Tristan Lee, Summer Practicum Student
Taking Flight: job shadowing the BBM avian specialist
This week, I completed a 4-month curatorial apprenticeship job-shadowing the Cowan Tetrapod Collection (CTC) Curatorial Assistant, Ildiko Szabo. I learned all aspects of tetrapod museum curation from preparing bird and mammal specimens, accessioning, to helping to install the new bird exhibit. Last summer, after completing first year science at UBC, I was looking to gain […]
A new species of rockfish joins the “flock”
Rockfishes are spiny-rayed fishes within the genera Sebastes. There are about 108 species worldwide. Ben Frable, of Oregon State University, and colleagues recently described a new species of rockfish, the deacon rockfish. There are about 108 species worldwide, but most occur in the northeastern Pacific Ocean. There are 36 species found in BC marine waters and […]
Revealing the Bandoni Fungi Collection
As a PhD student in mycology at the Department of Botany at UBC, I am always on the lookout for opportunities to expand my knowledge of fungal diversity. On hearing about graduate research assistantship opportunities at the Beaty Biodiversity Museum, I proposed to UBC Beaty Herbarium Director Whitton that I would curate fungal specimens left […]
Career Profile: Lesha Koop, Mount Maker
I am a sculptor, fabricator and observer who grew up exploring forests, stories and history, which has grown into an affection for the slower creation of quality objects and art. I believe that in this age of production, consumption and detritus such creative practice is both a pleasure and a necessary expression of activism. This […]
Birding with the Director
On Saturday, May 16 a group of 12 enthusiastic birders took part in a record breaking Campus Walk – lead by Darren Irwin the team spotted almost 30 species on their walk – a new record for our museum walking series! Darren Irwin, the walk leader, runs the Irwin lab in UBC’s Zoology Department and […]
Canadian Species at Risk Assessment Meeting Update
Canada’s Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) just completed its 53rd species assessment meeting in Wendake, Québec (April 27-May 1). Here, we assessed the conservation status of 20 wildlife species as required under Canada’s Species at Risk Act. Canada’s Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) just completed […]
BBM Curator is first Canadian certified in Avian Wildlife Forensics
Ildiko Szabo, Assistant Curator of Birds in the Cowan Tetrapod Collection was recently certified as a Forensic Scientist by the Society for Wildlife Forensic Science (SWFS). Ildiko is the second person in the world that SWFS has certified as an Avian Forensic Morphologist and the first Canadian. Avian forensic morphology is about solving puzzles. Some […]
From BRC to MarineGEO: Bringing the Biodiversity
It seems fitting that after my time spent at the Biodiversity Research Centre (BRC) as a graduate student of Zoology, I should find myself immersed in a new project whose primary aim is to quantify and explore biodiversity in nearshore marine habitats. It seems fitting that after my time spent at the Biodiversity Research Centre […]
Welcome, a new blog series was born today!
My name is Adriana and I am…well I am a number of things, including being a PhD candidate at UBC working with trees and genetics. I also enjoy translating science to the non-scientific community and that is why I decided to create this blog series. Hello everyone! My name is Adriana and I am…well I […]
The Cloud is not in the sky; it is in a basement holding our Big Data
When I think about The Cloud, I tend to imagine blue skies and white fluffy shapes. However, this Cloud doesn’t look anything like that. It actually looks like a black long block and it is usually found in dark basements. When I think about The Cloud, I tend to imagine blue skies and white […]