”
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About the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre
The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre is an aquarium and marine education centre focused on the amazing ecosystem of the Salish Sea. The Centre operates as a not-for-profit community facility that is self supporting through admission fees, grants and donations. The Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre is governed, funded and owned by the New Marine Centre Society. Funds for the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre were raised through generous community support, and a major donation from Shaw Communications. The Centre is located in a spectacular waterfront building in Sidney, BC.
For further information, please contact Robyn Waterman, Public Relations Manager, Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre, 250.665.7511 or pr@oceandiscovery.ca
